Now Where Was I?

Ok. This may not be the most exciting story you've ever read, but humor me because this has all been buzzing around my brain and I got to get it out!!

So in early November we have the all staff meeting at Home Sweet Home to find out that they are in a bit of a pickle because their "bond mortgage" has been cancelled. I don't know what a bond mortgage is, but I know that sounds bad. Suddenly Home Sweet Home is without credit and in some trouble because our population had been low for the entire year as well.

They had my sympathy. The staff meals were cancelled, no turkeys for Thanksgiving, wage freezes...I was OK with that. We even expected a reduction in staff or hours.

One Monday in early December we have our dietary staff meeting and the Home Sweet Home director was there (which was unusual) and two guys we didn't recognize. This was the first time that any of us heard that we were being outsourced to a new company, and the changeover was happening the following Monday.

Our collective jaw needed to be scraped off the floor.

Then the two guys took over. The smaller, younger looking one I nicknamed "Suit" and I don't think he said anything the whole time. The older, bigger guy who earned the nickname "Hatchet" (which later morphed into Rat Bastard, but I don't want to offend anyone with my language) made a point of introducing himself and finding out who we were and encouraging us to ask questions and assuring us that they would try to make the transition as easy as possible although it may be difficult at first. Everything was OK -- even though we were now considered new, 90 day probationary employees for this new company so forget any seniority you may have had, as well as vacation time for the coming year, and you will have to COBRA your current insurance because, of course, 90 day employees aren't entitled to benefits.

I was in a really weird place. I was part-time, benefits were not an issue, and I wasn't trying to support anyone with my income. But I was surrounded by people who had years in at this place, many in fragile economic conditions, oh yeah, and did I mention that Christmas was only weeks away? And that the economy was tanking so jobs were getting scarcer? It was like being in a herd of panicking cattle. Stressful wasn't the word for it.

Even worse, we were effectively given the boot from the Home Sweet Home family. Not that they darkened our door often, but it sure seemed like we were seeing the upstairs management even less. "Fed to the wolves" was the phrase that kept bouncing around. Ironically, it was around this time that Home Sweet Home held its staff-appreciation in-service. Oddly enough, this also wound up being the day that the Healthy Food Group Company (yes, a pseudonym, from what I can tell they do have lawyers and know how to use them) needed all the full time staff to meet with them to make sure they understood the insurance situation, I think (as in, you ain't getting any for 90 days). This left us laughably short-staffed in the kitchen (I was working that day), so attending the staff-appreciation was largely impossible, although I was still inclined not to go on general principle. Worse yet, the kitchen had to make the food for the staff in-service. I told my immediate supervisor, Helen (not her name), that she should sneeze on the snacks (she's also a former Home Sweet Home staff person and thus in the same boat as everyone else).

In case any of you were at the in-service, she didn't.

Oh my, how can someone write so much about what is essentially a non-story? OK. I lost my part-time job. Bigger things happen all the time. But for me it was a rude awakening to the reality of the current economic fiasco, and the uglier side of unfettered capitalism.

OOPS! Time to pick up someone up from school!! More when I can get near the computer again!