Do you have a job or are you unemployed?

maguenette

Jedi Master
Before the pandemic, I worked in a company. I studied in the field of building mechanics. My boss is reducing the number of employees because of the pandemic. Since March, I have been living with what the government gives me. My boss contacted me in the fall to ask if I wanted to come back to work.

Honestly, I had to think seriously about her request. I was a technical advisor in hydronic heating. In this company, we represented American companies in Quebec. I had to refuse to respect my ethics and morals.

There were products that used wifi. These products promote the intelligent management of heating and air-conditioning systems. I am a person sensitive to wifi and electro-magnetic pollution. Moreover, my workplace is located in an industrial area surrounded by telecommunication antennas.

Since March, I receive only what the government gives me. I have everything I need right now. I thought about looking for a new job but I don't want to wear a mask. It is rather difficult because of the current situation.

I am curious about your situation. You are free to share.
 
Hello maguenette, I have been on short term contracts for a while, and while it doesn't bring in a lot of money and security, you can assess the workplace before deciding if you wish to continue working here, provided your employer propose you a long-term contract.
I don't know what one can do against wifi, but regarding the mask thing, you can try to wear one made out of pure silk. This is what I wear at work and it is the best solution I came up with.
Regarding the question "to work or not to work", I think it is up to you and there are pro and cons to both. I personally prefer to work because you can interact with people, you can learn new skills, and I don't like being dependant on the government, especially now that they are not hiding their agenda anymore.
If you choose not to work, I think you just need to be careful not to become lazy, pursue your interests, see people, get out etc etc...
 
My only real concern with your situation is what happens if the gov can no longer support anyone? We have no idea really what's around the corner. I work self-employed as a dog walker, so I work alone outside and dont need a mask. Its kinda cool and I'm not really affected by any lockdowns, except with so many now working at home there is not the same demand as before, I still have clients ok, but its not the essential service it was, now its a novelty for the dogs sake so it can get walked with friendly dogs. Should the economy get real bad, lots of unemployment of money insecurities, dog walking becomes a thing of the past, I'm pretty sure of that.

You could maybe try doing a slightly different job, one that suits you better, but it might mean having to go back to work for a while, just to make it easier to get another job.
 
I run a small company with 5 employees (we are 6 at this moment), we are an IT company. We develop and support applications for a specific "financial" domain (say otherwise : totally useless domain). We do not face the crisis, i'm sometime a bit ashamed of my/our situation.
We have a lot of work since months, it's difficult for me to do all I would like to do ... I often think, since 1 to 2 years, that I self-trapped with this "successfull" company :shock:.
Im slowly searching for someone to replace me, or partially, in order to recuperate some time for me.

Good aspect is my team, my colleagues, maybe because they were kinda a little bit obliged to hear when I speak (as im their boss ... :whistle: ) but they are now all "immune" to a good number of fake things, like covid, masks, vaccines, I also try to open their eyes one some facts (like about this rotten puppet B. Gates), etc ... . Well, I can say now that this (small) group awarness, even if it's on a few subjects, gives us much strenght, to all. I literrally feel it and also notice it. Recently i told them (because we have many contacts in many companies) that they can see by themselves the advantage (in french : la longueur d'avance) we have on many people, just because we know better than the average what is happening. I'm using ideas/methods/concepts I learnt since 10/15 years, speaking to them often about various things that have nothing to see with our work. But well, i'm deviating on the subject, maybe i'll post one day about, if i have time ! :lol:
 
Don’t be dependent on gov. That was never a good idea. Good for you that you live in Canada. So it’s rich, social-oriented country. But you never know how long. In Poland gov. is locking and unlocking the market. Cause there is No money to keep people locked. We do not have any support for Covid-affected jobs. Hopefully I have still my job, but 20% were layed off this year. I work in aviation industry, so after touristics, we got hit the most by this BS lockdowns. In Q1 next year we will have more lay-offs unfortunetely. But I am doing my best, so maybe will not be affected.
So find a job! Dont rely on others!
 
