Newly Unemployed

[MadinMo]

Well, I officially joined the ranks of the unemployed on Friday. My boss told me they are eliminating my position. I've been in that job for 24.98 (according to the official paperwork) years -- or exactly 2 weeks shy of 25 years. As you can imagine this was a blow. They claimed they looked for something for me within the company (very large company) and couldn't find anything. They've been laying off people almost weekly since late November. Prior to this, my boss had told our group that we were in better shape than the rest of the company....... I guess that must not be true any more.

I've cried buckets and feel betrayed and dismissed, but I'm coming to terms with it somewhat.

MrMadinMO is retired from teaching so we have income from that state retirement fund. I will be able to take early retirement from this employer and hopefully that paltry sum will help.

The biggest worry I/we have is about medical insurance. MrMadinMo and I are mid-50s, we have 2 16 year olds at home, and medical insurance is a necessity. I will be able to COBRA the insurance we have had to date, and I don't know what this is going to cost but I've heard COBRA is very expensive.

For those of you who have had to find medical insurance outside of work, what have you opted to do?

This is a real bummer. Thank goodness there is only about 36 months left on the mortgage. And I guess MrMadinMO and/or I can always bite the bullet and get a job and McDs or WalMart. However, I think I would not be able to bear it if one of my previous co-workers came in and saw me doing that.

[Corgigal]

1. sorry to read about your unemployment

Scary out in the world today. I have a 19 year old and a 16 year old who need insurance and I use this website to give me quotes. I think Cobra charges too much and you might find a better deal somewhere else. This is a real website and I got my daughter an Aetna policy with dental insurance for a good price. Check and see what it offers you.

http://www.healthplanone.com/

[Donnachaidh]

2. check out the Schip programs for your kids

Not sure if you would be eligible with the retirement funds (you may have ceilings on eligibility) - but DO check it out. We thought we weren't eligible, but were pleasantly surprised when we did.

Our Cobra for 3 people was $1200 per month. Along with a $500 deductible, that's too much for the average slob trying to live on unemployment. Your job should have given you a packet on who to contact regarding Cobra.

Good luck. Older folks losing their jobs are being treated like lepers in this economy. Talk about being tossed on a garbage heap. :grr:

[MadinMo]

29. Thanks.

Never heard of Schip, but we will check it out.

[glowing]

3. Forget it, its too expensive and is only good for 18months.

Put your kids on the Schipp programs, and buy yourself and hubby catestrophic insurance. Its cheaper and pays for the bad stuff. You need to save as much as possible. If may be a while before you have another job with insurance... Wouldn't it be nice if in the wealthiest country in the world Healthcare was a right and not just for the rich.

[veganbeatnik]

4. Starbuck's offers insurance for any employee working at least 20 hours per week

For Whole Foods, it's like 24 hours, I believe...

Sorry for the unfortunate news. But as for previous coworkers seeing you working at a "lowly" place, who cares? You are not here to impress other people and you gotta do what you gotta do.

[LiberalEsto]

5. I'm so sorry

My husband was laid off Dec. 23 so I can truly sympathize. His extended health insurance expires in March. He had some kind of 18-month coverage when he took early retirement from Fannie Mae in 2007, and it wasn't too expensive, but I've heard too that other COBRA plans can be extremely costly. Check into Golden Rule for health coverage for your teenagers. And see if there's some kind of group plan for retired teachers.

Wishing you the best of luck with everything!


PS Don't worry about what your previous co-workers will think if they see you at a low-wage job. I'd bet they will think about how soon the same thing will happen to them.

[madrchsod]

6. cobra will usually cost an arm and a leg

when i was laid off or my wife was at least one of us had insurance. we had one period where we were both laid off..blue cross of illinois was over 600 if we qualified for insurance after cobra.

if we lived in a civilized country we would`t be having this discussion

[ProgressiveProfessor]

7. Check with his teaching retirement

Most include medical insurance of some sort.

