Aradiant turned out to be one of those companies that could not fully recover in the aftermath of the dot-com bust. Their main advantage is that they had an infrastructure in place long before the boom happened, so they were better equipped to deal with a sudden loss in the majority of their business. But it wasn't enough to keep their head above water.
Prior to the round of layoffs that resulted in the termination of my employment, the company had sunk a lot of money into Research and Development to find new ways they could capitalize on untapped market potential. But they came up empty-handed. They determined that operator-based text messaging and the Servistream website service were the only two areas they had proficiency in and looked more to supporting that end of the business. One of the things they were able to get a commitment on was that Verizon was going to send all the business for their alpha-numeric pagers through Aradiant beginning in 2002. That amounted to 4,000 accounts.
In February of 2002, the San Diego Padres looked to Aradiant to handle their ticket sales. They wanted to dump out of TicketMaster. And there was a possibility that if it went well, the Chargers would follow suit. The Padres deal would help keep the center afloat seven months out of the year. I never knew if the Chargers decided to use the service, but that wouldn't have had a much impact as they only played around 10 or so games at home every year (including pre-season).
After that, me keeping up with the company got rather sketchy. I know that my former Supervisor Camd attempted to become a Supervisor for the Servistream side. However, they left an important requirement for the position off of the company posting and didn't tell him he didn't qualify until after they filled the job.
During this time, the popularity of phone to phone text messaging skyrocketed, eliminating the need for dispatch agents. About a year later, Camd got caught up in the next wave of layoffs. He had disciplinary action on his record, so even though he had the most seniority out of all the Supervisors, he was let go. We've managed to keep in touch over the last few years and are currently connected on LinkedIn. He's the Project Director of a non-profit organization in San Diego.
I know of one dispatch agent from my team who was still with the company as of 2005. I actually located that guy. He's now a desktop technician at Navy Federal Credit Union. I'm glad he was able to find stable work.
I know that there were plans to relocate operations in Tijuana. I recall going to the company website and it was very ambiguous about what service they provided. Reading stuff on-line, it looks like they went into providing tech support for various software companies. I don't know when they finally went out of business. However, the name is now being used by a manufacturer of coating and drying machinery in Pennsylvania.
But for a significant period of time, Aradiant/NDC was an important part of the electronic communications industry and provided jobs for so many people I knew in San Diego. It wasn't the best job for everybody, but it was great for me while I was there.
Many people might call me a loser. Even though I don't have many negative attributes, I just haven't been able to really get what I want out of life. This blog is a means of helping me figure out what things went wrong and how they went wrong, but will not offer any solutions on how I can fix my problems. There will be no epiphanies here. I am trying to take a light-hearted look at my life, despite the many dark areas.
Friday, October 19, 2018
Thursday, October 18, 2018
The Second Round, Part 2
The night I got laid off from Aradiant, I got a call from Camd, my former Supervisor. He just wanted to check up on me and make sure I was alright. I told him about how I had turned in my 30 day notice for my apartment and made arrangements for a place to move.
He said that the Supervisors and LDAs had their schedules severely adjusted. He was lucky because he had the most seniority and had first pick at the available shifts. He actually got to keep his same shift of working 6am - 3pm Monday through Friday. But everyone else had schedules that were messed up. There was one LDA shift that had weird hours every day (mostly overnight) and didn't get two days off in a row. The seniority of the LDAs had been determined by how long they had been in the position. He said some of the LDAs were furious at the shifts and they DEMANDED severance packages. He didn't know if they were going to get them.
One thing I discovered was that I still had access to my work e-mail account. I couldn't believe they didn't just deactivate everyone. One of the things I saw was an e-mail by the President of the company which detailed a 10-point plan they had for reorganizing, including moving everyone in the Balboa building to Chesapeake. (I'll bet those executives who got to keep their jobs didn't like that.)
But I also saw that there were a couple of LDAs from my termination meeting who had been restored to their previous positions (but not shifts). They would be showing up and would have to be let in because their badges had been deactivated. This meant that a couple of LDAs who originally remained had managed to finagle some type of severance. But I have no idea if the returning LDAs had to return the money they had received.
A couple of days later, I saw that one of the LDAs who got his job back decided to just quit. I guess he got that one cruddy shift. In his resignation e-mail, he said something along the lines of, "The Lord needs his creatures to sleep." I don't remember that in the Bible.
I was so mad at him for just walking away from that. I would have given anything to have been asked to come back, even with those cruddy hours. Was he not even aware that he was getting paid at least $1.25 more an hour to work that shift? He would have gotten more than two years' worth of raises right there! And I still was not on the immediate list to be asked back to work. In fact, I saw that there was a lot of griping about the individual who was asked to replace him. His old Supervisor sent an e-mail in his defense. (I did get the idea that Camd griped the most about it because he wanted me to return, but he never said anything about it.)
