Laid Off for the Holidays
I’m not sure what I wrote in my last blog and, since I’m too lazy to make a few clicks and read it, I’ll just assume that I didn’t mention that my day job was going to temporarily layoff all hourly people for the last two weeks of December. As it turns out, I was wrong. It isn’t two weeks. It’s THREE WEEKS.
“Happy holidays to you too, buddy!”
Faced with that prospect, the marketing department braced itself for the worst. Then came talk of keeping some of us poor saps on the payroll so that we could come in and prep for the new year. With limited hours to go around, none of us expected to be working continuously. The department was alive with chatter about how unemployment benefits work and if holiday pay would affect it and how soon we would get our first check, etc.
A little after lunch we were called into a conference room to go over the schedule for the rest of December. Most people were only getting four days over the next three weeks. Sure, that was in addition to holiday pay for Christmas and New Year’s, but it’d still be a serious blow to their income, especially now with expectations of gift-giving.
I scanned down to my schedule and was pleasantly surprised to find that I was working every day. It did, however, put me in an awkward position, because now I was sheltered from the maelstrom and could only look on as my coworkers were swept away in the storm. Granted, I had no say over the schedule and the hours were justified by the huge workload I have ahead of me. Furthermore, I am the only copywriter on staff whereas the people with the fewest hours all have the same title. Still, I prepared myself to face accusatory glares from across the conference room table. And, as an empty show of camaraderie, I reached for an employment benefits handbook when Human Resources popped in to discuss options.
So, it looks like December’s going to be alright!