I consider myself very very lucky in this regard. I work in a municipal utility company which, not surprisingly, is considered critical infrastructure, so we even have a permit in case the poilce stops us during this lockdown. I went to work as usual throughout this year, no home office, no paycuts. In addition to that, I´m also very lucky that my superiors and colleagues in my department are all very skeptic about the scamdemic, so no one tells on me when I walk around without a mask, which is required whenever we leave our desks. Last week, a new order was given, the rooms should be ventilated every 20 to 30 minutes and a protocol has to be kept as proof in case the authorities check on that. I of course volunteered for it, to make sure we don´t have to sit in the cold every half hour... :whistle:

Regarding your situation, maguenette, I can imagine that this is a very hard decision to make. On the one hand I completely understand your concerns about WiFi and masks, on the other hand I wonder if it´s not pretty dangerous to be at the mercy of the government, especially when the agenda in front of us plays out as planned (digital money, proof of vaccination for moving around or for receiving benefits etc.).
 
I am one of the lucky ones regarding work during this special times.

I am self employed, and sell DVDs almost exclusively via amazon.

My income went 70% up this year compared to 2019 mostly due to the first two month lockdown where I was selling four to five times what I did the previous year for the same period.

Although I manage to increase my income year after year, I wouldn't have expected more than a 20% increase without this event.
 
Hi maguenette

I live in the Vancouver BC region and I am an IT Admin.

Since COVID, our company has been making small adjustments by reducing staff here and there. In the last two months, my office suffered a huge loss: over 20 staff have resigned. People that helped build this company, some of these resigning staff were from within my team.

It certainly feels foreboding these days, and I feel isolated, watching my peers of 6 years dissipate into the din.

I feel pretty sure, in that I'll always have work, but seeing this many people leave is heartbreaking to me. I keep seeing emtpied out desks of people that I've grown to know and appreciate and it makes my eyes well up at times.
 
I worked at a factory that produces electrical components for office buildings. My particular job was pulling wire through conduit that would be put in the walls for power entry. I used to work 50-60 hours a week but now that so much office work is done from home I was able to complete my daily orders within an hour or two.
I have a ten year old daughter who was not keen on going back to social distance and mask school, obviously we support that decision, so I quit my job and am now a happy stay at home dad. My wife still works, she has an office position at the place that I worked and makes considerably more than I did so she stayed to pull in more money before the company eventually goes belly up.
We live in Michigan so many can probably understand why we didn’t want our kid to go to school under Whitmer’s policies.
 
I think its a good question @maguenette.

Recently, I just got a new job. Previously, I was working in the restaurant business which I got laid off for like 6 weeks when the pandemic started then when I restarted I was wearing a mask 40-50 hours a week, sanitizing every 2 minutes and working my but off for much less than usual. It was miserable; I was miserable and did not see the light whatsoever. I didn't have a college degree and my only marketable skill set was manual labor and customer service. I was also staring down at the inevitable collapse of the restaurant industry. Pretty spooky spot to be in with only a little savings and no family to depend on as a young man!

So I poked around on Indeed (job search site) pretty much every day for months to get a feel for what opportunities I might have in the area. Our restaurant sales really really plummeted the week they sent the University students home whom which we depended on heavily for business so I just started sending in my resume to jobs that I thought I wouldn't want out of desperation to just provide for myself for at least a little while longer.

Long story short I ended up accepting a position as a customer service representative at a quickly growing local organic chicken company. Basically everything about it is great and an improvement on my previous job. I have health benefits, a decent salary, I can work from home sometimes, I don't have to wear a mask all of the time, good co-workers, opportunity to rise, and great job security (because in theory, chicken production is relatively recession proof. People gotta eat!).

So that's my brief story. To answer your question more directly I think I would always recommend getting a job if you can. This world is cruel and there are oh so few truly desirable jobs out there! If you can secure one of those jobs in your field absolutely put your best foot forward and go get it! If you don't get it I'd take the strategy of 'die another day'. Take a similar position even if it stinks and hope that a better opportunity opens up at some point. I don't think depending on the government is a solid long-term strategy.

 
Hi manguenette,

Well, I think I have been lucky to be able to keep my job, since I work with a company that sells cabinetry online, which means business is booming, funny how that works. But at the same time people have been chaotic and aggressive, the extra tension in the air is palpable in how they handle themselves. So I have a job, but it has been particularly stressful and harsh, everyone that can is using covid now as an excuse to be their worst versions.

