Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community - View Single Post

eazyduzzit · 01-11-2007, 04:18 AM

Well the long suspected bomb was finally dropped and i actually feel more relieved than not.

I'll make this as short as i can, I've worked at this place for approx 4 years managing a handfull of staff. The company is basically a branch off of a Houston based one and was started at scratch by me and some former friends/colleagues, it deals with seismic testing and some aspects of drafting when it comes to the well structures up in Ft. Mac that draw oil. For a good chunk of the work, its out of office which demands our employees take leave from their families and travel to the oilsands. I had to deal with long hours and a humongus workload to get it off the ground and profitable so we could employ more staff. I played a key role in all of this and contributed almost a full year of approx 14+ hour days to grow the company. The Houston branch got bought out so management was switched in our office but i managed to keep my job and position. The company basically has the mentality that you are either on the managers side or your your on bad terms and since i stuck up for my employees all of the time and voiced concern and opposition to many proposals, i was usually on bad terms with the current owner. Basically to give some of you an idea, once the management was switched we or should i say they had a tendancy to employ people with little to no experience for cheap, resulting in the few staff that knew what they where doing having to train and basically do two jobs -- their own and the person they where training, which was just too much to handle and in some circumstances dangerous. Yet everyone for the most part put up with it. Management expected way too much out of these staff members and i was always the first to say we can't do this or that won't work. The goals they axpected to achieve in the short term where always long shots. I was always the first to stick up for my employees when it came down to salary as the management lowballed each and every one of them, when i knew they where putting in overtime and coping with huge work loads and deserved much more taking into account the abstance from family (most where also under the industry avarage). Two other employees who played a larger than normal role who spoke up like i did recieved a demotion (over time with the argument of other factors) and eventually let go. Through all this, my colleagues supported me and the company (to my knowloge) knew i was the most vital piece to holding it all together, training and accomplishing the tasks at hand. As well as being one of the few stupid employees who would work this hard and put up with so much crap and so much stress... so this did not happen to me...until recently.

Lots more drama has unfolded in this company but those where just a few examples off the top of my head whthout trying to make this too long. Last week i was demoted from my position of overseeing everything as well as reduced pay. That morning i went in and had a meeting and basically let the owner know everything i felt with reguards to how they where running things, treating people and limiting the companies success with the current antics of management as well as limiting what i could accomplish with the constant un-experienced staff they where hiring. I also put forth my views and my vision for the company and offered him to provide me some constructive criticism. (i have been pretty honest with the owners in the past as i feel honestly is a key to success - having a working enviroment where everyone is on the same page is key IMO). Basically he did not offer much of an argument and instead suggested i take a "week off" and this, approx 1 1/2 years ago was what he said to one of the guys who also helped start this up before he was let go. I basically said we had conflict on everything and simply wanted to go two different directions and this is the beginning of the end for me....i took the week off and today was my first day back. Low and behold i was told i was no longer needed i just smiled and said fair enough and in a final meeting my severance was outlined.

Just wondering if anyone on these boards has ever been in this situation before. (Company terminating employment on un-reasonable grounds resulting in some type of severance package or just a severance package in general.) Other than my lawyer and a few close family members, i have not talked about this with anyone else as most people who would be able to advise me i work with or are in the industry which goes against some laws reguarding signing off on these things.

I've been offered 3 months pay plus extra which will be around $33,000 and full benefits for the first 2 months and half benefits for the next 2 (4 months total). (I didn't want to include numbers i just figured it might help more accurately if some of you know anything regarding this matter

)

Basically I either sign off on the severance or i can go to court which will either result in a better settlement or potentially worse. Although my lawyer feels i have good grounds for a case to get more money given the shiere amount of work i have done for this company and the circumstances surrounding my "leave", i don't want the hassle or bother of a proceeding such as that and would rather put it behind me and move on. Not to mention i don't really consider myself as a person who likes to extract the most possible amount.

So if any of you have been in a situation like this;

- What did it entail? 1 month? 3-months severance pay, 5 months?
- How long where you employed?
- Year long benefits? Benefits only for the severance wage time period or longer?
- I know some people get stocks but thats for people who have been in the company ages so i definitely know that is out of my league.

Any help appreciated

Thanks.