And this brings me to my biggest issue with how these layoffs were handled. They did not take ANY measures to ensure that there were open positions available for us to slide into. I'm certain that just about all the LDAs were willing to go back to being dispatch agents. I know that we had just hired at least 12 new dispatch agents in the previous two months. They should have known that layoffs were imminent and taken measures to put a freeze on hiring. (Maybe that would have been a problem. The recruiting department would have taken note of a freeze and alerted everyone.)
In my opinion, this is how they should have handled the layoffs: First, they have 12 shifts available. Then, they call in the five Supervisors they want to lay off. They make this offer: Severance package or demotion to LDA. If anybody takes the package, they then meet with all the LDAs, except for the ones with the most seniority who are keeping their current position. Offer the LDAs in the meeting a choice between the severance package or a demotion to dispatch agent. Most would go back to answering phones and sending messages for a mildly lower rate of pay. Everybody gets what they want. And this was the impression of what we thought was going to happen when they had the first round of layoffs.
I think that what happened during that first round was that more people than they expected chose to go back to being dispatch agents instead of taking the severance package. They figured they wouldn't make that an option this time.
And of course, there was the problem with how they used two different forms of seniority in the process. When determining who to layoff, they did it by amount of time the employee had been with the company. When they assigned shifts, they did it by the amount of time the employee had been a LDA. And when it came to asking the laid off LDAs to come back, they went by who had the most company seniority.
I would have been laid off no matter which version of seniority was chosen, but I'm still angry that they weren't willing to do anything to keep us employed. I do have to admit that was probably the best time for me to get out. I would run into the people I used to work with. While they were still with the company, they said it had become a terrible place to work because everyone knew that the end was coming. A Supervisor I spoke with said they were losing so many employees left and right through attrition and was concerned that when she got laid off, there wouldn't be a actual severance package with the additional weeks of pay like I got.
I did manage to get one little last bit of pay out of Aradiant. There was an issue that went unresolved before I was laid off. Supervisors and LDAs were eligible for a monthly bonus based on team performance. It was equivalent to about $150. Camd did something wrong which kept us from getting the bonus for August, but I argued that shouldn't have had anything to do with me getting it. A couple of weeks after losing the job, I was asked to fill out a survey regarding the layoff. It allowed me to make comments and I wrote that I didn't get any confirmation regarding the outcome of that bonus. Someone from HR called me up and said they took exception with my statement. I was about to start arguing my case, but a little voice whispered inside my head and said, "This is one of those times you will get what you want by keeping your mouth shut, so don't say another word." I kept listening and she kept talking. She said they would go ahead and send me a check for the bonus. I was surprised. I wished that little voice would have made more appearances throughout my life.
Not long after that, my company e-mail account was finally deactivated. Even though this was the end of my connection with Aradiant, it was not the end of the company.
More tomorrow. (But no more after that.)
He said that the Supervisors and LDAs had their schedules severely adjusted. He was lucky because he had the most seniority and had first pick at the available shifts. He actually got to keep his same shift of working 6am - 3pm Monday through Friday. But everyone else had schedules that were messed up. There was one LDA shift that had weird hours every day (mostly overnight) and didn't get two days off in a row. The seniority of the LDAs had been determined by how long they had been in the position. He said some of the LDAs were furious at the shifts and they DEMANDED severance packages. He didn't know if they were going to get them.
One thing I discovered was that I still had access to my work e-mail account. I couldn't believe they didn't just deactivate everyone. One of the things I saw was an e-mail by the President of the company which detailed a 10-point plan they had for reorganizing, including moving everyone in the Balboa building to Chesapeake. (I'll bet those executives who got to keep their jobs didn't like that.)
But I also saw that there were a couple of LDAs from my termination meeting who had been restored to their previous positions (but not shifts). They would be showing up and would have to be let in because their badges had been deactivated. This meant that a couple of LDAs who originally remained had managed to finagle some type of severance. But I have no idea if the returning LDAs had to return the money they had received.
A couple of days later, I saw that one of the LDAs who got his job back decided to just quit. I guess he got that one cruddy shift. In his resignation e-mail, he said something along the lines of, "The Lord needs his creatures to sleep." I don't remember that in the Bible.
I was so mad at him for just walking away from that. I would have given anything to have been asked to come back, even with those cruddy hours. Was he not even aware that he was getting paid at least $1.25 more an hour to work that shift? He would have gotten more than two years' worth of raises right there! And I still was not on the immediate list to be asked back to work. In fact, I saw that there was a lot of griping about the individual who was asked to replace him. His old Supervisor sent an e-mail in his defense. (I did get the idea that Camd griped the most about it because he wanted me to return, but he never said anything about it.)
And this brings me to my biggest issue with how these layoffs were handled. They did not take ANY measures to ensure that there were open positions available for us to slide into. I'm certain that just about all the LDAs were willing to go back to being dispatch agents. I know that we had just hired at least 12 new dispatch agents in the previous two months. They should have known that layoffs were imminent and taken measures to put a freeze on hiring. (Maybe that would have been a problem. The recruiting department would have taken note of a freeze and alerted everyone.)
