"Well", my boss said as he came in our room right after our coffee break, "I've got some bad news for you."
Sometimes things get cut, jobs get shortened and then sometimes people get cut from the crew. Not fired, just.. no longer needed for this particular job.
Guess what happened to me yesterday?
Yup. Since my partner and I were doing all the hedges, and the park that had it's decorations get cancelled was apparently all hedges (and would have taken a week for us to complete), we got laid off.
Although the extra week's pay would have been nice, this isn't that big of a deal, really. One of the first lessons one has to learn in this industry is that layoffs don't mean a thing - somehow the crew size can no longer be justified to management and someone has to go. Happens all the time.
If I wanted stability, I'd have gotten a real job, now wouldn't I?
The funny thing is that throughout this whole job, we've been jokingly telling one another to stop moving so fast or we'd work ourselves out of a job.
I'm still taking today off, since that six days in a row thing hurts me bad (and I have no more clean work clothes), but I'll start to make calls tomorrow. Hopefully I'll turn up something for next week, and if not, I'll have some time to work on other things - like the cupcakes I got talked into baking for Thanksgiving next week.
Oh, shit - Thanksgiving is next week.
Bet I won't get any work, then. Hello, unemployment check.
6 comments:
I was wondering about something ... do any of the production companies or other businesses for whom you work provide health insurance, or do you have to buy your own? Our employment-based health insurance system doesn't seem to be very well suited for people who have multiple employers.
Peter
Iron Rails & Iron Weights
Didn't you see the movie, "Big" when the guy told Tom Hanks to pace himself? Sheesh. Good workers are seldom rewarded. Hey girl, enough with the Christmas lights, go soak your feet in a tub of warm water.
btw...there's no real stability in those "real" jobs either. companies get "right sized" all the time. the holidays is a popular time for laying people off (3 of my friends are about to be laid off within the next couple weeks). you may as well be happy doing what you love, even with instability looming. makes no nevermind to the world.
oh! and i'm hanging christmas light too! but, just on my porch.
hmmmmmmmm....maybe i should wait till after thanksgiving. keep the holiday stuff in its proper order.
Oh man! Your kidding. What a huge pile of stress right before the holidays. I know you will get another job easily enough, but hiring always seems to take longer around the holidays. In the tech world it seems no one gets hired between Oct-Jan. Keeping my fingers crossed for you.
I've had a "real job" for the past 9 years.. then one day 7 of us were told we weren't needed any more. I've been told by quite a few people that it happens all the time, but for me it doesn't make it any easier.
For Peter -- a lot of folks get healthcare through the unions. Though a member of WGA and the Dramatists Guild, I have never used their insurance, so I don't know how good it is, but I know several of my friends, particularly IATSE members, go through the union to get insurance.
I personally purchase my own, as an independent contractor. I used to get group coverage through the local Chamber of Commerce, but now I just buy directly from the provider.
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