12th Feb 2008
No more job. Bummer.
I have resolved to quit my job.
Things have been going down the shit hole for a while now, and I just can’t take the bullshit anymore.
Two of my paychecks bounced last fall, but I said to myself, “I’ll stick with it and things will get better and I’ll be no worse for the wear and have an awesome job.”
I mysteriously received a raise (surprise!), a few days before they fired the only other HTML Programmer, which I thought was a little suspicious. So now I had a raise, and 2-times the workload.
Shortly after, 70% of the employees fled, and they kept telling me, “You better start looking for a different job,” and I said “Yeah, thanks, but I’m going to work through things around here and see what happens.”
Then one payday came and I didn’t get a check at all. The boss was out of town and “Oops! - Forgot to sign the checks!” Bullshit. BUT I STAYED AND WORKED THROUGH IT, because apparently I am a dumbass.
Many suspicious happenings and shady business practices later, things got REALLY weird and people started getting paranoid and playing the blame game. I was told that *I* was “unreliable” and I am now no longer allowed to work from home because it’s “too difficult” to “track” the work that I do at home. Apparently, the last 8+ months working from home, I’ve just been stealing money from the company.
Oh, and my schedule is no longer flexible, as stated in my original employment contract. Oh, and since I’ve been missing so much work because of the winter weather and being snowed-in at our house in the country, I’ve only been getting 30-35 hours (3-4 days) in a week, which is not full time, so I lose my benefits, insurance, vacation and sick time.
I was told to “consider my options” and “talk it over with my spouse” and blah, blah, blah. So I did. Bo said, “Fuck them. They’ve fucked you around so much, they can eat shit. Their business is fucked, they can’t even pay the people that work for them, and they’re either too stupid, or they don’t give a shit enough to carry payroll insurance like a responsible employer. Fuck them. Quit. You’ll get another job, and you’ll actually get PAID for the work that you do.”
But I got all wishy-washy, and was like “But there’s so much work to do, and I feel so bad, if I leave it will just get shoved off on everybody else and make them more frustrated and overworked, and I just don’t know…” and Bo said, “Fuck that! None of that is your problem. They should wise-up and leave, too.”
That was Tuesday, Feb. 5th.
On Wednesday, we had the worst snowstorm in Iowa since 1973. 14 inches of snow in 24 hours, with sustained winds of 30-50 mph after that. We were snowed-in and drifted-in and fucked Wednesday and Thursday; Bo logged about 30-hours worth of plowing and re-injured his back which had just been “adjusted” the week before. Poor guy, works so hard for his family, you just can’t stop him. Thank God for him.
Then came Friday, Feb. 8th, when I was handed a piece of paper that looked like a paycheck, smelled like a paycheck, same relative size, weight, and density as a paycheck, but has yet to be converted into worthwhile currency. The bank won’t cash it because there is no money in the account. No employees can cash their checks. There’s no money. I don’t know when/if there will be.
I am holding my check until Friday. I don’t know why. Whether it clears or not, I’m done. I’m turning in my time, and on Friday, Feb. 22nd they’ll send me another piece of paper with a dollar amount and a signature that’s worth nothing and it’s going to turn into a fuck-tarded ridiculous mess. FUCK.
I feel terrible. But I’ve felt terrible since the start of the new year because of all this shit and I’m sick of it. If I stay there, I’ll just keep feeling like shit. I am committed to my decision, and everyone I’ve talked to agrees that I should get out and seek more a more stable payroll and work environment. Friday, Feb. 15th will be my last day. So sad. I will miss my co-worker friends.
Fuck.
