[PhotoshopScrapper]

OK gals and guys, I've been putting off asking for prayers as long as I could (cause there's so many other more important prayers being requested and said at the moment). But I could really use some of the prayer power you all generate right now.

I've worked for a company for 21 years now. In December I was informed I'd be transitioning to a new manager that I didn't want to work for so I started looking for another position. Yesterday we were told we're being outsourced to a new company. They're not giving anyone wiggle room to find another position inside the company at this time. However, since I was looking for a new position before all this was announced and found one. I'm asking for your prayers that they let me be an exception and allow me to take this position.

We don't have many options. Apparently there are 'hundreds' of people affected in this outsource (that's what we were told). We have to tell the new company on 1/25 if we accept their job offer and it is an irrevocable decision. If we say no and can't magically make all paperwork happen between 1/25 and 1/31 (4 business days) we're on the street. That's extremely risky since paperwork usually takes 3 to 4 weeks at a minimum here. If we say yes, we officially resign from our current company and work for the new one....no turning back.

One side of the table (my current side) is saying we will do everything we can to make it happen that I am moved before 1/25. The other side is saying their hands are tied till 1/25.

I believe I am meant to have this position due to the timing of everything (job post and interview all happened after I was told about working for someone I didn't want to work for and right before the outsourcing announcement). I believe (at the moment) that God wants me to follow this path .... mainly because the timing of everything was so perfect. The prayers I need are for all the involved players to make the right decisions to help make it happen.

My boss (whom I've worked for for about 10 years) and all but 3 of my coworkers were also affected by this. Out of all of us, I am the only one with a single ray of hope to continue working here. Please also pray that the company they (and maybe me) wind up at treats everyone fairly. The current consensus is we basically have 12 months to find another job before the new company lets us all go. She (my boss) is spending her time right now to see if she can help make this happen and to reach out to all her employees. This is typical of her. We're all involved, including her. She is the sole breadwinner of her family and at this time is reaching out to see if there's anything she can do for the rest of us to make it at least a little easier instead of seeing if there's any options for herself.

I really appreciate your thoughts and prayers!

Thank You

Denise

[SewKitty]

Denise,
I hope things work out for you. It is scary when companies change like this.
Hugs,

[regulargal]

Oh my, that all sounds so stressful! I'm praying and hoping it will all work out for you in the end tho, things always happen the way they're supposed to happen - that's my philosophy anyway!

If you don't mind my asking, what type of work do you do??? Are there other opportunities for your skill sets in your area?

[PhotoshopScrapper]

I do system testing for a large telecommunications company. Basically testing websites and their transactions to make sure everything works as it should for users and all the back end 'stuff' happens correctly.

There may be other opportunities for my skills. None will be at my current pay rate or allow me the flexibility that I so cherish here. I work 35 hours a week from 7 to 2pm (no lunch) so that I can come home in the afternoons and take care of my daughters. They're 12 and 8 and amazingly to me tell me with words and actions frequently that they benefit from me being here in the afternoons with them. The disruption to my family is what I'm fearing most at the moment.

[PBarnes]

I will keep you in my prayers Denise. Sounds like a scary time for you.

[DDecker]

Prayers for you Denise that you find the best outcome where ever that may be.

[Scrapin Pat]

You and your co-workers are in my prayers. This sounds like a really scary and difficult situation.
Please don't ever hesitate to ask for our prayers - God listens no matter how little or big our concerns are. How fortunate you are to know the power of prayer and how it can help!!!

[Shelbi]

I will be praying for you and your co-workers too.
That does sound very stressful. But sometimes it's shake ups like this that help us get where we are supposed to be.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Michelle

[Ro]

What a situation. I've just had a flashback to my Novell days. UGH.

I will certainly remember you and will pray that the Lord's will will be done.

I feeling moved to offer a few particular thoughts. I hope it will be okay because I don't want you to feel that I am not listening to you. I am listening - and have actually heard my own voice (in the past) coming out of that post. So here goes...If you can possibly get to the point where you relax and allow the Lord's will to work, things will ultimately end up well for you. I've lived through a couple of work situations in my own life in which I practically forced myself into them by praying so hard for what I wanted and sort of forced myself into them. (I think the Lord gave me what I wanted to teach me a lesson.)

Now I look back and I think, "I shouldn't have done that. I should have been more trusting." They didn't end up well for me. Actually, both of them ended up being disasters and I am still trying to recovering emotionally from them. It is so ironic because I was in the other room considering what actions I need to take to try to finally get over them right before I came in and read your post.

