I never understood people who leave ahead of likely layoffs and I've said it before, but this takes the cake. We know when layoffs are going to happen. We know for a fact our department will be hit. And yet a coworker told us ahead of the weekend he was giving his two-weeks notification starting Monday. Why? Why not wait for just a few more weeks? Why literally give up a decent amount of money? Why???
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Good move to whoever did that. Remember that when you involuntarily separate from ExxonMobil, you will sign a contract saying you could never, ever, be employed again by them and their affiliates. Not signing this gives you flexibility to come back in the future, if ever ExxonMobil is still a good one to come back to.
Trust me. If I find an opportunity I like, I will take it and not look back. Yes, other industries are hiring, just need to get your resume updated, make connections, and fill out applications. Quit acting like there is no world outside of XOM. That's extremely close minded and even pathetic.
Think about
- Education reimbursement - once upon a time you could get an MBA or any other training at top schools and the company would pay for it. Those days are long gone.
- Savings plan - once upon a time we had a match. It won't be coming back anytime soon if ever.
- Cost of living adjustments - gone
- Expat opportunities - gone and for the few remaining opportunities premiums have been cut severely and other benefits gone as well
- Travel, conferences, etc - replaced with CBTs and online learning over zoom in the evenings or lunch
I could go on, but you get the point. This empire is definitely in decline.
I'd say it speaks to the what the company has become - toxic and without opportunity. People go where there are opportunities. Oil and gas is in decline and we are leading the decline. #winning
Most people who joined the company are used to being the best - highest offer in their graduating class, joining the largest publicly traded O&G company, etc. We are a far cry from what we used to be and there is no sign the destruction is anywhere close to an end. Why stick around and wait to be PIPd? If you think this is the last of it you are naive. I strongly recommend anyone with less than 5 years leave immediately. Those with more tenure will have a harder time finding a job, but should also be looking. Follow the opportunity - it isn't at ExxonMobil. You can stick around as the company slowly dies and watch your good pay and benefits slowly die with it.
Because now there are other industries paying “a decent amount of money”.
Why should I wait until “I’m next”? Management and executives like to emphasize that people should “focus on what they can control”. That’s solid advice. If you happen to be able to control searching for and landing a new job, why not do that?
What g0b said. There’s nothing out there now. If you’re one of the lucky few to find a company that is willing to hire you, why stick around for your current company to fire you! Waiting until the masses are laid off and getting a severance is not worth it. Until you’ve worked on job applications and interviewing for weeks at a time, it probably doesn’t make sense.
A lot of companies will give a sign on bonus to cover the 3-4 months, Also, 3-4 months will be gone fast, and especially if you have to pay Cobra. Having a good job with benefits it worth a lot more than having 3-4 months pay. It is about stability now and nothing else. I have geologist , geophysicist, and engineer friends that have been out of work since January 2019. There is nothing out there for those disciplines.
Some people like to take control over their lives and not let work control them. I know odd concept.
You'll understand when you've wasted years of your career on a foundering ship. You reach a point where the relief of getting out is far more valuable to you than a few months salary. Also the resentment is usually at a pretty high level by that point, to where you don't even want their money anymore. It's a dignity thing. Far too many people in this racket sacrifice their dignity for a little more money, and it's always so pathetic.
That’s what intelligent people that are capable of finding a position do - jump into a safe boat before the ship sinks.
You’re going to wait until the market is flooded with EM people? And everyone realizes you don’t know anything outside of following the doag?
Why wait 3 months and loose out on a job versus taking one now and getting out? It's not that difficult to comprehend..
Plus, the market is going to be saturated with engineers looking for a job likely in the same area as others that are let go. It's smart to get ahead of the wave of people (losing out on some money) to have less compitition.
Perhaps the coworker has his/her next job lined up and needs to leave soon?