[MadinMo]

28. Thanks.

He declined this when he retired because 1) it was lousy insurance, and 2) we had insurance at my work. He THINKS he cannot re-opt for this. BUt we should check it out.

[DS1]

8. Managers who let people go two weeks before retirement

need to be dragged into the street and set on fire.

[oldnslo]

12. I couldn't agree more

Another one who should be set on fire is the manager who, after the death of a spouse, lays the widower employee off when he comes back to work after the funeral.

[MadinMo]

30. I agree with you, but in his defense,

that is not exactly my situation. I was 2 weeks from my 25 year anniversary. THe company is offering me early retirement because my years of service and age equal 80. So I don't want people to think I was let go just prior to my retirement. JUst sayin.....

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

9. I haven't had health insurance this century

other than AFLAC, which has helped when I was involved in an accident. It isn't expensive, cost-wise.

Do you have a pre-existing condition that requires expensive prescription medications? Then check out a group health plan from AARP (I'm assuming you or your spouse are age 50 or above, so you can join). That would be one way to go.

I am in good health, watch my diet, exercise, and take supplements recommended by my doctor, who I see regularly. I get a health screening once a year. These are the best things you can do for your health, imho.

I have been unemployed, and have found one of the best things to do to occupy my time is to volunteer. My volunteerism led me to jobs I would never have thought about--and I landed them. You may wish to think "outside the box" a it were when it comes to employment. I went from education to doing bookwork by teaching myself Quick Books and landing what was, at first, a temporary job with a small business.

The best of luck to you!

[Dan]

10. Not having been in this situation, my thoughts

1. You have children - so, children always come before pride...but I do understand what you are saying, reference McD or WalMart.

2. Some states do provide low (relative) cost health insurance. What do you think is the level of insurance that you might need - so I would check with the state.

3. Are you or husband veterans (wondering about the VA - which would reduce the total insurance requirements for the family).

4. Group Health insurance?

5. The Federal Government appears to be hiring - so I would check their sites. And, I suspect that they won't discriminate based on age - if you qualify.

6. Understand what you mean about the mortgage - but would extending the years and effectively reducing the monthly payments - help offset the monthly costs? Note, I did not say take equity out on the house.

Good luck...

[walldude]

11. Wow that sucks.. I was at my job 16 years before I left

it was kind of a quit or get fired thing so I quit. What do you do? Is there a market for freelance work in your trade? I ended up going freelance and am now making triple what I was after 16 years in one company. Medical insurance however is not as healthy. I can't get it, too many pre-existing conditions in my family. I have been running a family of 5 with no medical insurance for 4 years now. Cobra is going to be seriously expensive but still cheaper than trying to get it on your own. I hope that the Obama team comes up with something for those of us who fall through the cracks. Make too much money for medicare but can't get insured by a for profit company because there is no profit in my family's medical care. It sucks. Stay with the Cobra as long as possible, being in your mid-50's is an automatic red flag to insurance companies, if you are able to get it it's going to be expensive. The last place I tried, had they accepted us would have been $1750 a month for myself my wife and 3 kids. Sorry I don't have better news but a bit of warning is better than nothing.

[lonestarnot]

13. Perhaps if you did some vestigat'n re employees laid off at the same time, you might discover

something? :shrug: just saying, may be worth your while to check it out, and that is not legal advise, just say'n... :shrug: And then you would also want to do some more re the ones that remain employed, unless you are convinced everything is on the up and up. :shrug:

[Neshanic]

17. Agree. Nothing catches their attention like mentioning a lawyer.

[lonestarnot]

18. Who said anything about a lawyer?

Damn litigiousness. Snort. :evilgrin:

[Neshanic]

14. GET THE COBRA! One emergency room visit pays for it. Plus when

the COBRA ends after 18 months you have 60 days(check)to apply through the HIPA to get the same insurance and they cannot deny you or claim pre-exsiting.

I went to the emergency room THREE times for kidney stones for a total of about 20 grand. Cobra paid all.