I now have the opinion that when it comes to jobs and employment, I will pray that the Lord helps me find the spot where HE wants me to be - no matter what that is. I will remain open to His will. This is because He sees ahead and doesn't see through the eyes of fear. When we are in the situation that you describe (and I've been there), fear is in the air. Fear walks the walls of the building and fear is in the eyes of the people. Fear is on the desks, turns the chairs, and comes out of the copy machines.

Try very hard to distance yourself from the fear. I would advise you to pray that you will not be afraid and tell the Lord that you have confidence that He will help you no matter what the outcome. Tell Him that you trust Him to lead you to the ultimate solution for you. If that solution is this particular position that you have been promised, wonderful! If it isn't, then tell Him to help you see what to do. Explain your family situation to him and ask him to lead you. (Of course, He doesn't need you to tell him. He needs YOU to tell him because that is faith and you are required to have faith to receive help from Him. The exercise of explaining your situation to him and telling Him that you trust Him is faith.)

My very best goes to you, your family, and your co-workers. I pray that the Lord helps you all through this difficult time. Changes like these are very traumatic.

My heart goes out to you in the biggest way imaginable. I can't even describe to you how much I am feeling your post. I relate to it and I wish I personally had the ability to make everything all better for you.

[jennk]

Denise, prayers are going up for you. I was in a similar situation a few years ago. I was working at a center that was housed at a local university. Our center lost its funding but I was to transition over to a department in the education school. It was stressful trying to get everything all worked out so that I didn't lose insurance. Much like you I had a deadline when my old job ended and I needed to be picked up by the other department before that so I wouldn't be insurance-less (nor my family!). The best advice I can give is do everything YOU can. I kept in constant touch with my human resource person. I didn't want to pester her but I figure no one watches out for you better than you. My story had a happy ending and I got transfered right in the nick of time. I pray that you will get your situation worked out too. Be proactive and do all that you can. Be the squeaky wheel that gets the oil!! Best of luck to you!

[Kricket]

This is a horrid position to be in. Years ago the company I worked for sold and we
were given a choice : work for the new owner or leave. I was so stressed about not having a job that I went with the buyers without even considering other options. It was a rough 8 months trying to make things work but I finally gave up and quit(without a new job in site).

After taking a few days to stop and think about what I wanted and my qualifications I found a job that I enjoyed and worked well for me.

I will add you to my prayers. And remember there is always room to add prayers. God. I believe, doesn't limit the amount of prayers that He hears. Never fear to ask.

Good luck and keep us informed.

[ManiakMama]

Lots of prayers headed your way Denise!

[PhotoshopScrapper]

Ro, on Jan 10 2008, 11:12 AM, said:

What a situation. I've just had a flashback to my Novell days. UGH.

I will certainly remember you and will pray that the Lord's will will be done.

I feeling moved to offer a few particular thoughts. I hope it will be okay because I don't want you to feel that I am not listening to you. I am listening - and have actually heard my own voice (in the past) coming out of that post. So here goes...If you can possibly get to the point where you relax and allow the Lord's will to work, things will ultimately end up well for you. I've lived through a couple of work situations in my own life in which I practically forced myself into them by praying so hard for what I wanted and sort of forced myself into them. (I think the Lord gave me what I wanted to teach me a lesson.)

Now I look back and I think, "I shouldn't have done that. I should have been more trusting." They didn't end up well for me. Actually, both of them ended up being disasters and I am still trying to recovering emotionally from them. It is so ironic because I was in the other room considering what actions I need to take to try to finally get over them right before I came in and read your post.

I now have the opinion that when it comes to jobs and employment, I will pray that the Lord helps me find the spot where HE wants me to be - no matter what that is. I will remain open to His will. This is because He sees ahead and doesn't see through the eyes of fear. When we are in the situation that you describe (and I've been there), fear is in the air. Fear walks the walls of the building and fear is in the eyes of the people. Fear is on the desks, turns the chairs, and comes out of the copy machines.

Try very hard to distance yourself from the fear. I would advise you to pray that you will not be afraid and tell the Lord that you have confidence that He will help you no matter what the outcome. Tell Him that you trust Him to lead you to the ultimate solution for you. If that solution is this particular position that you have been promised, wonderful! If it isn't, then tell Him to help you see what to do. Explain your family situation to him and ask him to lead you. (Of course, He doesn't need you to tell him. He needs YOU to tell him because that is faith and you are required to have faith to receive help from Him. The exercise of explaining your situation to him and telling Him that you trust Him is faith.)

