My fiance may be losing his job...

[ChristinaJoel]

My fiance called me yesterday to tell me that his district manager called him into a meeting with someone even higher up to tell him that he has to either accept a paycut to $14 an hour which is like half his pay or be let go. He has to make his decision on Friday. They went behind his boss's back because she would have defended him.

My fiance, Joel, works his butt off for that company. He comes in early and stays late whenever they ask him to. He takes calls on his days off and answers questions and sometimes comes into meetings or comes in to work when someone can't make it. When his boss was sick for a week, he worked double shifts and got like 3 hours of sleep that week and the district manager complained about him looking tired. He can't seem to find anything that would pay him the same amount. He's in retail and works at Aldi's as the assistant manager.

The biggest problem is that with the paycut we won't be able to pay his mortgage or his other bills. And we won't be able to pay off the debt from the wedding.

He is so stressed out. He had to pay to have his father and grandfather's taxes done this week which cost $130 each on top of his own since they both died last year. He hasn't seen any of the money from their estates because the lawyer hasn't even started the paperwork and won't answer the phone. So now he needs to find a new lawyer to help him out but the lawyer has to be in his dad & grandfather's town which is 7 hours away.

The scariest part is that he said if he didn't have me & my kids, he would have killed himself from all the stress he's going through.

Christina

[ChristinaJoel]

On a positive note, I said something yesterday evening that made him laugh. I can't remember what I said, but he looked at me and said that is why I know you are the one. I can have everything falling apart around me and you can still find a way to make me laugh.

[gwenshack]

I'm so sorry - that is so stressful and seems to be something that's happening to good people left and right lately. I really hope that something can be worked out so that he'll be properly compensated for his time and effort and the stress can be alleviated. Talk about stuck between a rock and a hard place - unemployed or underpaid. I firmly believe everything works out, though, and I know it will in this case too. Good luck to him - I hope everything works out.
I'm glad you were able to make him laugh - it's the best medicine, and that's not just a saying - it's the truth. :)

[Docsgirl]

I'm so sorry you're going through this! :hug: Maybe he could take the pay cut, just until he could find another job? Any pay is better than no pay, right? Although it is very snakey of them to do it behind his boss's back! People like that irk me. :irked:

And I couldn't help but "Awwwwww" out loud at the positive note thing. :) That's really sweet!

[amisteratwisterandme]

My FH has taken a temporary 8% pay cut, until things with the economy change. It sucks but what can you do?

The very next week, they asked him to work 6 days a week because they are so busy... :huh:

So he lost 8%, but gained 8 hours of overtime each week.

IDK...

Good luck, keep your chin up and keep him laughing.

[WBandMe]

Aww, poor guy. He is in a crummy situation, but I agree with the other post--his best bet right now is probably to take the pay cut and try and get as many hours as possible while searching for a job that deserves to have him working there. This too shall pass--and keep making him laugh. I truly believe it's the best medicine :)

[mj512]

I'm sorry :( Like someone else said, maybe he can take the cut for now so at least some of his money is coming in, while he looks for another job. $14/hour is much better than nothing an hour if he can't find something else. I WISH DH could find a job that paid $14 an hour haha. His field just does not even allow for that salary, especially right now. So maybe at least find hope in that, that there are others who wish they had that salary :) You might have to have some serious cut-backs for awhile, but keep the hope -- especially for your fiance, it sounds like he really needs some encouragement :(

[Tadswife]

I agree with your fh taking a pay cut. My dh just had a meeting like your husband did. And they told him that they have a salary freeze and that they were taking away all the raises. It's better to have somthing then nothing. And laughter is the best medicine so kudos to you for putting a smile on his face. Your going to make a wonderfull wife for him.

[WebLady]

I am so sorry that you and your FH are going through this :hug: Things are rough for lots of people these days.

He will probably have to take the pay cut. If he gets "let go" because he wouldn't take the pay cut then he probably wouldn't be able to get unemployment.

Unless he is a contract employee with guaranteed wages in writing, companies can do these things. I am sure they are not doing this because of anything he has or hasn't done. Many companies have had to cut costs wherever they can, many places are seeing salary/overtime cuts and lay offs.

It sucks, but there is not much we can do; we all just have to truck on and try to cut back where we can too.

All the best to you guys!

On a positive note, I said something yesterday evening that made him laugh. I can't remember what I said, but he looked at me and said that is why I know you are the one. I can have everything falling apart around me and you can still find a way to make me laugh.
It is great that you can be there for him, but a little worrisome to me that he is getting so overwhelmed that he would even tell you that if it wasn't for you that he would kill himself :ooh:

[MrsDM]

Wow, I am really sorry you are going through all of this. This economy is so scary right now, anything can happen. I agree with the others. He is probably best just to take the pay cut, as its something for now. Let us know what he decides, best of luck to the both of you!

[KMS]

I'm sure this has been an unexpected shock for you guys and I'm so sorry. I agree with accepting it and then looking for another job. It sucks that they gave him so little time to make a decision. I hope that this doesn't stress him out too much, but I know it's so hard not to.

[ChristinaJoel]

Hi!

Thank you all for your support. He is working the night shift (noon - 9:30) tonight so I won't see him until late this evening. He will tell me what his boss said to him tonight as she was out the past couple days. We discussed his options and I think he is accepting the pay cut but he will be looking for another job because this company really treats him badly.

After the wedding if he cannot find a better paying job, I will take on his mortgage and he agreed to pay all the other bills. It will be tight but we will find a way to make it. We will probably put our hopes of moving out of our current home on hold for now. We want to move because he wants to have a baby and there is honestly no room at all for a baby's crib unless we stuck it in the small family room in the basement but that room is freezing! That's where my computer is and my fingers are frozen after typing on the pc for an hour down there.

Thank you again for letting me vent!

Christina

[NurseLau84]

I'm sorry you're dealing with all of this. Good luck with everything, my fingers are crossed.

[ChristinaJoel]

So my fiance took the step down rather than lose his job. The German district manager who demoted him will actually be returning to Germany in a couple months due to his green card expiring. If Joel hasn't found a better job by then, he might have a chance to go back to his position since his boss and everyone else there seem to like him. Right now he is still sending out applications.

Christina

[Ohio888Bride]

Sorry to hear this. On the bright side, I wish more companies offered lower pay instead of laying off people. Any chance of Joel getting his German manager's job? LOL!

[ChristinaJoel]

We just sat down last night to figure out where we are with bills and it turns out that he is now $2000 short a month in paying his bills due to the paycut. I thought he was $1500 short but I forgot to take out taxes for his pay. If I don't spend any money on paying off my credit card that I'm using to pay for our wedding, I can give him $1900 which is every last penny I have after paying for my car, daycare, and my student loan, but that means everything for the wedding must go on my credit card without us being able to pay it off or even the minimum balance after I max it out.

I know people tell me that I should just cut back on my spending, but honestly I'm as cut back as I can go without feeding my children ramen noodles every day.

This sucks!

[WebLady]

Sorry you guys are going to be strapped for a while because of your FH's pay cut. I am sure it will work out one way or another. All any of us can do is just do the best we can and try to stay positive.

All the best to you guys!