Topic: Time Sensitive Job Problem (I have till 2 CTD to figure this out)

[Ceric]

Hello all.
For everyone whose been keeping track you know I was going to be moving to San Diego to start a new Job in my field on July 16.  Welp, theirs been a hitch.

8:00AM
Larry, from United Van Lines, comes and quotes me a price to move my stuff to San Diego.

9:48AM
I send the amount on to the company so they now how much because they are trying to go for a corporate contract and so they can tell other relocation employees.

10:59AM
My friend whose Mom I'm currently doing some work for until I get a "real job" calls me up.  I was going to call him up anyway to see if he wanted to meet up to watch FlugTag.  I thought that was why he was calling.  I mentioned that I was about to call him and asked about FlugTag.  He didn't call for that.  It seems that his Mom, my boss, was let go of to put it nicely.   This sort of came from left field.  I could see her quitting before they would fire her and we were in the middle of an important update.  At this point I'm wondering if I was out of work but rationed that since I was only going to be their for another week it be ok if I didn't.

11:04AM
Called my wife with the news and stated that I'll just go to work tomorrow like I was suppose and see how things work out.

11:55AM (Biggest Reason for all this.)
I recieve a call from my future employer.  Sort of unexpected.  The lady that helps with the relocation is calling me as a "Future Fellow Employee"(FFE).  She was wondering if I "was 100% about the job" and knew "what I was getting myself into."  I went on to tell her what I beleived I was getting myself into and she said that I grasped what it would be.  She then goes on to say that from the e-mails and like that it seemed I still had some doubts.  (Of course I have some doubts.  I don't know exactly what I be doing and I be moving 2000 miles.  Who wouldn't? Even if they were right next door the best I could be is 80% sure and 75% if I have to move out-of-state.)  That they were worried that I have a sense of entitlement, (I can sort of see that because I'm just watching out so I don't get taken advantage of like I regular seem to.  I know what people from my graduating year and +/-1 are being offered and the relocation they are getting.  In actuality most are getting full or close to full relocation with things like a room for a week to help you find an apartment.  What they afford for a move that far was really low but I did accept it.), they are also worried that I won't give 110%*, and that I may not fit with the culture (when the offer was made everyone thought I be a great fit, even I think I fit in well their culture wise).  She then keeps drilling me about how I feel about going out there and lets me know that she can't find apartments for people and like.  I tell her, in nicer terms, that I know that and did not expect her to.  I just expect a, "Hey, thats a nice area" or "Hey, avoid that."   Which is funny because earlier in the conversation she mentions that she is somewhat worried because I haven't been e-mailing her very much for the past little while.  By the end she proceeds to tell me that recently they have had to let go of New highers within the first 2 weeks because they have not produced enough or were negative.  Also that as part of the training you are told that 90% of the people in the room will not be working their in a year.  (Thats totally different then what they told me at interview, where they said that they only lost about 10% of new hires.)  She wants me to think about it and give her a call at 2PM tomorrow.

12:11PM
I call my Wife with the news and she is somewhat upset because she had already turned in her resignation.

12:30PM
I call my Dad and get his opinion on it.  He is sort of wary about me going out there after that conversation but says that either decision I make will be a good one.

While Talking with Dad:
Wife calls 3 times and my current job calls once.
I check my messages afterwards and find out that the Head of Finances(HoF) would like to talk with me and expects to hear back from me in a few minutes. (I don't work Tuesday and Thursday.  I'm parttime 20 hours a week.)

1:35PM
I call my wife first and find out that she can keep her job with little difficulty.

1:37PM
I call the HoF.  He is not in and I leave a message apologizing for not being able to answer his call while talking with my Dad, give him my number, and tell him that he has priority over any of my other calls.  I also note that if he chooses not to call back I will see him tomorrow at work.