My very best goes to you, your family, and your co-workers. I pray that the Lord helps you all through this difficult time. Changes like these are very traumatic.

My heart goes out to you in the biggest way imaginable. I can't even describe to you how much I am feeling your post. I relate to it and I wish I personally had the ability to make everything all better for you.

Ro, you are so right with everything you said and those are the prayers I have been praying for since the first piece of news in December that I was being transferred to an undesirable manager. That God would show me the path HE wanted me to follow and make it so brilliantly lit that silly me would not be able to miss it or mistake it for something else.

My current manager just told me that the hiring manager actually put the offer in writing and sent it to the people he had to send it to. The date on the letter and on the email to his hiring organization is 1/8/08. The outsourcing announcement was dated 1/9/08. Therefore, even the date of the offer letter from him precedes the outsourcing announcement. I did not know that he had done this step until a few minutes ago. My manager (and forgive me for not relaying names, I don't know how any of my coworkers would feel if they ever stumbled across this and I respect them to much to violate their privacy), is pretty sure we can make it happen. I know too well though not to count chickens before they hatch. It could still be stopped.

Things are happening extremely quickly today with all the ups and downs. I don't expect anything to be final one way or the other today or even this week.

Knowing I can count on the prayers of everyone here is overwhelming. You'll never know how much I appreciate you all.

Thank you so much for your kind words and most of all your prayers!

[Ro]

What wonderful news! Dated one day before. I'm so happy for you. Miracles can happen!

Just look what happened for Scrap Girls when I finally put out the call for you guys to pray for us. I think that we would still be stewing and fussing, not knowing what was wrong but because you guys have prayed, today the final fix will be made.

I have to confess that your situation has caused me to pace around my house, worrying about you. It hits so close to home. So I'm going to believe that one way or another, you are going to look back in a year and say that you had a few miracles of your own.

Please keep us updated... and know that you are going to be in my prayers and thoughts for sure.

Big hug,

Ro

[CRS]

I will be keeping you and your coworkers in my prayers. It must be a very stressful, difficult position to be in.

[Ro]

I've been re-reading a book that has helped me through some incredible times this morning. It NEVER fails to uplift me and straighten out my mind and thinking. It is called Remembering Wholeness by Carol Tuttle. I have allowed myself to slip into fear and I am sorry that I have transmitted it to you. Your call threw me back and brought to the surface feelings that I have been struggling with again.

Reading Carol's book reminded me (again) of the powerful truth that what we put out in the world, we create for ourselves. If we are afraid, we create fearful experiences. I have been struggling with feelings of inadequatecy lately (too much stress and I haven't been feeling great and a few other things). I am now determined that I am going to remember what I have learned.

So here are some statements that Carol suggests saying to yourself that may be helpful in this situation. I thought I'd share them with you.

I am experiencing that I have everything I need.
I am creating larger sums of money; money flows easily into my life.
I am always flowing in more money than I am flowing out.
I am comfortable with money, I spend it in integrity and have fun with it.
I am generous in sharing my wealth because I always know there is plenty for me.
I am creating more and more of what I want effortlessly.
I am assisted by the powers and spirits of heaven. I ask for their help in all areas of my life. As I ask for what I want, they take care of orchestrating all the details and bring me what I have asked for. I am grateful for this powerful assistance. (By the way, when Carol is talking about this, she is talking about people such as our friends and family who have passed or angels on the other side that are interested in us. Since I believe that they are interested in us and help us, I am sharing this thought with you.)
I am grateful for the feelings of peace and well-being that abound in me.
I am creating more and more experiences that generate feelings of joy.

Anyway, I wanted to try to uplift you a little bit and apologize to you for any feelings of fear that I may have transmitted. That was me. I am circling back to what I know to be true now.

Faith is a far better position.

[AmandaFace]

im so sorry to hear that! ill be thinking of you ... hoping for the best!

[Zaz]

Praying for peace for you, Denise, and a sense that God has got this all covered for you. Let us know what happens!

~Zaz

[Sarah in VA]

Denise,

I'll add my prayers to the others that you will be shown what is right for you and your family, and will take the right course of action.

And thank you so much Ro. You never know who is going to read your words and who will be touched by them. You were addressing your thoughts to Denise, but they were so much of what I needed to hear too - this very afternoon. Especially thank you for coming back with the quotes from Carol Tuttle's book.

