Closing up shop next year

Yes, our regional management is going to close our office. (See my post from yesterday.) Not right away. The last day will be March 31, 2021. But that's still less than a year.

There are 44 people at our location. Of those 44, 27 positions are being moved to Sticksville. Note that I said "positions": I have no idea whether the company will move any actual people, or whether (if you want one of those positions) you have to move yourself. Also Sticksville is a long, long ways from here, and it's not nearly as pleasant a place to live. Do they think anyone is going to take them up on it? Well, times are tough. Hard to find a job when so many places have closed down because of COVID-19. But wow. I'm not going to put a lot of money on them getting many takers.

Of the rest, 9 will be allowed to work at home the way they are doing now; the remaining 8 positions are eliminated. If you can find a job somewhere else in this behemoth of a worldwide company, good on you. (Of course, Americans aren't exactly welcome anywhere else in the world right now.) But otherwise, ... oh well.

If I read the paperwork I got correctly, I'm one of the ones whose position is being eliminated. But I have a meeting with HR tomorrow to go over the details. Maybe there's a remote chance I read it wrong.

On the other hand, I've been approved for three solid weeks of travel this fall. Most of it is going to be driving, because that is the safest way to travel when you factor in COVID-19. But in order to get to a place from which I can reasonably pick up a car, I'll have to take the train for two-and-a-half days from where I live to Weather City, a spot in the middle of all the places I'm going to. I'm taking the train because for most of the route I can be in a sleeper with a door on it, and so I expect that the likelihood of infection is lower than it would be if I flew. 

It's remarkable how far this damned pandemic has made itself part of so many discussions: look at how many times I've already referenced it in this post, when my topics are totally unrelated. Except they're not. Welcome to the future.

Anyway, the last time I was laid off it took me a year and a half to find a new job. I sure hope it doesn't take me that long this time, but this time I've got grey in my beard: so whom am I kidding? Oh well, we'll see how tomorrow goes.