Sunnovabtch
 

My wife gets all of her superiors' calendar appointments. One of them today got an appointment for a call at 5:30 to discuss knocking the analyst headcount down from 3 to 1 for 2009. She is an analyst. She is also the highest paid, due to her being extremely smart and hard working. Unfortunately, in my experience corporate restructuring looks at $ and she will be gone.

It goes without saying that her resume will be hitting the pavement tomorrow morning, maybe even tonight (better than waiting to see what happens).

My salary will not cover us indefinitely. We have some savings (finally, after 5 years of trying), but I'd really really like to not step backwards and spend out of it.

That brings us to me. I am horrifically underpaid, but it is my first year and my plan was to walk in on my 1 year anniversary to discuss a hefty pay raise, which in and of itself may seem ludicrous in this age of layoffs and cutbacks. The reality is that with the hours they get from me, I could quit and probably make more working hourly at subway and be under a hell of a lot less stress. The question is, would it be too soon (9.75 months) to ask for increased compensation?

This just sucks like unbelievably.

I should probably get my resume together and look around too, in the hopes of a better paying position. Thing is, people here would likely get wind (its a small world). Perhaps that would benefit me, as maybe this would serve as a catalyst for a salary increase. Then again, it could backfire, although I honestly think that they could not functionally afford to lose me. Then again, companies don't always make smart decisions.

Did I mention this sucks?

I think she has a shot at staying..
if I have to give up 2 out 3..
I'm keeping the best..not the cheapest..
with less staff..keep the best.
good luck

Rika

Too bad the presidential bid thing didn't work out for you this time. Maybe you wife will be the 1 they keep. I'm not sure I would leave your current job to pursue a higher salary. You stated that you are close to the 1 yr anniversery and perhaps the raise will come about. If you start a new job then you are back a square 1.
See what happens with hers and bide your time at yours. Yes it does suck.

Similar thing happened to my mom before Christmas. An e-mail about closing her office was sent to the wrong "Linda".

Don't be so sure about management making the wrong decision. Lucent laid off all of its highest-paid engineers about ten years ago. They made that quarter's numbers, but went from stock market superstar to bottom feeder in short order because of that short-sighted decision.

As for you Mark, I don't know if I'd be making waves right now. If you can make more money at Subway, I'd just do that. Every business in the country is under pressure right now, and they might be inclined to get rid of an employee they feel is squeezing them just to save themselves from headaches. I will temper that by saying you know your company better than any of us, and you probably know better what would work and what won't.

Could go either way.

Depends on what they are trying to achieve.

Lot of variables.

Some companies make it a habit of doing layoffs for no other reason than to bump the stock price.

In that case the street prefers body count, not necc revenue saved.

Wow you sound like me from 2 months ago. The wife was let go after 20 years. My industry is way slow right now and I am at the end of my savings acct.
I knw it is a hard thing to do, but don't stress till you have to.

My 2 cents.
Wait until you see what happens! I pretty much agree with all those above. If I have a choice between a person who can do (3) jobs and (2) that can barely do there own, guess who I'm going to pick.
And, you know if it works out that they lay her off, my guess is they will give her some sort of package, or worse, unemployment while she looks for a new job.
I would also point out a lot of companies may be laying off, but there are others looking to upgrade the people they have and there are a lot of really good folks out there thru no fault of there own looking for a job.
Yes, tighten the belt for a while until your wife lands something and I would at all costs, not approach your current employer no matter how low on the pay scale you are. You need the experience and if you end up losing your job in the mists of all this, maybe a sub shop sounds good, but remember there are probably (3) PhD’s in line ahead of you for the same position. Doesn't hurt to have your resume up to date and actively look for something new. If you find something you either leave or negotiate with your current employer. But have an offer in hand first.
I have also always found having a one on one conversation about things in general and then working the conversation around to explaining your NEW situation and specifically, compensation/benefits with your employer, they will usually listen fairly empathically. They don't want to lose a good employee as much as you don't want to leave for another job. I would try to get an idea of how you are performing from their perspective before asking for more money, and do it causally not... I want to have a meeting to discuss more pay. You don't want to get them defensive before you even have the conversation. My guess is if they are happy with you they probably would consider upping your pay under NORMAL conditions.
I know from my early job experience during another recession, I ended up working out a 4 day work week for the same pay, so I got 3 days to go develop a side business doing antique furniture restoration. Guess what? I made more money do the side business than my 'full time job'. I actually had a blast doing it until the economy turned around again and my employer was able to give me a raise. And the kicker..I was able to turn over a pretty decent business to another fellow and he paid me a couple points on every piece he handled for another 8 months or so after he took over my 3 day a week business.
Point is, you have to sometimes get a bit creative about making more income. Just some thoughts.
Good luck, keep us posted on how things work out. Remember, this to shall pass!