I have been fussing around here all day because we had a trip planned to Texas today. It's been one I've been looking forward to and dreading at the same time. Family dynamics, unresolved issues, you get the idea. And I've been powerfully praying that we would have a good flight and a very pleasant visit. And vowing to trust in the Lord that this would happen - that and being on my very best behavior!

We were to leave about 1:00 this afternoon. We had a phone call early this morning from the airline, woke us up actually, saying our flight had been cancelled and now we won't get out of here until after 5 this afternoon, getting us to DFW after 8, then we rent a car and drive for 2 hours! One long day, plus a missed evening activity with friends.

Your post reminded me that I had prayed and asked for an uneventful, smooth flight and a pleasant weekend all around. Now I realize that the powers and spirits of heaven are orchestrating things for me today so that this can be so, and in order to make it happen, flights had to be changed. I really do have faith and believe that there are spirit guides who are interested in me and help me out constantly. Sometimes I just need to be reminded.

So instead of wasting this free time, I've spent it on the Message Board where your words were waiting for me to read them. Thank you!

[nicole_j]

Denise I hope the best comes about for you! It is awfully hard to go through the uncertainty. I hope you find peace of mind in the meantime.

[justpattyanne]

Denise, You are in my prayers. I pray for your peace of mind, your family's well-being and your continued emotional & fiscal health. The well-being of all who are affected by this move are also in my prayers.

It is odd how the stories of others help/affect us.

I too went through a couple of major relocations & company overhalls. I hung on so tight to the jobs & perceived security that they offered... until they wore me completely out. I was under so much stress and working such incredibly long hours that I had no life. I realize now that God was leading me away from those situations. I held on (and he made the load harder) and I held on (and he made the load heavier) until I couldn't carry it any longer. I finally let go.

It is still hard for me to not be a major bread winner (with the security of inexpensive benefits), but today you & Ro have reminded me of WHY God led me away from the career/job path that I was on. Now I have a marriage and a DD. I am able to be home with my DD and I am able to help my husband's livelihood and travel with him to Europe a month out of every year. God has provided for us - sometimes in unexpected ways.

One of my resolutions for this year is to "Rest in Him". The past few years I have just kept trying to do more and do more and pray harder and.... I've laid the groundwork. I continue to pray. But now I'm trying to 'get out of the way and let HIM work'. I'm trying to "Let Go & Let God". It's not always easy because I'm a girl of action "There must be something else I can do..."

I know my situation is not yours... Your & Ro's stories just reminded me of where I was and the feelings that I still struggle with. You have both brought me a bit of peace of mind.

God was already working for you. He gave you a yellow brick road before the wicked witch showed up. I am keeping the faith that your situation will only improve, that you will be led to something even more rewarding than now. I offer prayers and faith.

...and hugs

[PhotoshopScrapper]

Thank you everyone. I have no news to share yet, however I am feeling TONS calmer today then I was yesterday. I trust that God is pushing me down the path he has chosen for me. I know my manager is working to make sure I can move to the other internal job ... she keeps me updated every couple hours without me asking her. It's not a done deal, it could still be stopped, but she's doing everything she can to make it happen (in spite of the fact there is no saving her own internal job).

All of your prayers ARE bringing me peace. Whatever the outcome, it is God's chosen path for me. Course I do have my personal desires for what outcome I would currently prefer at this moment but He will make the final decision. I will probably have to deal with more stress in the mean time (still have a picture in my head of hanging off the side of the building by my fingertips) but I'm trying to just remain calm for now and pray it all works out.

Ro - no need for apologies. I did NOT read your first post as fearful at all. It was very uplifting ... that even though things might be bleak right now ... God will provide and in the end (whenever the end is) we will be OK. To quote you "in 5 years this will all be over" ... one way or another.

Thank you!

[Wxchic]

Denise, I hope it works out in your favor. My prayers and thoughts are with you!

[PhotoshopScrapper]

I just wanted to give everyone an update and thank you all again for praying for me.

As of today, things aren't looking all that promising. I've been given a list of requirements which would make me releasable. As far as my mgr and I can tell, I meet all the stated requirements. Once the requirements have been met, the HR team has to review everything. This sounds simple but it's not. The only thing HR is currently telling everyone is that they're looking at my case and others like it (apparently out of the 800 or so affected employees, there are a few others in similar positions). They won't give us any indication of WHEN they think they'll have an answer one way or another.

