Have you ever had an INVOLUNTARY CAREER EVENT?

[AviatorTom]

In the latest in politically correct (PC) language, companies are now using the phrase "involuntary career event" when getting rid of an employee, which in the past may have been called "you're fired" or "being laid off" or "being made redundant" or just "hit the road, get out of here".

Have you ever been the victim of an "involuntary career event". If so, how did you handle it?

[OlderAndWiser]

I was a mental health counsellor in Tampa at a community mental health center. The psychiatrist who was director of the CMHC hired one of his patients to be a department director. I know that sounds crazy, but this is the kind of shit which happens frequently in the mental health field. Right, @msc345? She didn't act too crazy as long as he was around keeping an eye on her; she was a good puppy as long as the master was at home. Eventually, he left the position and moved on, and she got crazy. She was intimidated by me because I understood my job better than she did. So she lied and said I missed a staff meeting without being excused, although I had previously told her that I had a doctor's appointment. She fired me and I was out the door like a two-bit whore! I was driving home from being fired and came to intersection that had tremendous significance: turn left and go home, proceed straight through the intersection and go to the unemployment office to apply for u/e benefits, or turn right and go apply for a job at another CMHC. I turned right and told them I had just been fired. They knew my boss and knew she was nuts so they ignored that I had been fired and hired me on the spot. However, I was starting at the bottom of their pay scale and it was a substantial pay cut. I decided that this was the right time for me to return to my hometown so, after a few months, I resigned my position and returned home. After another few years, events fell into place for me to apply to law school. I applied to one school and said "If it's meant to be, one application should be enough." I got accepted into law school, loved it, graduated with honors, and I'm still practicing 38 years later. And it all began with a crazy woman firing me on a trumped up charge.

[Hispanic-Cool-Guy]

What a stupid phrase just like all other PC BS.

[IslaTheWitch]

once :D
I was unemployed for 57 days... they fired me 2 weeks before Christmas when all hirings were frozen until half of January, lol...

[purplepoppy]

Next it'll be involuntary trouser trauma instead of diarrhoea

[BCRanger10]

So that's what they're calling it now? 🙄

Anyway, yes. Twice.

The first time, the company outright lied to me. I was told that I'd have about three months of training before they put me on my own. What happened in reality was I was given two weeks of observation with absolutely minimal hands-on work before they said "okay cool, have at it". Then after six weeks, they fired me for what they called "performance issues". They lied again in the memo when they said I was trained to the standards, had been corrected and retrained on my performance, and had been warned. I wrote a letter to the corporate headquarters and told them everything and a few weeks later, my then-boss' job was on Indeed. I guess they "involuntary career evented" her 🤷‍♂️

The second time was with the last place I worked before my current job. I'd been there about seven years total. A new manager came in and started shaking things up. He put me on the busiest part of the week by myself with no backup and no overtime. He was of the mindset that everyone should know and be able to answer for everything that everyone else did or didn't do.

In my opinion, he was woefully incompetent. How he managed to convince the big boss to give him that job is a mystery that would drive Sherlock Holmes to certifiable insanity. I never knew where I stood with him. He changed his mind on how he wanted things done every other week, was a horrible communicator, and made a lot of people at our location very angry.

Anyway, one day, he calls me into his office to talk about something that happened over the weekend, tells me he's tired of "having the same conversation" with me, and then tells me he's filing termination paperwork with HR. I got the last laugh though. Three months later, everyone in my department was gone as well, positions which were notoriously difficult to fill because no one ever applied. Three months after that, I'm taking with a guy I used to work with and he tells me that there were discussions happening about asking me to come back. That of course did not and was not going to happen. A few months later, I get the job I now have and am getting paid $10,000 more now than when I left.

[Lliam]

A couple times.
When I was 16, one of my first jobs was working at a place called Pup 'n' Taco. It was kind of like a Taco Bell. I was great at working the drive-through and front windows, making change, and making up the orders. But I was never trained and I was putting too much filling in the tacos and burritos. I was a hustler, but I didn't know that I was supposed to be running around wiping down all the stainless steel when I had a second.
Also, the two older kids who worked there were ass holes and never liked me.
Anyway, the boss came in one day and said he wouldn't be needing me anymore.
I was happy, said "Thanks!", and walked out the door.

In my early 20s, I went on unemployment for almost a year. I milked for as long as I could and spent my time surfing and partying.
They finally sat me down and started pushing jobs in my face. I took one painting apartments.
I wasn't good at it. I was too slow. The Mexicans kicked ass at it.
After about two weeks, the boss said he wouldn't be needing me anymore. I was jazzed.

I excelled at all my other jobs, working at a full service gas station; working at a lunch counter concession (not a deli) inside a grocery store; stocking shelves and working the warehouse in a department store; making keys, doing engraving, and selling Ticketron tickets in a concession inside a Sears store; janitor in charge of floors for a school district; a couple of warehouse jobs; and finally a career as a motor vehicle damage field adjuster/appraiser for an auto insurance company.
My employers at all those jobs loved me.

[Demonatrix]

Yes I was. Nobody wants to be fired but in my situation it was the best thing for me. I was injured outside of work and was unable to work for months, my work place was unable to continue to hold my job. In order to get a government payment I couldn't resign I had to be fired.

[GuyAnswersGirls123]

That's just ridiculous. "involuntary career event" just makes very little sense to describe being fired. Might as well shorten it to being "job raped". "I got job raped today."

I've actually never been fired though. I think in my profession as a software developer working in CG, it demands a lot of specialized expertise of a kind that makes engineers extremely costly to replace.

[GuyAnswersGirls123]

Involuntary career event (what a mouthful!) sounds like someone jizzed their pants involuntarily. So I think if we want to come up with alternative PC language, rape would be a better analogy since it's something that happened to us. "I got job raped up the ass today."

[GuyAnswersGirls123]

[*] [...] since it's something that happened to us [externally] [...]

[Anonymous]

Yeah. I got hurt at work and they decided I was a liability now after working them for 20+ years. How did I handle it? I didn't fight it as I was in no medical position to do so at the time. I accepted it, healed up for a time, then took all my knowledge and resources and went into business for myself. It was the best decision I ever made. I really wish I had decided to do this before getting hurt.

[exitseven]

I worked for a place that was most likely going to be out of business. I went back to school and got a degree in Computer Science and changed careers. I was almost 40.

[NathanDavis]

I involuntarily career evented my boss...

[BoopBoopBeep]

Sort of. When they said the war was over we were all just kinda like... uhm... right then...

[DJB72]

Got fired from McDonald's. Being self employed helps

[noohair]

I was fired and every time it was a good thing as I could not see that it was a bad fit.

[KrakenAttackin]

More than once.

[msc545]

I have. I sued and won.

[Anonymous]

Yes, last month. Still looking for a new job.

[CozyCoffin]

Nope.

[butterly248]

Nope