It's really when people feel like they have total leverage over you, that they show their true colors, those words by G have been going on in my head recently... A decent man will remain decent, even if you're indecent to him.

I wanted to speak to something here that you mentioned that caught my attention:

Thank you for your sharing. I do not intend to depend on the government. I remain open to new possibilities but I want something that resonates with my soul.

I think this is very difficult to accomplish, because you'd have to dig really deep and find out what resonates with your soul? what would that be? and what do you mean resonate? I think these are crucial questions to answer, I think a job that resonates with your soul is a bit vague.

And on the soul resonance part I wanted to offer a different angle, if I may, I think very few people are lucky enough to find a job that pays their bills and feeds them that also makes them feel utterly great about themselves, most jobs are bearable and some are unbearable and most of them make us feel rather cynical and pessimistic and powerless. Some of them are dangerous, and harsh and our bosses are tyrants and the task might seem useless.

But, I was listening to that interview that Mikhaila Peterson did with Wim Hoff, and in it they discussed a concept that has been shared in this forum for a while now and it could be summarized in this, more or less: Unconscious pain traumatizes you, conscious pain makes you stronger. I am sure I have read that elsewhere but I can't recall where for the life of me.

But, without digressing too much, it occurred to me that a difficult and unbearable job, if properly understood can be this conscious pain, or suffering, that we choose to undergo for the benefit of our souls. So the questions I asked above were geared in that direction, maybe what would resonate with your soul isn't something necessarily easy or pleasant, and it might even feel meaningless at first.

Regarding masks, yes I would try my very best to avoid using them, do you think you can manage to get yourself an exception? I know certain places are accepting face shields instead of masks and I've been thinking about getting me a face shield instead of breathing into cloth, I think the times of today are interesting enough where we might not be able to completely avoid the nonsense, but if we can mitigate it without sacrificing too much of our livelihoods, then that's perhaps a good enough victory.

my two cents.
 
Thank you for your sharing. I do not intend to depend on the government. I remain open to new possibilities but I want something that resonates with my soul.

Hey Maguenette, whilst i understand this view, your soul wont be happy if you starve. Working is a way to put food on the table and is somewhat secure as you're having to provide for the income you get. Depending on the government means your more likely to be forced to get a vaccination. If you don't, all they have to do is stop your income and your in trouble. Maybe this is an incorrect way of looking into things, but it may soon just come down to survival, and when that time comes you may be kicking yourself that you turned down a paying job.

Also careful not to fall into the trap of self-importance. I have done this many times before. Your ethics and morals? what does that mean? Is there a way you can use your ethics and morals at the job. Bringing up ideas to the company about recycling or making an effort when your not at work to live with your morals, lead by example, inspire people? I would really question the program thats running, to me it comes off as self importance. Does the government pay you more of less than what you made at work?
 
I'm not closed to working again. Yes, I am open to maybe wearing a mask if necessary. I am aware that my life experiences are sometimes both positive and negative. I accept to live them objectively as much as possible. I am looking for a job that is more stimulating than my last job. This is what I mean by resonating with my soul. I used to work in an office and I would like to do something closer to nature, with the possibility of going outdoors or on the road.
 
Hey Maguenette, whilst i understand this view, your soul wont be happy if you starve. Working is a way to put food on the table and is somewhat secure as you're having to provide for the income you get. Depending on the government means your more likely to be forced to get a vaccination. If you don't, all they have to do is stop your income and your in trouble. Maybe this is an incorrect way of looking into things, but it may soon just come down to survival, and when that time comes you may be kicking yourself that you turned down a paying job.

Also careful not to fall into the trap of self-importance. I have done this many times before. Your ethics and morals? what does that mean? Is there a way you can use your ethics and morals at the job. Bringing up ideas to the company about recycling or making an effort when your not at work to live with your morals, lead by example, inspire people? I would really question the program thats running, to me it comes off as self importance. Does the government pay you more of less than what you made at work?
Your ethics and morals? I know that it can be subjective. I'm talking about my health in relation to telecommunication antennas

Does the government pay you more of less than what you made at work? The answer is less.
 
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