Have your wife watch American Beauty. She should try to pull the same thing Kevin Spacey's character did when he was laid off.

Let us know how it goes.

See, and I know this guy named Rod who got creative about making more income, and it doesn't seem to be working out too well for him. ;)

That sucks.

My wife has never been laid off because she has never had a job. A successful strategy.

I'm not a big fan of Subway. Any other options? No matter how you handle your situation, go big or go home. Make sure it is something you can report to us with pride. Better to burn out than to fade away . . . etc.

That sucks.

Why wait to see what happens? Maybe she could go to them and say she saw the calendar and wants to make a pitch as to why they should keep her. Be proactive!

I honestly don't say it just because she is my wife- she IS the smartest one there. She's a friggen mathematical genius. And on top of that, she is extremely personable and has spot-on work ethic.

Problem is, a year ago she got a gerat job offer from another company and her current employer boosted her salary to keep her. So she is costing them more.

As for the perception of my bosses in relation to my performance, it can be nothing but stellar. I've never failed. Ever. In fact, I did 33 hours straight from Sunday night to Tuesday to get a project done for these guys, just as an example of what I do. My pay is certainly more than you would expect for a guy who just suggested working at Subway, but my point was that if I am routinely putting in 70 hour weeks, my pay starts to look kind of crummy. Because my wife had 3+ years in the industry, her pay is a lot higher than mine (we both do the same work). On just my salary, my dreams of having a savings account dissipate.

None of this would be as frustrating if we were slackers, but damn- the two of us have been putting our souls on the line for our jobs in a group effort to get somewhere in life, and so far it really has not paid off. It was ok when we were 22, but at 30 you start to wonder how you'll ever get out at this rate.

That sucks.

You must be very good for your wife!

That's what you are supposed to say when she vents like I just did. I always make the mistake of trying to help or solve. Thank you for considering my emotions :D

That sucks.

(Eyes glazing over, glancing out the window, trying to focus, suppressing urge to ask "What's your point . . .")

Wishing the best for you, but to be honest, at 30, you still have some dues to pay. Those of us at 50+ remember the 80's (when we were 30 something).

Never hurts to ask for an increase, just be well prepared to justify your request. A bigger question you need to entertain is this, how well is your employer doing? Record profits, go for it, if not, might be a little tougher. Generally, companies do what they perceive that they need to do in order to survive, nobody ever said it was fair. Put yourself in their shoes. Another question you need to ask yourself, can they find someone else to do my job, just as well for less pay?

At any rate, I wish you and your wife well. Tough times don't last forever. Hang in there.

President perhaps? :D

Good luck with it all. A lot of other people are feeling the pinch right now.

Sounds like they recognize her value to the company.

Update
 

Wife is still employed. Apparently at the meeting her boss claims to have fought like hell to keep her, and I have no reason to doubt him. But all is not gravy.

To keep her, he had her salary (and that of the other person) cut by 33%, and instead she is on commission sharing. The amount of sharing, if it was 2005, would actually mean considerably more money. But based on my projections for this year, we just lost a lot of money. BUT- I guess she is still employed.

As for me, I realized that I need to cool my jets a bit. Sure, I am working my friggen ass off to the nth degree, but until the 1 year anniversary it would be an uphill battle.

I am just wondering if us two hard-working professionals will ever break through to the other side and have actual excess income, instead of just floating. Just seems awfully crappy. But no matter- I have decided to not be a victim and instead come up with creative ways to make money outside of work.

Cut by 33% is better than being unemployed in this economy. just my opinion.