Can things be any more obvious?

[EagleFan]

Our company went from having our president having a meeting with the employees last week telling us how good we are doing compared to other companies and we won't need any layoffs (the prior week he told our customers the exact same thing). To finding out last week that he has hired some of his "friends". To today having layoffs. I survived but several haven't. Of course we were told "there won't be any more". How are we supposed to believe that when the previous week we were told there won't be any? How the hell can they justify bringing in new people and not just new people but all at Executive Director and above level so they are making far more than the people that got let go.

Several people here keep telling me I am off base on this but look at the overall picture. New president comes in, an Indian. Every position he hires since, also Indian. New office in Atlanta (tried to close our office here to open it but the board at least shot that down since we have major clients basically right around the corner and there are no clients within 800 miles of the Atlanta office), 100% Indian. Recent group brought in right before the layoff, Indian. Every name which I have seen from the layoff list, not Indian. The Atlanta office was not touched at all by layoffs. The Reno office, which had the highest ratio of original workers left, got hit the hardest. How in the hell is this legal?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by EagleFan

How in the hell is this legal?

While I'd like to blame it more on lax immigration policy, truth is, it's largely legal because whomever owns the company can hire whomever they see fit to hire (within the bounds of assorted labor law, etc) and release whomever they see fit to release.

If they're cutting off their nose to spite their face (i.e. keeping less profitable employees based on favoritism) then there's at least a reasonable chance it'll bite them in the butt eventually. If they aren't, and they're keeping those that are the most profitable to them overall, then they're doing what they should be doing.

[SportsDino]

I'm not a lawyer, but is their a race discrimination suit possible here?

[EagleFan]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

While I'd like to blame it more on lax immigration policy, truth is, it's largely legal because whomever owns the company can hire whomever they see fit to hire (within the bounds of assorted labor law, etc) and release whomever they see fit to release.

If they're cutting off their nose to spite their face (i.e. keeping less profitable employees based on favoritism) then there's at least a reasonable chance it'll bite them in the butt eventually. If they aren't, and they're keeping those that are the most profitable to them overall, then they're doing what they should be doing.

It's going to bite them in the butt big time. It's already starting to. Right now I am wasting my time and the time of the regulators, who need to approve portions of our system, because we cut a package which would make us a laughing stock if it made it to a client. We did that just so to tell the clients that it is in the approval process to try to buy even more time to fix things. The problem is that now they are expecting it in the normal approval time frame and it will be nowhere close because each fix is breaking more things than it fixes. The hope probably is that the client thinks it is the regulators who were just taking too long and not find out that we never had any intention on them getting what we released. I just hope the economy improves enough to give me more options before the bottom falls out.

Sorry, it's just a rather frustrating position to be in and a rather frustrating time to be in that position.

I have been talking with a friend about opening a business but we are still trying to work out the numbers to see if it is doable.

[JediKooter]

Well, we took their land, their buffalo and their pride, so, it was bound to happen eventually. I didn't know you worked at a casino.

[JediKooter]

On a serious note...definitely have that resume up to date and ready to go as soon as possible. Definitely sucks and it does seem odd that who is staying and who is being laid off, there does seem to be some weirdness going on.

[JPhillips]

If what you say is true I'd consult a labor law attorney.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by SportsDino

I'm not a lawyer, but is their a race discrimination suit possible here?

That's the only possible recourse. Disparate treatment due to race.

[Honolulu Blue]

Originally Posted by EagleFan

New president comes in, an Indian. Every position he hires since, also Indian. New office in Atlanta (tried to close our office here to open it but the board at least shot that down since we have major clients basically right around the corner and there are no clients within 800 miles of the Atlanta office), 100% Indian. Recent group brought in right before the layoff, Indian. Every name which I have seen from the layoff list, not Indian.

I'm sure I know the answer to this, but...

Indian as in curry-loving, convenience-store-running, sent-my-tech-and-customer-service-departments-overseas-to-save-some-green?

or

Indian as in tomahawk-chopping, casino-running, got-burned-by-the-white-man-again-and-again?

[Lorena]

Yikes! Definitely update your resume and stay on the lookout.

[EagleFan]

Originally Posted by Honolulu Blue

I'm sure I know the answer to this, but...

Indian as in curry-loving, convenience-store-running, sent-my-tech-and-customer-service-departments-overseas-to-save-some-green?

or

Indian as in tomahawk-chopping, casino-running, got-burned-by-the-white-man-again-and-again?

A - I have nothing against Indians, the group seems to have a similar makeup to any other group of employees. There are some who are great and others who need a boot shoved up their ass. Unfortunately the department I am in got a majority of the latter.

[Julio Riddols]

Good thing you don't have anything against indians.. Chief Rum is reading the thread......

On a more serious note-

If you ask me, this sounds a lot like the crap that went on at my old job, they told us there would be no layoffs, then they hired a bunch more executive types who seemed to do nothing but hang out with each other in the meeting room bullshitting about stuff that had nothing to do with the company. Then a few months later, the axe fell hard.

The place is totally closed now, but thankfully I was able to get out of there by the skin of my teeth and greyhound it back to Arizona, where things are going much better.

But I definitely have been very selective in who I trust as far as management goes since then.. My new management at my current job seems to actually have their fingers on the pulse and know their shit, and I have gotten 4 dollars in raises within 9 months because they pay attention to their workers and recognize who is pulling their weight and who isn't. Luckily for me, I'm a motivated mofo.

It feels good when you luck into a situation like that.

[Honolulu Blue]

Originally Posted by EagleFan

A - I have nothing against Indians, the group seems to have a similar makeup to any other group of employees. There are some who are great and others who need a boot shoved up their ass. Unfortunately the department I am in got a majority of the latter.

Thank you for answering. Those guys sound like every other group of people I've every met of any type. No advice, just good luck dealing with them.