Lost your job or about to please read

Mod's i dont know where to put this or if i even can.

For almost a year now i have been sititng back and watching. Last week i had a scare. The news broke that the company i work for was restructuring and i was worried i was going to loose my job. Turns out i dodged that bullet. After dodging it though i felt bad for those who had not. Not just in my company but other companies as well.

I love coming to ATS and discussing things with the community. Some issues i see on here are really upsetting and i wish i could do something to help or change them.

Well at the suggestion of one of our forum members i did. Here is my idea that i would like ATS members to give me feedback on or join.

muddlingthrough.webs.com...


Let me know what you think

please give me some feedback on my hard work

I just began a job after seven months of unemployment (several without my unemp. pay) and I applaud you for trying to do something constructive about it. The sh-t will officially hit the fan in a few weeks when stores begin going out of business in lieu of testing children's products for lead contamination, we already are seeing that in Florida. Lots of stores here are facing massive downsizing or closure which will be disastrous since the state revolves almost entirely on the tourism, retail and service industry trades and they are all intertwined.

Putting together a visible network of state by state contacts is a good start. I'm moving this week and will put out feelers in the business communities in Lake and Orange County. Be forewarned anyone moving here, the job situation is rough but at least you won't freeze to death. That's happening in two places I interviewed at last year. Unemployment is not paying anyone right now either and the wait for food stamps is something like three months.

EmployFlorida.com has good leads for anyone looking, I got several interviews in late Oct.-Jan. using it so it is a working system. A sign company in Daytona Beach is hiring a graphic artist in the $12-$16 per hour range if anyone local is interested, I know a lot of artists are out of work in the county right now. Some office jobs, mostly in Orange County, but Palm Coast Data is having normal turnover and claims to be bringing in 700 positions this year from a firm that closed up north.

Beware anyone looking for a law enforcement job, FDLE laid off 1000 today primarily in the drug enforcement and training sectors. Municipal fire/police jobs are mostly on hiring freezes but I think departments in Orange County may be hiring. Lots and lots of healthcare jobs being advertised throughout Central Florida; avoid Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach and Port Orange which has a long history of forced unpaid leave for medical staff. Stay away from Flagler County, unemployment is over 11 percent and most industry is connected to construction which has tanked. You won't get hired by many companies here anyway unless you are an illegal. Jacksonville and St. Augustine seem stable, Jax is rough so be careful. Miami is going from hellhole to worse, stay away if possible. Fort Lauderdale also is tanking and Tampa seems ok.

There is a nuclear power plant under construction in Crystal River, Fl and they may be hiring already in many capacities. Apartments are dropping rental rates and you can find good apartments all over Ocala, Lake County, Gainesville and the area around the plant for the $450-$700 range, lots of homes in the same range. A mobile home landlord in Ocala has a listing where he is willing to rent acording to what you can afford to pay, he is on Craigslist under the Feb. 2 listing. Craigslist is proving surprisingly reliable for housing referrals, all of them I have checked out are legit. Some landlords also are dropping credit checks but they are stringent on criminal backgrounds because we have had a lot of problems with sex crimes in this state; most apartment complexes are near schools and they finally are clamping down. A few are waving that in the Eustis area and there are a handful of apartments there for under $500; one is going for $375 but it is in a rough area.

A coworker told me yesterday that Leesburg and some other cities sell garden plots for $50 so if anyone wants to go in on a coop soon let me know, we are discussing it. Our area is rural enough to have decent soil and irrigation.

Can't think of anything else at the moment but I will try to update as soon as possible. Once I get the housing situation straightened out and am not facing homelessness myself I will offer to help out if someone wants to come look for work here. I'm checking connections up north, I think the state of Ohio has approved funding and will be hiring in the youth pretrial intervention/human services sector if anyone is looking up there.

reply to post by secretagent woooman


Wow thank you for taking the time on such a nice reply! It makes me feel good that someone cares on here.

Do i have your permission to use that information on the site?

I'm glad someone actually took the time to look. I'm tired of sitting and watching... i wanted to do something, i want to help others and fight back. I figure i cans it and keep reading about the gloom and doom or i can be proactive and help others as well as my self possibly.

I hope more people see this thread, it keeps getting burried on the recent posts board in favor of threads like "i had a dream about 2012 last night"

Yes. I will keep a vigilant eye out and give as much info as I can, it looks to be a very grim year for most people anyway.

Here are some suggestions for making or saving money. Some may seem light-hearted but you never know what will appeal to different people. Any one of them could work for someone.

Re-train - if you are currently a white collar worker it may be an idea to learn a trade. Or there are a lot of ads to train in IT. The service industry may be a place to start - hairdressing, massage, manicure - although people may be cutting back on those sorts of things just now.

Do you have a photogenic pet - maybe get it some modelling work. Same if you've got a kid.

Put older kids out to work - even if it's just a paper round or baby-sitting.

Take in a lodger.

Sell your excess stuff on ebay.

Get a metal detector, you never know what you could dig up.

Get part-time evening work.

Learn to budget - look for 2 for 1 offers, shop late in the evening when the prices of some goods get knocked down.

If possible, move to cheaper accommodation.

Cut down on electricity consumption.

Learn to dress-make. You can make your own clothes or sell your services to other people. Even make dolls' clothes to sell on ebay.

Study to improve your performance at your current job so that you can apply for promotion. Conversely, don't be too proud to take a demotion if it means staying in work.

Are you artistic - you could sell paintings or pottery.

What about writing - articles, short stories even a book. Script for TV or films.

Get a van and advertise your services - how many times have you needed a 'man with a van'.

Do you have any skill you could advertise in the local newspaper or newsagent's window.

Set up a website and take advertising

Get together with trusted friends and pool resources to get a home together.

Window cleaning round

Not as easy as it sounds - but a weekend market stall could be quite lucrative

Dog Walking.

Home tutoring - since the schools are not doing such a great job parents may be pleased to pay you to teach their kids the three Rs. Also, some adults might want help.



[edit on 3-2-2009 by berenike]