In my opinion, this is how they should have handled the layoffs: First, they have 12 shifts available. Then, they call in the five Supervisors they want to lay off. They make this offer: Severance package or demotion to LDA. If anybody takes the package, they then meet with all the LDAs, except for the ones with the most seniority who are keeping their current position. Offer the LDAs in the meeting a choice between the severance package or a demotion to dispatch agent. Most would go back to answering phones and sending messages for a mildly lower rate of pay. Everybody gets what they want. And this was the impression of what we thought was going to happen when they had the first round of layoffs.
I think that what happened during that first round was that more people than they expected chose to go back to being dispatch agents instead of taking the severance package. They figured they wouldn't make that an option this time.
And of course, there was the problem with how they used two different forms of seniority in the process. When determining who to layoff, they did it by amount of time the employee had been with the company. When they assigned shifts, they did it by the amount of time the employee had been a LDA. And when it came to asking the laid off LDAs to come back, they went by who had the most company seniority.
I would have been laid off no matter which version of seniority was chosen, but I'm still angry that they weren't willing to do anything to keep us employed. I do have to admit that was probably the best time for me to get out. I would run into the people I used to work with. While they were still with the company, they said it had become a terrible place to work because everyone knew that the end was coming. A Supervisor I spoke with said they were losing so many employees left and right through attrition and was concerned that when she got laid off, there wouldn't be a actual severance package with the additional weeks of pay like I got.
I did manage to get one little last bit of pay out of Aradiant. There was an issue that went unresolved before I was laid off. Supervisors and LDAs were eligible for a monthly bonus based on team performance. It was equivalent to about $150. Camd did something wrong which kept us from getting the bonus for August, but I argued that shouldn't have had anything to do with me getting it. A couple of weeks after losing the job, I was asked to fill out a survey regarding the layoff. It allowed me to make comments and I wrote that I didn't get any confirmation regarding the outcome of that bonus. Someone from HR called me up and said they took exception with my statement. I was about to start arguing my case, but a little voice whispered inside my head and said, "This is one of those times you will get what you want by keeping your mouth shut, so don't say another word." I kept listening and she kept talking. She said they would go ahead and send me a check for the bonus. I was surprised. I wished that little voice would have made more appearances throughout my life.
Not long after that, my company e-mail account was finally deactivated. Even though this was the end of my connection with Aradiant, it was not the end of the company.
More tomorrow. (But no more after that.)
Wednesday, October 17, 2018
The Second Round, Part 1
I had survived the first round of layoffs at Aradiant three months prior. At the time, I thought I would have some job security for about a year.
As mentioned in yesterday's post, I had received a phone call on Halloween from the Manager that my attendance would be required at a meeting at 10am on 11/01/01. Even though a lot of bad stuff had happened at work recently, including the day I got the call, I was mildly optimistic that the meeting would be a simple discussion of current issues, like the CEO having stepped down the day before.
I arrived at work on 11/01/01 and started setting up at a different Supervisor station. Since my Supervisor Camd and I had to be close to our team members, we had to share a station with another Supervisor team. This was the first time we'd have to do that since I became an LDA. I really didn't like the idea of having to share space like that because that meant that someone else could have access to the employee records of those on my team. I actually hoped that some other Supervisor team would get laid off so that we could have the station all to ourselves.
Camd came in at 6am. I asked him if he was going to the meeting at 10am. He didn't know what I was talking about. After we had talked to some of the other Supervisors and LDAs, we found out that some of the Supervisors had a meeting at 8am and there was a meeting for some Quality Assurance members at 9am. At this point, we were aware they were likely announcing layoffs, but we didn't know for certain if they were laying off the people at the meetings or those who weren't. (Yeah, we were being REALLY optimistic. It wouldn't have made sense to have meetings with those who were going to stay and THEN tell the others they no longer had jobs.)
I remember one LDA saying she hoped it would be bad news, because when the Manager called her about the meeting, it happened before she took her kid trick or treating and she worried about it the whole time. She felt it wrecked Halloween.
The first meeting with the Supervisors took place at 8am. At 8:20am, I saw the overnight Supervisor come to her station and start packing her stuff. She had tears in her eyes. (I thought this was really cruddy. They made her work her entire overnight shift and then come to the meeting at 8am to lay her off.) It was at this point I could no longer be in denial. If we were being called to a meeting, we were being laid off. I felt my heart sink very deeply into my chest. I was not ready for this. Even worse was that I was going to have to wait almost two hours to be told I no longer had a job.
I also found out that the Manager who had called out sick the day before had been laid off. People were coming up to her expressing their sorrow. She was working hard to be positive, but I could tell she was just as disappointed as they were. I also got the idea that she found out ahead of time what was going to happen and that was why she called out sick on Halloween.
The dispatch agents on my team were very concerned about me. They didn't want me to go. I didn't want to go, either. I realized that up to that point in my life, this had been the best job I'd ever had. I didn't want it to end like this. I spent the time before the meeting moping around. I didn't feel like talking to anyone. All I could do was figure out what I was going to do when I left.
The 9am meeting with QA and other staff members took place. I caught up with someone I had been rather friendly with, shook his hand and said goodbye. He didn't spend any time hanging around afterward.