My hiring mgr is being told by his people he can't start the paperwork until 1/25 AFTER I decline the outsourcing offer. Even if I were to decline the offer sooner, he still is being told he can't start paperwork till 1/25. If I'm forced into waiting till 1/25 before any paperwork can be started ... there will be no point in starting it because they won't complete it in 4 business days.

I'm now down to 9 business days before I have to give my answer about the outsourcing company. Past experience shows that in most cases (there are a few exceptions), development and test functions are usually sent overseas within the first 12 months (that would be my job).

I've somehow managed to jump past the first 3 stages of 'death' and am skipping right on to the depression stage.

Please continue your prayers.

Thank you

Denise

[justpattyanne]

KEEP your faith close. If it were easy & obvious, it wouldn't be faith. I'll pray for your job situation, your strength, courage, and overall well-being. This IS a nerve-racking situation to be held in.

Keep praying for HIM to lead you. Do everything that you can - and listen to him to guide your steps.

Things really are going to work out for you Denise. THEY ARE!

In the meantime -

[floss]

Denise I have just caught up with this thread and I have read it right through and I have felt as though as was on a roller coaster of emotions,downs,a little ups and then down again.How you,yourself ,must be feeling is hard to imagine.It will colour your days and your nights. What a terrible stressful time for you and your family.I hope and pray everything will work out for you.

[MaryJo]

You got it Denise... Have Peace tonight and rest with God !!!

[sthrnbelle05]

You're in my prayers. I hope they're able to make it through in time and God's path will become clearer to you.

Bethany

[PhotoshopScrapper]

Well everyone, things are just going from bad to worse. After days of dodging, my manager and I finally got the HR person on the phone. She had been telling everyone that my situation was being looked into. Well, late this afternoon she decided that she would now ask for the paperwork on my situation and review it (in other words, she hadn't done anything with it yet).

She's NOW saying that since I didn't have the job offer in writing from STAFFING before 1/9 that officially I don't have any job offer and therefore no job other than the outsourcing company. I pushed her hard and got her to at least SAY she'd review the official paperwork that is on the job (there is paperwork that I am not allowed access). She needs to review that the hiring mgr interviewed me at the proper time and he interviewed other candidates (assuming there were any ... I don't know), and he dotted all his I's and crossed all his T's appropriately. IF that is the case, they will force me to decline the outsourcing offer and will not process any paperwork until 1/25 anyway. Which would basically mean the paperwork wouldn't get done and I'd be out on the street on 1/31.

So basically, as I pretty much figured they would do, they're changing the rules as they go along to make sure the employee is screwed.

If I sound bitter .... it's because I'm MIGHTY bitter. I (like most people) HATE being jerked around and lied to. That appears to be exactly what is going on here. Now this lovely woman said I should call her later this afternoon at a specific time (I did (and every 5 minutes after the appointed time for a half hour) ... she didn't bother picking up the phone). I will be doing the same thing tomorrow morning starting at 8:45am eastern (she gets in at 9 supposedly). I am betting she won't be picking up the phone then either.

At this point, I would love for my entire team to hit the lottery and be able to tell both companies SEE YA ... find someone ELSE to do the work. It would feel like such poetic justice. It would be wonderful to see the big companies NOT get what they want for a change and leave them twisting in the wind.

Oh and if matters couldn't get any worse, the jerk they were moving me and another gal under is still pushing for that to happen (in the outsourced company). We've supposedly been working for him since the middle of December. We haven't yet had one conversation with him. He sent us one email after the first of the year about having weekly meetings and asking for availability. He deleted my response to that availability without even reading it (read receipt is a wonderful thing sometimes). Yet he's fighting for us to be moved under him.

Now typically the way these outsourcing arrangements go, if the accepting company involuntarily lets you go within the first 12 months, they have to pay the severance pkg from the original company (in this case it would be a severance package worth 21 years service). If the accepting company lets you go 12 months + 1 day from the start date, they only have to pay you a severance worth 1 year.

Sorry to vent all this here. I feel like I could scream (among other things).

I'm having a real hard time understanding His plan at the moment. Certainly seemed at first as if He was shining a big ole spotlight in one direction, as of today, it's like He's turned that spotlight off and not turned a flashlight on to replace it. If walking away from the entire mess was an option, I'd do it in a second....and boy would it feel good. Unfortunately it isn't a financially viable option.

Thanks for letting me vent.

[ChristinaP]

Sorry to hear this is not working out for you. I can understand your frustration.