Out of work?

Poll Poll Are you currently employed (including self-employed, sole trader, company owner, etc.) and working.

  • Yes

    Votes: 34 82.9%

  • No

    Votes: 7 17.1%
  • Total voters
    41
mmm-five

mmm-five

Lifer
 Liverpool
Site Supporter
Just a quick poll to see how many of our fellow forum members are out of work at the moment.

I'm self-employed, but all my contacts have dried up and I'll be trawling the agencies next week to get some temporary work in the meantime.

I've also seen a lot of colleagues & friends in the same industry feeling the pinch too!
 
Unemployed and have been for 18 months. The boredom is more of a problem than the money, it's like being a hermit trapped in doors with no-one else off work :(
 
I'm relativly safely employed. The games industry it's a bit odd at times like this. I suppose it helps when you may not actually release anything new for a few years, so any economy problems during that time are less relevant.
Plus all those bored people still tend to buy games and give up on other luxuries first.
 
I thought I was safe (for at least another 6 months anyway), right until the bombings in Mumbai.

I had 3 offers of work, one in Mumbai for big steel company, another in St Petersburg/Moscow for the 'privatised state housing company', and another in Berlin/Stockholm for a heavy plant manufacturer.

I finished in Dubai in November, got my Z4MC after deciding the M5 was costing too much to run, and did 4 week's work for GlaxoSmithKline to Christmas. All the time I was expecting one of the 3 potential contracts to call me to give me a firm start date and location, but I started to get nervous and chase them up instead. The Mumbai one was still on, until the bombings when the company pulled out. The Russian one was off as they'd not paid quite a few invoices (into the £m area here), and the Berlin/Stockholm one was downsized so they didn't need me after all.

One by one, my employment prospects dissolved.

I got a bit of work in January which has helped, and I had funds for any unexpected periods of unemployment, but those funds will eventually disappear and I know it takes almost 2 months of work (plus expense) before I start making any money again due to the cycle of invoice payments.

I'm just glad the Z4MC prices haven't dropped anymore and if the worst comes to the worst I'll have an asset to sell - but that is probably after I've maxed out the credit cards and overdraft, changed my name and faked my death :evil:

Ah well, I'm off for a drive to cheer me up - as I can't afford those expensive anti-depressant pills :P
 
The airline industry has picked up so they are replacing their old inefficient gas-guzzler airplanes by new better ones which means that they need flight simulators for these new aircraft so that keeps me employed. And the U.S. government is kind enough to finally replace slowly but surely their aging fleet of aircraft (fixed and rotary wings) which means that we get our share of flight simulators. Flight simulators are invaluable tools for training pilots for emergency situations à la Hudson River landing.

Good luck with your employment woes.
 
flimper said:
Unemployed and have been for 18 months. The boredom is more of a problem than the money, it's like being a hermit trapped in doors with no-one else off work :(
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Without being too nosey, what industry do you work in? How are you managing to make ends meet?

Fortunately last Summer I chose to take up an opportunity to work on a two year project, which means being seconded to a different business unit and staying away from home which is difficult sometimes, but there are many people who would like my problems at this present time.

Glad to be in employment (touch wood).
 
Currently out, as of about 3 weeks ago when my last contract ended. Have a few prospects, and hoping one will come in soon. I have a buffer to tide me over, but it never lasts as long as you think!

Should it come to the worst tho, the Z will be the last thing that goes - i'll sell my soul before I see that handed over to anyone!!! lol
 
I have a Joinery Company in Kent, and at the moment we are holding our own, but it is very inconsistent and getting paid is a nightmare, still here though, so have to be thankfull.


I wont say " touch wood" as we have more of the stuff than we know what to do with :D
 
Local authority worker here - so relatively safe but the job is soooooooooooooooo dull and the pay is a bit crap! I shouldn't complain though, at least it's a job and it's safe and the conditions are good. The Council I work for has a "no redundancy" policy and - unlike a few of my colleagues - I've got a permanent contract, whereas they all have end/review dates on theirs :). I'm also income-generating, and what I generate covers my expenses and salary and punt any profit back into the Council. So I should be safe...

I'd been seriously thinking about a complete change of career and going back into studying/graduate scheme - so glad I didn't as most graduate schemes I was looking at are now extremely limited.
 
This type of thread really opens your eyes.

Im very lucky as my day job as a designer has a years full order book and we have maybe 1 years design work and some tidying up of projects.

Our gym has picked up too since christmas, seems people want to keep fit but cheaper which is where our PAYG memberships hits the spot.

Not moaning but spare time is something i rarely have, weeks are either day job or at the gym........ Started day job yesterday at 8am Left our gym at 11pm ish last night.

Im out with the lads tomorrow night for a blow out..... I cant remember the last time we all met up.... :headbang:

If its any help they say the second hand car market is a good early indication of coming out of a recession, and it does seem to be leveling or even rising slightly. Im no expert on this though.

Cheers

PaulN
 
Sh*t, it just goes to show how things change:

My boss just spoke to me 15mins ago - my job is safe, but my role is going to change (for the worse I guess). A colleague has been working on a secondment for 2 years and was due to return last June, but didn't, so her post has been filled on a casual basis since then. My line manager just got told today that the post won't be advertised or filled - it's a victim of the Council cutting back, but without actually making a contracted post "redundant". So we're losing a member of staff.

And guess who'll probably be assigned a lot of the work from this other post? Yup, me... :(
 
An accountant for a regional development agency (government funded) so no problems unless the Conservatives get elected which would change things. However my accountancy firm has not seen any new business for over 6 months now. I'm still very greatful as I nearly left the RDA to try and work in the motor industry.
 
I feel very fortunate to be working in Michigan which has the highest unemployment rate in the country. The automotive industry here has fallen apart. It's easy to point at the three US automakers and fault them for their own problems, but many where I live and work rely on them indirectly for employment. Too many suppliers have gone under and too many factories have closed. My industry is somewhat safe, but this entire region in getting worse daily. I regularly see people going from 6 figure salaries to nothing. In one of the most affluent areas in Michigan, you can have $1 million home for nearly half its worth.

Like I said, I am very fortunate.
 
according to my people , I have a position but never have worked!!!!!! :)
 
Still employed as an engineer with a manufacturing company - have been here 23 years. But we have seen business dry up a lot over the last few months, and there have been 2 rounds of cuts so far. Another is coming. The down side is that management cuts the people and still expects the same amount of work to be done, so those left end up doing more and more with each round of cuts. Of course no pay for the additional work either....

Aside from that I have my own business making/selling/repairing mechanical watches, so that helps a bit. :thumbsup:
 
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