It then came our time for the meeting. There were about five of us LDAs in the room with the lone remaining Call Center Manager and a member of the HR team. We were each given a packet. One person showed up a little late. She asked for a packet. Another LDA said she didn't want one of those packets.
The meeting started and we were officially informed that we would no longer be working for Aradiant. In the packet, we each got our final check, which consisted of the hours we'd worked in the current pay period, any unused vacation time, a week's worth of pay plus an additional week for each year that we had worked for the company. This meant I got three weeks' worth (even though I had been there a little less than two years). They determined who would get laid off based on seniority. The seniority consisted of how long we had each been working for the company. Those with the lowest amount of seniority were chosen to be laid off first. So, it was not about who had been an LDA the shortest amount of time. (Because there was an LDA who had been with the company five years and had just gotten a promotion three months prior. She was not among those being laid off.) They picked the ones with the least seniority because that meant they would be paying less in severance packages. (And it didn't matter which version of seniority they used. I still would have been among those getting laid off.)
Also in the packet was information about applying for Unemployment. There were details about programs that could help us find work. In addition, we would continue to receive our medical and dental benefits through the end of the year. This part was at least beneficial to me as I was finishing up the first level of dental work that I had started. I just wasn't going to be able to have the other stuff done that had been discussed, like getting fillings and having my wisdom teeth removed.
But this situation was worse than having my teeth yanked out. I hadn't been suddenly unemployed in more than eight years. I recalled how tough things were when I was on unemployment. At least I had more money to last me this time.
Finally, the LDA with the kid asked THE question: "Why aren't we being offered an opportunity to go back to work as dispatch agents?" The Manager replied, "Because there are no shifts available." (Remember that sentence I said was important during the First Round? I'll comment more in tomorrow's post.)
We were told we could take our time collecting our personal items and saying goodbye to everyone. This was good. I didn't feel like rushing out of there like the QA guy. I went over to the station, got an empty box and started putting my stuff in it. The first thing I noticed was that my legal-sized clipboard was missing. This actually belonged to me! I'd stolen it from the Hillcrest Cinemas when I was fired from there and I was going to make sure that came with me! I finally found it underneath a couple of other items. This meant Camd had hidden it there.
I also decided to take a few office supplies. I got a box of alcohol wipes that were frequently used to wipe down the headphone mouthpieces and keyboards. I knew these would come in handy at home. It didn't look like anybody cared what I took home with me. My main regret was that I didn't take more.
I went around and said goodbye to everyone. A couple of people, including a woman named Verz, gave me their e-mail addresses. I said goodbye to Camd and said I'd keep in touch. I went with a group of the Supervisors and LDAs to have a group photo taken.
I went to the bank and deposited the check. When I was looking at the pay stub, I realized that they miscalculated my remaining vacation hours. I had recently gone on a vacation that took up seven work days. I had already received the paycheck for that time. However, there were clearly 16 hours more of vacation on my final check than there should have been. They must have figured my final check when I was still on the first 40 hours of vacation and didn't include the other 16. This was one thing that worked out in my favor. I got an extra two days of pay.
After going home, the first thing I did was get on my computer and print out a letter to give the property management company. It was my notice that I would be moving out in 30 days. I knew I wouldn't be able to afford my own place. After that, I tried to call Unemployment. At the beginning of the call, a recording came on and stated that Unemployment benefits would be increasing after January 1st. (This was something that happened in the aftermath of 9/11.) It recommended that I wait until January to file a new Unemployment claim. I figured that what I could do is find a seasonal job, work at that through January and then file a claim. That would carry me through.
After Abed and Pesd got home from work, I went over and told them what happened. Abed said to Pesd, "See? All this is happening because of 9/11!" I then asked them if I could move back in until I could get back on my feet and find my own place. They happened to be in a bit of a financial bind at the time, so they agreed.
But there was a lot of stuff that took place in the immediate aftermath of the layoffs. I'll get into that tomorrow.
As a side note: I know this had nothing to do with me getting laid off, but because of all the crazy stuff that happened during and after Halloween, I have never again gone out of my way to make a special costume to wear to work.
As mentioned in yesterday's post, I had received a phone call on Halloween from the Manager that my attendance would be required at a meeting at 10am on 11/01/01. Even though a lot of bad stuff had happened at work recently, including the day I got the call, I was mildly optimistic that the meeting would be a simple discussion of current issues, like the CEO having stepped down the day before.
I arrived at work on 11/01/01 and started setting up at a different Supervisor station. Since my Supervisor Camd and I had to be close to our team members, we had to share a station with another Supervisor team. This was the first time we'd have to do that since I became an LDA. I really didn't like the idea of having to share space like that because that meant that someone else could have access to the employee records of those on my team. I actually hoped that some other Supervisor team would get laid off so that we could have the station all to ourselves.