~1:47PM
Start this post...
So it looks like I'll probably not be going to San Diego but I wanted to hear everyone elses opinion.  While talking with my Dad I realized that I probably couldn't give 100% to a company that didn't believe in me even a little from the start.  That coupled with them probably putting me under a microscope so even if I performed better then the other candidates I may still get axed... I just don't know about that.  What would everyone else do in a similar situation?


*Their is only 1 way to give a "110%".  If you love what you are doing and be doing it anyway whether you were paid or not, 100%.  If your really believe in the company you work for and it believes in you, 100%.  Put those two together and you get 110%.  

[UltimatePartyBear]

Two weeks is a ridiculously short time to let go of a new hire.  Maybe you should call the person who hired you and ask them about what this lady said.  If you still get a bad vibe after that, then run.  Run like the wind.  Or stay where you are, rather.  Stay like the wind.

[BlackNMild2k1]

They are gonna relocate you across the country and then not give you some sort of job security?
New hires getting let go in the 1st two weeks..... 90% gone within a year.....
Wife quitting her job to move with you and no guaranteed place to live....

Sounds like you should move out there by yourself for the 1st few weeks, and test out the job, then when you are sure that you can stay with it, move your wife(and family) out to San Diego with you. This way if things don't work out, you can always go back to wherever it is you live now, and you wife would still be bringing in some sort of income for the meantime.

[that Baby guy]

I like what BNM says, with a segmented move, though I have to say, this lady that called sounds like she is trying as hard as she can to scare you away.  If I were you, I'd give her/your boss a call, and talk to him about job security.  Perhaps you could work something out, where they are contractually obligated to employ you for X amount of time, provided you show them that you have high enough quality work done before hand.

Basically, if the company pays to transfer people there, and then within two weeks, 90% of the new hires get fired, there's something wrong with the place.  I can't imagine what it is that is going on, but either someone has lied to you (or twisted statistics to their liking) or something really is wrong with the place.  You should let the management know that you think someone there has deceived you in some, because you felt the arrangement you had was adequate, but feedback from the relocation department basically says that your job and future in San Diego is already in jeopardy, and you haven't even started day one.

Essentially, all I'm saying is that you don't want to walk into a trap.  If you talk to the boss, focus on what you liked about the place, and how you thought things really fell into place for you to move there all at once.  Make it clear that you aren't expected anything more than what you've previously arranged with the company, but make sure you receive some great assurance that you won't lose the job in two weeks without some sort of freak accident happening, and the whole company collapses into the ground.  If their turnover rate is truly that high, you don't want to work there, at all.  If it is, there's obvious some rare quality or performance aspect that they expect every employee to know, but only few do.  You might want to see the composition of schools that reinforces their employment.  Perhaps the rare few that stay at the company all went to the same school and learned specific ways how to do something, I don't know, but that rate is not at all what anyone would want, unless he or she is extremely desperate.

[Ceric]

The 90% is within a year.

Thanks for the input everyone.  I think I am just going to tell them that I'm not coming.  Their has been way to much drama and inconsistency with this company and frankly I'm tired of it.  It may mean I'm going to be working Customer Service for a few months till I find something more local but at least I know if push comes to shove I'll survive, won't be dragged to the ground, and have a lot of debt from the move.

[vudu]

Did you ever talk with your HoF?

[Ceric]

Yeah.  I did.  My department was dissolved and contracted out.  My Boss had already been let go of and my last day is Monday.  I spent yesterday helping the contractor transition in and cleaning up things.  Same on Monday.  This just stops the job a week earlier then expected but now I don't have another to transition to.  Though I may have an interview with the people who are replacing my department at were I worked.

[blackfootsteps]

Hopefully it all works out for you. It seems as if this relocation woman either has no idea what she's talking about (mixing up the probabilites of retaining employment) or is hinting to you to get out while you still can. It sounds like a huge risk to move with so little stability.

[decoyman]

This is crazy stuff, Ceric. Any updates?

I'd definitely try to get in contact with the person who hired you, and find out why this relocation person was trying so hard to scare you off, like PartyBear said.

You've had some good advice here, I think. I hope, however it works out for you, everything ends up well.