Sorry for making this a little longer than expected

01-11-2007, 04:18 AM	#1
eazyduzzit Crash and Bang Winger Join Date: Sep 2006 Exp:	Severance Packages Well the long suspected bomb was finally dropped and i actually feel more relieved than not. I'll make this as short as i can, I've worked at this place for approx 4 years managing a handfull of staff. The company is basically a branch off of a Houston based one and was started at scratch by me and some former friends/colleagues, it deals with seismic testing and some aspects of drafting when it comes to the well structures up in Ft. Mac that draw oil. For a good chunk of the work, its out of office which demands our employees take leave from their families and travel to the oilsands. I had to deal with long hours and a humongus workload to get it off the ground and profitable so we could employ more staff. I played a key role in all of this and contributed almost a full year of approx 14+ hour days to grow the company. The Houston branch got bought out so management was switched in our office but i managed to keep my job and position. The company basically has the mentality that you are either on the managers side or your your on bad terms and since i stuck up for my employees all of the time and voiced concern and opposition to many proposals, i was usually on bad terms with the current owner. Basically to give some of you an idea, once the management was switched we or should i say they had a tendancy to employ people with little to no experience for cheap, resulting in the few staff that knew what they where doing having to train and basically do two jobs -- their own and the person they where training, which was just too much to handle and in some circumstances dangerous. Yet everyone for the most part put up with it. Management expected way too much out of these staff members and i was always the first to say we can't do this or that won't work. The goals they axpected to achieve in the short term where always long shots. I was always the first to stick up for my employees when it came down to salary as the management lowballed each and every one of them, when i knew they where putting in overtime and coping with huge work loads and deserved much more taking into account the abstance from family (most where also under the industry avarage). Two other employees who played a larger than normal role who spoke up like i did recieved a demotion (over time with the argument of other factors) and eventually let go. Through all this, my colleagues supported me and the company (to my knowloge) knew i was the most vital piece to holding it all together, training and accomplishing the tasks at hand. As well as being one of the few stupid employees who would work this hard and put up with so much crap and so much stress... so this did not happen to me...until recently. Lots more drama has unfolded in this company but those where just a few examples off the top of my head whthout trying to make this too long. Last week i was demoted from my position of overseeing everything as well as reduced pay. That morning i went in and had a meeting and basically let the owner know everything i felt with reguards to how they where running things, treating people and limiting the companies success with the current antics of management as well as limiting what i could accomplish with the constant un-experienced staff they where hiring. I also put forth my views and my vision for the company and offered him to provide me some constructive criticism. (i have been pretty honest with the owners in the past as i feel honestly is a key to success - having a working enviroment where everyone is on the same page is key IMO). Basically he did not offer much of an argument and instead suggested i take a "week off" and this, approx 1 1/2 years ago was what he said to one of the guys who also helped start this up before he was let go. I basically said we had conflict on everything and simply wanted to go two different directions and this is the beginning of the end for me....i took the week off and today was my first day back. Low and behold i was told i was no longer needed i just smiled and said fair enough and in a final meeting my severance was outlined. Just wondering if anyone on these boards has ever been in this situation before. (Company terminating employment on un-reasonable grounds resulting in some type of severance package or just a severance package in general.) Other than my lawyer and a few close family members, i have not talked about this with anyone else as most people who would be able to advise me i work with or are in the industry which goes against some laws reguarding signing off on these things. I've been offered 3 months pay plus extra which will be around $33,000 and full benefits for the first 2 months and half benefits for the next 2 (4 months total). (I didn't want to include numbers i just figured it might help more accurately if some of you know anything regarding this matter) Basically I either sign off on the severance or i can go to court which will either result in a better settlement or potentially worse. Although my lawyer feels i have good grounds for a case to get more money given the shiere amount of work i have done for this company and the circumstances surrounding my "leave", i don't want the hassle or bother of a proceeding such as that and would rather put it behind me and move on. Not to mention i don't really consider myself as a person who likes to extract the most possible amount. So if any of you have been in a situation like this; - What did it entail? 1 month? 3-months severance pay, 5 months? - How long where you employed? - Year long benefits? Benefits only for the severance wage time period or longer? - I know some people get stocks but thats for people who have been in the company ages so i definitely know that is out of my league. Any help appreciated Thanks. Sorry for making this a little longer than expected Last edited by eazyduzzit; 01-11-2007 at 05:05 AM.