Also I am sorry to hear you are out of work. That is a long time these days to be at a company. Best wishes to you, and hope that President Obama gets the Health Care thing done.

[M0rpheus]

22. Some important stuff to remember about COBRA...

It's retroactive to the day after you lost you coverage.
In the case of a big claim, you can enroll after the fact (within 60 days of losing your active coverage) and have those bills covered.
Contact whoever is administering your COBRA to find out your deadline to enroll, just in case you need it.

COBRA billing is also retroactive, so the longer you wait, the bigger that first bill will be, since you are generally billed 1 month in advance. You have 45 days to make your initial payment, beginning from the date you enroll in the coverage.

You can drop your coverage at any time.
You are not obligated to keep the COBRA coverage, and there are no consequences to not paying the bill, other than your not getting coverage. But, for most companies, once it's dropped, you cannot reinstate it.

If necessary you can cover just your children through COBRA, you do not have to continue coverage for yourself. I'd look into SCHIP as a better option for them if it's available.

After you drop COBRA, or get to the end of your 18 month period, which can be extended with another qualifying event, you have 62 days (per HIPAA) to secure other coverage before it's considered a lapse. As long as you don't exceed that time frame they cannot deny you for any pre-existing conditions.

All of the above is standard COBRA information, your company may offer more than just the standard provisions, but these are the basics.


Since your company is laying you off, you may want to see if you can twist their arms into continuing to subsidize your coverage for some period of time. If you can get them to keep the rates the same (what you were paying as an active employee) for 3-6 months before going to the full 102% COBRA rate, it may be worth it, until you find other coverage (may that be a very short period).

A note From your friendly Neigborhood HR Outsourcing representative.:hi:

I hope this information is helpful.
:hug:

[Frustratedlady]

15. It's been several years ago, but I took the COBRA and wished I hadn't

I called about private health insurance later and found it was cheaper than COBRA. If you have a preexisting condition, that would change the picture, but it isn't going to cost you anything to try. Don't just try the big companies. Some of the smaller companies can be even better. I wish I'd done it sooner.

[Kansas Wyatt]

24. There was an article in the paper this weekend that...

The government is finally figuring out that after people are laid off, they cannot afford the high cost of COBRA. It said that COBRA gobbled up around 80% of unemployment benefits just for the unemployed worker to keep it, so most people just take their chances that nothing will go wrong.

This country has no right to bitch about how any other country treats it's citizens, because this country treats it's citizens like disposable garbage.

[Neshanic]

16. Also tell them that you want them to pay the COBRA for six months at least, and play hardball.

[sandnsea]

19. Get a lawyer

If the 25 years makes a difference in your retirement plan, by god get it. I don't know what to tell you about health insurance, it is going to cost boatloads no matter what you do I suspect.

[dysfunctional press]

26. my thoughts exactly.

if those two weeks would make a significant difference in her retirement income/benefits- the they've got some 'splainin' to do in front of a judge. especially if they claim that they were looking for 'something else' for her inside the large company- with 24.98 years, you'd think that she'd have plenty of seniority for almost any open position.

[Warpy]

20. I'm afraid your choices are extremely difficult ones

especially regarding the insurance. You need to consider the break even point between the insurance payments (over $15,000/year in all likelihood) and your normal medical expenses, budgeting for one disaster like a broken arm per family member. Or you might find yourself taking a part time job (if you can find one) just to defray the cost of COBRA for as long as you can get it. If your income is low enough, the kids could qualify for CHIPS.

Unfortunately our corporate expiration date always hits us at least 10 years before Medicare becomes available and usually quite a few years after we get illnesses that disqualify us from private insurance. You've got plenty of company. I have been uninsurable for over 20 years and it's still a few until Medicare kicks in for me.

You also need to set some strict priorities. For instance, getting out from under that mortgage is vital. You're not getting much of a tax break any more, so paying it off as quickly as possible will benefit you greatly as you struggle to live on reduced income.

