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  • Have you ever been fired?

    We had a family discussion on life experiences, and employment. The topic came up of being "fired" from a job. Although it can certainly have financial ramifications, being fired is not the worst thing that can happen in life.

    So I began to wonder, has everyone been fired at some point in their working life? Was it a completely bad experience, or was there a "silver lining"? What lessons were learned ... what was did the person take away from the experience that has helped them later?

    The question for this thread is: have you ever been fired from a job and what was the outcome for you (good and/or bad)?
    Now run along and play, but don’t get into trouble.

  • #2
    Re: Have you ever been fired?

    Yes and No to this question!

    I was court marshalled after the Falklands war and was stripped of my rank as Lieutanant - commander.

    I can go into details over this but it will only bore you. Yet if you want to be bored P.M me.


    That was the bad news.

    The outcome was that after the enquiry, I was re-instated and promoted to Commander. I accepted the rank and the back pay but opted out of the armed forces and joined 'Civvy Street.'

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    • #3
      Re: Have you ever been fired?

      I was once demoted as line leader in grade school.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Have you ever been fired?

        Fakatulolo once told me that if I couldn't decide how to fairly distribute the sacks of cornmeal and cans of cooking oil received from A.I.D. in the village of Falevai, he would get some other matapule to do it. I told him that wouldn't be necessary.
        Peace, Love, and Local Grindz

        People who form FIRM opinions with so little knowledge only pretend to be open-minded. They select their facts like food from a buffet. David R. Dow

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        • #5
          Re: Have you ever been fired?

          I was working at Foodland when I decided to go back to college. I was fired because my school schedule took up too much time. Probably the best thing that ever happened to me.

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          • #6
            Re: Have you ever been fired?

            I was fired from Mauna Loa Macadamia Nuts and had to leave the Big Island. It was all politics. They paid for paving the 3-mile road to the visitor's center, but wouldn't pave the employee's parking lot. I told them that it wasn't good for employees to track mud into a food processing plant, but they said I made an unauthorized concession to the union.

            No lesson learned. I could never be a manager with their plantation mentality.

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            • #7
              Re: Have you ever been fired?

              1. In the 5th grade I lost my re-election as classroom president. We had a riot (everyone tore down the campaign signs [sheets of 8 1/2 x11 paper] of the opposing candidate from the classroom walls) after the election and that was the end to my political career.

              2. In college I was fired from a part time job. Moved on to another part time job at the same college.

              3. I was laid off twice from 2 different jobs and just moved on to another job after those lay offs. One of my employers at one of those jobs told us that we can loose our jobs there but whatever we learn at that job we pretty much keep that for life. It cannot be taken away. I believe that.

              I remember 3 or 4 of us were laid off from one firm. We all moved on and got other jobs weeks later. One year after that the firm went belly-up, so the 40 or so other people all lost their jobs at the same time. Sometimes it's good to get the boot ahead of time.

              The other firm that laid us off went through management changes and further shrinkage and disappeared entirely about 3 years later.

              4. I quit 3 other jobs and moved on to another job each time.

              The job lay offs were attributed to either a slow down at the firm (we lost clients at one) or a downturn in the economy, that also slowed down the firm.

              If your workplace is significantly slowing down and the pace of work not up to whatever is normal for that place, expect your head to roll.

              There are differences between quit, laid off and fired.
              Last edited by mel; January 26, 2009, 04:49 AM.
              I'm still here. Are you?

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              • #8
                Re: Have you ever been fired?

                Originally posted by mel View Post
                There are differences between quit, laid off and fired.
                I was going to say the same thing regarding the question of this thread: getting fired and being laid off are similar, but different.

                I was laid off in 2001 (along with a lot of other people that year). Our company was bought out by another company and the work our department did was shifted to the mainland. Ultimately, it turned out better for me. I got another job sooner than later, and the in-between period was refreshing.

                I think being laid off is more common these days than being fired.
                Last edited by Honoruru; January 26, 2009, 05:07 AM. Reason: New thought

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                • #9
                  Re: Have you ever been fired?

                  I've been fired a few times. All of them here in Hawaii. Can't keep my mouth shut in the face of ignorant decision making.

                  Fired once for speaking out against a Captain that was an a$$ho1e, and the whole crew thought so.
                  Fired once for answering astronomy/physics questions from a tourist late at night on the way home from a tour.
                  Fired once for rebuilding forms for concrete that were 3/4" out of level over a 24' distance.
                  Fired once for defending myself against verbal abuse from the super. Called him the "Mayor of Munchkin City". LOL


                  I have learned that it is better to own your own business than to work for somebody else.
                  FutureNewsNetwork.com
                  Energy answers are already here.

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                  • #10
                    Re: Have you ever been fired?

                    Good discussion of the topic at this old thread.

