Are any of you effected by the shaky economy?

I am happy to be employed but our boss is taking full advantage. He has eliminated positions and simply has the rest of us making up for it by doing jobs that were never ours to do on top of what we already do.

He expects us to go anywhere he sends us at the drop of a hat and to work any and all hours he decides on at the last minute.

He seems happy knowing we are afraid of losing our jobs. He is making big money right now. I am wondering where this can lead. The guys all hate him.

I am trying to work steady and not fatigue myself and to stay mentally stable.

I hope all of you are doing ok.
Kit

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/22/2009 06:49AM by suncloud.

Gee Kit, your boss seems to be trying to take advantage of the situation.

But good you still have a job!

We're doing OK. My husband has a fairly steady job. But our retirement fund is less than half of what it was.

Same so far. I'm assuming my seasonal May through end of Nov. Arts Council job will continue indefinitely because it's a city job and Cambridge is a wealthier than average town. When it warms up and I start busking (street performing) again, tips may be down a bit, but I don't expect much change there.

I'm very concerned for the homeless here. Our governor has gotten this hair-brained idea to make the homeless work 30 hours a week or be kicked out of their homeless shelters. Since 3/4 of these people are mentally impaired, stressed out veterans, elderly, or mothers with little kids, I think it's incredibly unfair to try to fix the economy on the backs of the most vulnerable.

My immediate relatives all seem to be holding onto their jobs and doing fine, except for my brother, who shockingly just quit his long-time job teaching computer science for the University of Phoenix. Hope he finds something better quick.

Sharrhan:


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Kwan,

Your governor sounds like a creep straight out of Dickens. It just makes me want to weep in shame and despair for this country. And no, that's not hyperbole. I swear, if I won the lottery, I'd spend every penny making the lives of others better. I am all about inculcating a sense of self-reliance in people, but forcing the homeless to earn their keep in this economy is just . . . wicked. I cannot understand people who are heartless, I really can't.

>It just makes me want to weep in shame and despair for this country<

Me too, Tamukha! We have to just keep our hearts open and our eyes open too for opportunities to help in some way.<

Tonight I heard something incredibly inspiring (on a commercial during the Academy Awards, actually) about a woman who has somehow single-handedly set up cafes where homeless people can go and get real food for free-- just like a real restaurant in every way. They can choose a variety of great food from a full menu, and the cafes are really attractive and cheerful, not at all like going to community dinners or a soup kitchen.

Out of work now, hopeless will find something this spring. Wish I could think of a self-employment idea.

you could teach people how to play chess and also teach them how the raw vegan diet sharpens their mind so they can win chess competitions





LV

" I see live people."

I'm actually doing okay; I live in an already depressed area and bought my house really reasonably a year and a half ago, so it hasn't depreciated in value. My job is pretty stable (for now; same with hubby), and I actually got another very part time job, and we just bought a really cheap piece of conserved farmland. My brother has taken it you know where, though, but he's got a great attitude about it.

OOPS, geeze, I just noticed it says no economics on this forum. Also I spelled it econimic. Appologies.

But I do hope you all weather it well. I'll be quiet now.
Peace, Kit

I am experiencing some of the same things Kit is going through. We had a huge layoff in Nov '08 and another one in Jan '09. Luckily I missed both. However, we are made to do jobs that are nowhere near what we were employed for.
I work as an electronics technician, but for the past 5 weeks or so I fluctuated between my job and a host of other jobs like packing stuff, marking aisle with tape, photocopying documents, assembling circuit boards, putting signs all over the place and pretty much anything the supervisor thought of. Grrr that's not what I went to college for!! Lol
Anyway, I have to do it if I want to keep my job. On top of that I heard that there was going to be another layoff in march. Things are not good right now, financially, for me but I'm hanging on.Best of luck to everyone.

i didn't have much before and i don't have much now so it's pretty much the same for me. our needs are very simple generally so easy-ish to meet. food prices have gone up a lot, had to tighten the belt and refine my already skimpy budget a bit but we're alright. i can still afford to rent a movie, buy books from the school for little and indulge myself with a small treat now and then. i think the less you have, the less you need and vice versa is true. i can see how it's gotten very tough for people who are used to living at the top end of their means or beyond but it's probably a good thing that this is all happening, it will reteach the old values of thrift and saving up for purchases rather than using credit. a painful lesson to be sure, but an extremely valuable one.

ya know a week ago when Kit first popped this question i thought .. well .. it seems business as usual around here .. me .. my family nothing really has changed

but ive never lived on credit , other then my car , which if there was actually a decent transit system out here i wouldnt have in the first place.

i talked to my dad today and he told me 4 of my 6 brothers have been laid off from work because well . theyre big dollar upper management exec types and well .. expendable .. and my sister who just sold her house and cant find a replacement to move into .. her husband just got canned too and now nobody wants to mortage them because hes out of work and shes a stay at home mom

ive always been the black sheep of the family kinda walking to my own drum beat .. live in my car . strap the hankie to the stick and hit the road sorta thing and honestly my fairly well to do brothers and sisters with their bmw's and porche cars and living on credit have always kinda looked down their nose at me

im comfortbly self employed and sure the folks i do business with could go under any second and then im out a paycheck ... but i really dont need much to live off anyways

i find it odd and disturbing that my older brothers and sisters have never aquired any survival skills and are so distraught at the moment

it is a hard lesson for sure

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

I have a strong suspicion it's those of us who already live simply who will come through this relatively unscathed. Jonathan and I already treat life a bit like a camping trip, knowing that things are never completely 100% secure and static (that would be boring anyway!) and we had best be like 'the Fool,' ready to pack the duffel bags quick and move on, or be willing to find new opportunities if current ones dry up.

Sharrhan:


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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/01/2009 05:45PM by kwan.

Kit Wrote:
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> Are any of you effected by the shaky economy?
My Portfolio is down about 40%, but I
don't care. It's only money. There are more important
things in life.....like Health and Well-Being....WY