Camd came in at 6am. I asked him if he was going to the meeting at 10am. He didn't know what I was talking about. After we had talked to some of the other Supervisors and LDAs, we found out that some of the Supervisors had a meeting at 8am and there was a meeting for some Quality Assurance members at 9am. At this point, we were aware they were likely announcing layoffs, but we didn't know for certain if they were laying off the people at the meetings or those who weren't. (Yeah, we were being REALLY optimistic. It wouldn't have made sense to have meetings with those who were going to stay and THEN tell the others they no longer had jobs.)
I remember one LDA saying she hoped it would be bad news, because when the Manager called her about the meeting, it happened before she took her kid trick or treating and she worried about it the whole time. She felt it wrecked Halloween.
The first meeting with the Supervisors took place at 8am. At 8:20am, I saw the overnight Supervisor come to her station and start packing her stuff. She had tears in her eyes. (I thought this was really cruddy. They made her work her entire overnight shift and then come to the meeting at 8am to lay her off.) It was at this point I could no longer be in denial. If we were being called to a meeting, we were being laid off. I felt my heart sink very deeply into my chest. I was not ready for this. Even worse was that I was going to have to wait almost two hours to be told I no longer had a job.
I also found out that the Manager who had called out sick the day before had been laid off. People were coming up to her expressing their sorrow. She was working hard to be positive, but I could tell she was just as disappointed as they were. I also got the idea that she found out ahead of time what was going to happen and that was why she called out sick on Halloween.
The dispatch agents on my team were very concerned about me. They didn't want me to go. I didn't want to go, either. I realized that up to that point in my life, this had been the best job I'd ever had. I didn't want it to end like this. I spent the time before the meeting moping around. I didn't feel like talking to anyone. All I could do was figure out what I was going to do when I left.
The 9am meeting with QA and other staff members took place. I caught up with someone I had been rather friendly with, shook his hand and said goodbye. He didn't spend any time hanging around afterward.
It then came our time for the meeting. There were about five of us LDAs in the room with the lone remaining Call Center Manager and a member of the HR team. We were each given a packet. One person showed up a little late. She asked for a packet. Another LDA said she didn't want one of those packets.
The meeting started and we were officially informed that we would no longer be working for Aradiant. In the packet, we each got our final check, which consisted of the hours we'd worked in the current pay period, any unused vacation time, a week's worth of pay plus an additional week for each year that we had worked for the company. This meant I got three weeks' worth (even though I had been there a little less than two years). They determined who would get laid off based on seniority. The seniority consisted of how long we had each been working for the company. Those with the lowest amount of seniority were chosen to be laid off first. So, it was not about who had been an LDA the shortest amount of time. (Because there was an LDA who had been with the company five years and had just gotten a promotion three months prior. She was not among those being laid off.) They picked the ones with the least seniority because that meant they would be paying less in severance packages. (And it didn't matter which version of seniority they used. I still would have been among those getting laid off.)
Also in the packet was information about applying for Unemployment. There were details about programs that could help us find work. In addition, we would continue to receive our medical and dental benefits through the end of the year. This part was at least beneficial to me as I was finishing up the first level of dental work that I had started. I just wasn't going to be able to have the other stuff done that had been discussed, like getting fillings and having my wisdom teeth removed.
But this situation was worse than having my teeth yanked out. I hadn't been suddenly unemployed in more than eight years. I recalled how tough things were when I was on unemployment. At least I had more money to last me this time.
Finally, the LDA with the kid asked THE question: "Why aren't we being offered an opportunity to go back to work as dispatch agents?" The Manager replied, "Because there are no shifts available." (Remember that sentence I said was important during the First Round? I'll comment more in tomorrow's post.)
We were told we could take our time collecting our personal items and saying goodbye to everyone. This was good. I didn't feel like rushing out of there like the QA guy. I went over to the station, got an empty box and started putting my stuff in it. The first thing I noticed was that my legal-sized clipboard was missing. This actually belonged to me! I'd stolen it from the Hillcrest Cinemas when I was fired from there and I was going to make sure that came with me! I finally found it underneath a couple of other items. This meant Camd had hidden it there.
I also decided to take a few office supplies. I got a box of alcohol wipes that were frequently used to wipe down the headphone mouthpieces and keyboards. I knew these would come in handy at home. It didn't look like anybody cared what I took home with me. My main regret was that I didn't take more.
I went around and said goodbye to everyone. A couple of people, including a woman named Verz, gave me their e-mail addresses. I said goodbye to Camd and said I'd keep in touch. I went with a group of the Supervisors and LDAs to have a group photo taken.
I went to the bank and deposited the check. When I was looking at the pay stub, I realized that they miscalculated my remaining vacation hours. I had recently gone on a vacation that took up seven work days. I had already received the paycheck for that time. However, there were clearly 16 hours more of vacation on my final check than there should have been. They must have figured my final check when I was still on the first 40 hours of vacation and didn't include the other 16. This was one thing that worked out in my favor. I got an extra two days of pay.