As for your coworkers looking at you funny in your cute little McD's uniform, tell them that's just what is in store for them in their fifties unless they keep the GOP out of office and pressure the Democrats to start doing the right thing about ageism and health insurance.

[SammyWinstonJack]

21. Your previous co-workers might be right behind you ie working at McDs or WalMart, so they shouldn't

look down on anyone for taking those jobs. :shrug:

[varkam]

23. You do what you have to do to survive.

If you have to take a job at McDs or someplace like that, then take it. It's honest work. I understand that it's nothing glamorous, and I also very much understand how you feel about it. I've got some words of wisdom for you though, that helped me through a lot that were once told to me by a very wise man:

Fuck 'Em If They Can't Take A Joke

[Fire1]

25. Hey, don't feel bad. I THOUGHT I was retired but guess I'll be

TRYING to get back in the workforce. I've been retired less than a year and also 50-ish and I'm beginning to think they are 'pushing' us out because it's hell trying to get a decent job at our age.

[blues90]

27. I'm really sorry ro hear this

I went through it . I don't knwo if a lawyer can help since there is that "at will clause" . I tired talking to a lawyer and was told unless it was sexual harrasment of racicial discrimination then they have the right to lay anyone off for no reason at all.

I got a Cobra thing sent via mail and there was no way I could afford that. I found out that I was paying my feull cost of the dental insurance because Cobra lists what was paid by the employer.

I haven't had insurance since Nov 2004 and was in the middle of dental work when I was laid off.

I try to tell myself a lot of people are going thought this or worse but this does not help. I'm still angry I was laid off out of the blue witn no idea it was coming or how an employer can toss one out and strain their life in a matter of minutes. They always want notice if you want to quit.

[radfringe]

31. insurance

When I was laid off - I opted OUT of Cobra - couldn't afford $400/month premium while on unemployment

My partner was laid off in Sept. 2007, she found a full time permanent position this past Nov 2008, and will be eligible for health insurance benefits next month. While unemployed, she too opted out of cobra - couldn't afford the premiums.

We did look into other plans - but the premiums were too high or in cases where the premiums were affordable - the policies had extremely high deductibles and/or covered very little making them next to useless.

We opted for the PRAY-GO plan, PRAY we don't have to GO to the hospital.

[MadinMo]

32. Thanks to all of you for your words of encouragement and advice.

I knew DUers would be good for sound advice and ideas.

Fortunately my 25 years will be okay because of the vacation they are allowing me, so my retirement will be safe. SInce I'm not 65 or whatever age they think is NORMAL for retirement the benefit will be reduced. Don't know by how much. A lot I'm sure.

Hopefully all the paperwork comes today and I will get details.

Also thanks for the information about the HIPAA law allowing coverage via COBRA after the 18 months. I did not know that.

MrMadinMo is going to start to look for work today. We heard that Academy Sports is always looking for older workers and you get benefits with 20 hours. We'll check out Starbucks too (thanks for that info).

This definitely sucks.

(Excuse typos, etc.....getting used to this at-home keyboard is a bear).

[mwooldri]

33. Oh boy... Sorry to hear about the losing your job...

Never a nice thing to happen.

However, I hate the term "unemployed", even when I didn't have work. I haven't used the term, won't use it. If I have no job, I employ myself to find one. And yep, even if it's a McJob, I'd rather do that then not work for someone else at all. If it were the McJob, I'd do my best to make sure my badge had "shift manager" on it or something like that at least.

You're too right medical insurance is a necessity. I'm going to guess - too rich for medicaid, right? Yet another case of why we need a UK-style NHS here. Sorry, other peoples responses about medical insurance here are better qualified than mine.

Good luck in your new job as a professional job seeker.

Mark.

[Le Taz Hot]

34. I don't know if this will help or not but

the census is now hiring. It's $15.00 a hour (not exactly a king's ransom but better than minimum wage) and it's only for 5-10 weeks but it might help pay the first few months of COBRA (very VERY expensive). We were told that they need 5,000 workers just in our county and it's the same everywhere. The web address: www.census.gov.