                    As for me - laid off a couple of times, quit (under good circumstances) a few times, but never fired.

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                    • #11
                      Re: Have you ever been fired?

                      As chief photographer for the Sun Press newspapers, I was laid off for a summer period by the publisher so he could instead employ his nephew in the position. I got no warning this was coming and didn't even get paid for the last day I worked.
                      I got another job the next day and the publisher was furious. I was supposed to wait, unemployed, so his nephew could have a summer job. For years, decades, the publisher ranted about what a traitor I was not to wait.
                      Guess what? The nephew didn't work out and had to be let go.
                      Burl Burlingame
                      "Art is never finished, only abandoned." -- Leonardo Da Vinci
                      honoluluagonizer.com

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                      • #12
                        Re: Have you ever been fired?

                        Great story, Buzz! I'm sure if you had gone back, you would have lost out again somehow. He should have had his nephew work as your assistant; I'm sure he would have gained more, and the boss would have fulfilled his family obligation.

                        Nepotism never pays.

                        I have been blessed to be the quitter, not the quitee. But in this economy, who knows?

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                        • #13
                          Re: Have you ever been fired?

                          I was laid off once, not actually fired, but I owned the company, just didn't give myself advance notice about my impending certainty of laying myself off. Well, I thought the entire situation was handled rather awkwardly, I should have let myself know that I was laying myself off well in advance, so, as a result, I fired myself. Am considering filing some kind of lawsuit against myself for not being given sufficient advance notice to myself about the layoff, and am considering re-hireing myself if I can get some kind of federal assistance,,,,,,,,,

                          Aloha and okolemaluna

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                          • #14
                            Re: Have you ever been fired?

                            I was excommunicated from my model rocketry club when I was in the 5th or 6th grade, for talking to someone who wasn't on good terms with a popular club member.

                            It hurt my self-esteem for a while, but I learned to be a lot more self-reliant ever since. And it was a very early lesson in understanding how petty and vindictive some people can be.

                            On the other end, as a department supervisor I once tried to "fail" someone during their probation period. That person lied on the resume about purported skills, had mediocre talent, was reported by others to be difficult to work with and was often insolent. There was also a better and more-qualified candidate available who could have been promoted in-house.

                            For whatever reason, upper management didn't support my recommendations (although it was supported by everyone in the department I oversaw and others in departments who had to work with this person). That particular person eventually became a serious liability to the company. It was another important lesson in company politics.

                            Now, as a small business owner, freelancers are used. And I'm able to hand-pick good people. If someone doesn't work out, that person just won't get called again.

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                            • #15
                              Re: Have you ever been fired?

                              Originally posted by timkona View Post

                              I've been fired a few times. All of them here in Hawaii. Can't keep my mouth shut in the face of ignorant decision making.

                              Called him the "Mayor of Munchkin City". LOL
                              I've been fired once. I temp'd for Goldman Sachs at the Manhattan office for about a month - my assignment was set for 6 months with possible permanency. Well that quickly changed within a month.

                              I was informed a week after I started that my position went through 5 temps and 2 permanent executive secretaries in 8 months. They were surprised I lasted a week. I of course laughed at it. They have a name for the boss "The P#$%K". So I told the gals there and gents at the office. Need not to worry I'm a big girl I can handle this.

                              Well to my dismay my first week was heavenly. I walked sat at my desk. My boss walked in with an "almighty god i am master of the universe" attitude. Like I usually do I looked at him up and down and I smiled and hissed. My second week he became someone completely different. He became Lucifer. It wasn't a challenge. It was a month of pure fun for me. I gave that man years of hell within a month I was there. For some reason he was up for the challenge because I lasted a month long.

                              Well that quickly changed one morning. I walked in and Lucifer was ripping someone a new you know what over the phone; he comes out ranting and rave at me he lost a client with umteen bucks. The gals and gents at the office is terrified of this man. They had their heads down facing the ground; I had mine looking at him. ( He is A Native from Long Island)

                              I told him infront of everyone - "if you weren't such a P@#$%K you would've had your customer. That explains why your ex-wife left you. That explains why your ex-girlfriend left you. Explains why you spend umteens bucks on escort gals every weekend - cause you can't keep it together and your mouth shut - always running at the mouth thinking you god or something. Tell me something Mr.P@#$%K is that your way of compensating for what you lack below the belt?"

                              Well....His scream was so loud after what I said to him. All I heard was You are FIRED you dumb Temp.

                              All I told him after that - can you sign my time card before I leave? LOL

                              Well I was escorted out the building by security with the gals and gents at work waving BYE LOMI - thank you LOMI. I runway'd my faggot butt out that building like a fashion model.

                              Lesson learned? Bite my tongue. But I can't. I just can't

                              Mahalo
                              stay forever young

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