After going home, the first thing I did was get on my computer and print out a letter to give the property management company. It was my notice that I would be moving out in 30 days. I knew I wouldn't be able to afford my own place. After that, I tried to call Unemployment. At the beginning of the call, a recording came on and stated that Unemployment benefits would be increasing after January 1st. (This was something that happened in the aftermath of 9/11.) It recommended that I wait until January to file a new Unemployment claim. I figured that what I could do is find a seasonal job, work at that through January and then file a claim. That would carry me through.
After Abed and Pesd got home from work, I went over and told them what happened. Abed said to Pesd, "See? All this is happening because of 9/11!" I then asked them if I could move back in until I could get back on my feet and find my own place. They happened to be in a bit of a financial bind at the time, so they agreed.
But there was a lot of stuff that took place in the immediate aftermath of the layoffs. I'll get into that tomorrow.
As a side note: I know this had nothing to do with me getting laid off, but because of all the crazy stuff that happened during and after Halloween, I have never again gone out of my way to make a special costume to wear to work.
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Hard Work for Halloween
Halloween was a special day at NDC. In 2000, I was surprised at how many Supervisors and other superiors higher up the chain took part in wearing costumes to work. Two of the Call Center Managers dressed up like cowboys, the other Manager dressed up like Cruella DeVil and had two employees dress like dalmatians. The Director of Operations dressed like the Evil Queen from "Snow White." There was also a contest for the dispatch agents to take part in and prizes were awarded. It was a great day of fun at work.
That particular year, I wore a suit and had freshly shaved my head. (This was just after I had become the LDA and the team members had never seen me with REALLY short hair.) I also went around work without my glasses. It took many a while to figure out who I was. I looked like someone really important at the company. Even one of the Managers came up and tried to introduce himself before he realized it was me.
But this wasn't really a costume. I didn't do any hard work on it. But for 2001, I wanted to go all out. I decided to make my own costume. And I came up with one that I knew no one else was going to do. I decided to go as Guy Pierce's character Leonard from the film "Memento." I went to Kmart and bought a beige-colored sweat suit and white boxer shorts. The DVD had recently come out and I rented it. One of the extras was a tattoo gallery that showed all the tattoos. I took a black magic marker and recreated all the tattoos onto the specific areas of the sweat suit. I was going to wear the boxers on the outside so that I would resemble his appearance from the black and white sections of the film.
I was all ready to go for Halloween. However, on October 30th, something took place that sort of put a pall on the fun. All the Supervisors and LDAs were called into the conference room. One of the Managers and the Director of Operations had an announcement. We were told that the flex-time employees had all received notice that they had been laid off. We were all shocked. Someone asked if they were offered regular shifts. The Manager said that there were no shifts available. The flex-time employees no longer had jobs.
There were no flex-time employees on my team, so I never really knew how that worked. I did know that it meant that there were a few people who were going to be out of work and they probably weren't expecting it. I felt bad for them.
I wore my costume the next day. Everyone thought it was a good costume, but most of them hadn't seen the film, so they didn't totally get it. (I wonder if they get it now that Christopher Nolan is considered among the elite film directors.) But I noticed a few strange things that day. The first was that the Manager who dressed up as Cruella DeVil called out sick that day. Also, the other Manager and the Director didn't wear costumes. It was already starting to feel like less fun than it was the year before.
And the fun level dropped even more later in the day. The Manager and the Director called the Supervisors and LDAs from the Balboa side into the conference room. We were told that we were going to stop taking calls on the Balboa server effective immediately. That moment there, I felt downright stupid wearing my costume. If I'd known serious stuff like that was going to take place, I would have been better off wearing my suit again.
We went out and quickly told all the dispatch agents one by one that they needed to get off the phone when they finished their current call and find a station on the other side. While we were getting the last of them out, I logged on and took a couple of calls. To the best of my knowledge, I was the last person to take a call on the Balboa server.
The rest of the shift went okay. I posed for a photo to be used in the costume contest and went home at my regular time.
Late in the afternoon, I got a call from the Manager. He told me that I would need to be at a meeting at 10am the next day. He said they'd be giving more details at the meeting. I checked my work e-mail from home. A notice was sent out that the CEO had resigned, effective immediately. I figured this was what the meeting was going to be about.
After everything else that had happened that day and the day before, all the fun vanished from Halloween that night. I wasn't certain what to expect the next day.
That particular year, I wore a suit and had freshly shaved my head. (This was just after I had become the LDA and the team members had never seen me with REALLY short hair.) I also went around work without my glasses. It took many a while to figure out who I was. I looked like someone really important at the company. Even one of the Managers came up and tried to introduce himself before he realized it was me.
But this wasn't really a costume. I didn't do any hard work on it. But for 2001, I wanted to go all out. I decided to make my own costume. And I came up with one that I knew no one else was going to do. I decided to go as Guy Pierce's character Leonard from the film "Memento." I went to Kmart and bought a beige-colored sweat suit and white boxer shorts. The DVD had recently come out and I rented it. One of the extras was a tattoo gallery that showed all the tattoos. I took a black magic marker and recreated all the tattoos onto the specific areas of the sweat suit. I was going to wear the boxers on the outside so that I would resemble his appearance from the black and white sections of the film.
I was all ready to go for Halloween. However, on October 30th, something took place that sort of put a pall on the fun. All the Supervisors and LDAs were called into the conference room. One of the Managers and the Director of Operations had an announcement. We were told that the flex-time employees had all received notice that they had been laid off. We were all shocked. Someone asked if they were offered regular shifts. The Manager said that there were no shifts available. The flex-time employees no longer had jobs.
There were no flex-time employees on my team, so I never really knew how that worked. I did know that it meant that there were a few people who were going to be out of work and they probably weren't expecting it. I felt bad for them.
I wore my costume the next day. Everyone thought it was a good costume, but most of them hadn't seen the film, so they didn't totally get it. (I wonder if they get it now that Christopher Nolan is considered among the elite film directors.) But I noticed a few strange things that day. The first was that the Manager who dressed up as Cruella DeVil called out sick that day. Also, the other Manager and the Director didn't wear costumes. It was already starting to feel like less fun than it was the year before.
And the fun level dropped even more later in the day. The Manager and the Director called the Supervisors and LDAs from the Balboa side into the conference room. We were told that we were going to stop taking calls on the Balboa server effective immediately. That moment there, I felt downright stupid wearing my costume. If I'd known serious stuff like that was going to take place, I would have been better off wearing my suit again.
We went out and quickly told all the dispatch agents one by one that they needed to get off the phone when they finished their current call and find a station on the other side. While we were getting the last of them out, I logged on and took a couple of calls. To the best of my knowledge, I was the last person to take a call on the Balboa server.
The rest of the shift went okay. I posed for a photo to be used in the costume contest and went home at my regular time.
Late in the afternoon, I got a call from the Manager. He told me that I would need to be at a meeting at 10am the next day. He said they'd be giving more details at the meeting. I checked my work e-mail from home. A notice was sent out that the CEO had resigned, effective immediately. I figured this was what the meeting was going to be about.
After everything else that had happened that day and the day before, all the fun vanished from Halloween that night. I wasn't certain what to expect the next day.
Monday, October 15, 2018
A Quiet Moment of Reflection
In this blog, I've written about a lot of crazy stuff that has happened to me. I don't often write about little things that have had a lot of impact, but this happens to be one of those times.
In 2001, I was hanging out at Lestat's with Fraz and a couple of her friends. Jesd was a woman who was a little younger than us and Esd was a man a little older. I knew them fairly well from the barbecue events that Fraz would occasionally organize at her home. (And there was one at Jesd's home.) I don't recall if Fraz invited me to come to Lestat's or if they were there when I happened to come one evening. (I only lived a few blocks away. I went there A LOT!)
For the most part, the conversation centered around discussing scandalous situations involving celebrities. I refrained from getting too involved and just listened to the three of them go on and on about people we didn't know. I honestly didn't have anything better to do that moment.
All of a sudden, Esd said, "Hey, do you know what my HIV counselor told me today? He said that half of the gay men in San Diego are HIV positive!" I immediately thought, "Oh, wow! We're talking about something really interesting. This is a topic that really matters!"
And then I started thinking back to when I was in college. At the time, I didn't think I was a different person than I was in high school. I hadn't felt like I had changed that much in my attitude or in the way I thought about people. Because of this, I figured I was always going to be the same person. Everything else around me would change, but I would remain just as I am, just as I was and just as I would be.
I realized that if the person I was 15 years earlier had been sitting at a table with someone who indicated he had HIV or AIDS, I would have stood up and walked away. Not only was I ignorant about the disease, but I was still homophobic. I was aware that several of the male students I considered friends back then were likely gay, but as long as they didn't talk about that aspect of their lives, I could deal with them as if they were straight. I did not want them to confirm my suspicions. But they never knew this was going on in my head. They probably thought I was cool with it. I wasn't. I should be thankful that they were probably a little scared to discuss that, but it stinks that, because of people like me, they didn't feel like they could be completely honest with their friends or themselves.
So yes, I had changed. I was now comfortable being around LGBTQ people without being concerned about me reacting in a negative way. I had learned to accept people for who they were, regardless of their sexual orientation. I looked forward to hearing more about this HIV revelation and how it was going to impact Esd.
And then they went right back to dishing dirt on celebrities. DAMN!
In 2001, I was hanging out at Lestat's with Fraz and a couple of her friends. Jesd was a woman who was a little younger than us and Esd was a man a little older. I knew them fairly well from the barbecue events that Fraz would occasionally organize at her home. (And there was one at Jesd's home.) I don't recall if Fraz invited me to come to Lestat's or if they were there when I happened to come one evening. (I only lived a few blocks away. I went there A LOT!)
For the most part, the conversation centered around discussing scandalous situations involving celebrities. I refrained from getting too involved and just listened to the three of them go on and on about people we didn't know. I honestly didn't have anything better to do that moment.
All of a sudden, Esd said, "Hey, do you know what my HIV counselor told me today? He said that half of the gay men in San Diego are HIV positive!" I immediately thought, "Oh, wow! We're talking about something really interesting. This is a topic that really matters!"
And then I started thinking back to when I was in college. At the time, I didn't think I was a different person than I was in high school. I hadn't felt like I had changed that much in my attitude or in the way I thought about people. Because of this, I figured I was always going to be the same person. Everything else around me would change, but I would remain just as I am, just as I was and just as I would be.
I realized that if the person I was 15 years earlier had been sitting at a table with someone who indicated he had HIV or AIDS, I would have stood up and walked away. Not only was I ignorant about the disease, but I was still homophobic. I was aware that several of the male students I considered friends back then were likely gay, but as long as they didn't talk about that aspect of their lives, I could deal with them as if they were straight. I did not want them to confirm my suspicions. But they never knew this was going on in my head. They probably thought I was cool with it. I wasn't. I should be thankful that they were probably a little scared to discuss that, but it stinks that, because of people like me, they didn't feel like they could be completely honest with their friends or themselves.
So yes, I had changed. I was now comfortable being around LGBTQ people without being concerned about me reacting in a negative way. I had learned to accept people for who they were, regardless of their sexual orientation. I looked forward to hearing more about this HIV revelation and how it was going to impact Esd.
And then they went right back to dishing dirt on celebrities. DAMN!
Friday, October 12, 2018
Tired of Towin' the Line
It seems like I'm always having issues with parking in my neighborhood.
This was a close call I didn't enjoy very much.
This was a close call I didn't enjoy very much.
Thursday, October 11, 2018
The 9/11 Protest
I wrote about my 9/11 experience a month ago. Now that it's 10/11, I thought it would be a good time to reflect on something that took place shortly afterward.
In the aftermath of 9/11, we were facing the possibility that the United States would be going to war. A lot of my friends and I did not like the looks of that prospect. A march was organized to take place in Downtown San Diego on Saturday, 09/22/01. (I had no part of the organization. I was simply told it was taking place and was invited to come.)
I arrived at the meeting location outside Horton Plaza. There were about 200 people gathered. I caught up with a few people I knew. Fairly soon, we were marching on the sidewalks. Many people carried signs that said, "No War!"
While we were marching, we got so many bewildered and frustrated looks from those we walked past. It was like they were trying to say, "How dare you!" I actually was not expecting this strong a reaction. We didn't stir up this much emotion when we took to the streets to support Ralph Nader. I remember this one guy coming up to us and SCREAMING at us all red-faced, almost like someone he knew personally died in the attacks.
I didn't personally engage with anyone who didn't agree with what we were doing. But I was close by when the red-faced man was having an animated discussion with one of my friends. He continued SCREAMING, even though she was two feet away from him and wouldn't let her get a word in edgewise. It was like he absolutely wanted everyone loosely connected with the attacks to die and die horribly.
I wondered how many who saw us suddenly became aware for the first time that there were people who would be against going to war. Did anybody even consider the possibility that there were a large number of people who did not support going to war? At the very least, we didn't support just jumping into war right away. We wanted the government to thoroughly investigate the terror attacks, determine who was responsible and take appropriate measures. I honestly couldn't see why anyone would find that unreasonable.
There were similar marches held across the country. As much attention as they received, they had no significant impact. We went to war.
Eventually, the public at large got very frustrated with the outcome. I wondered if anyone who shook their heads at us that day, including the red-faced man, looks back and thinks, "They were right. We should have listened."
In the aftermath of 9/11, we were facing the possibility that the United States would be going to war. A lot of my friends and I did not like the looks of that prospect. A march was organized to take place in Downtown San Diego on Saturday, 09/22/01. (I had no part of the organization. I was simply told it was taking place and was invited to come.)
I arrived at the meeting location outside Horton Plaza. There were about 200 people gathered. I caught up with a few people I knew. Fairly soon, we were marching on the sidewalks. Many people carried signs that said, "No War!"
While we were marching, we got so many bewildered and frustrated looks from those we walked past. It was like they were trying to say, "How dare you!" I actually was not expecting this strong a reaction. We didn't stir up this much emotion when we took to the streets to support Ralph Nader. I remember this one guy coming up to us and SCREAMING at us all red-faced, almost like someone he knew personally died in the attacks.
I didn't personally engage with anyone who didn't agree with what we were doing. But I was close by when the red-faced man was having an animated discussion with one of my friends. He continued SCREAMING, even though she was two feet away from him and wouldn't let her get a word in edgewise. It was like he absolutely wanted everyone loosely connected with the attacks to die and die horribly.
I wondered how many who saw us suddenly became aware for the first time that there were people who would be against going to war. Did anybody even consider the possibility that there were a large number of people who did not support going to war? At the very least, we didn't support just jumping into war right away. We wanted the government to thoroughly investigate the terror attacks, determine who was responsible and take appropriate measures. I honestly couldn't see why anyone would find that unreasonable.
There were similar marches held across the country. As much attention as they received, they had no significant impact. We went to war.
Eventually, the public at large got very frustrated with the outcome. I wondered if anyone who shook their heads at us that day, including the red-faced man, looks back and thinks, "They were right. We should have listened."
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