So this should be an awesome week for me. My daughter is getting married on Sunday! Yes, it is bittersweet because Laurel won’t be there to see our daughter’s big day, but net good rather than bad.

Here comes the but...

But...

My job sprung something on me Friday. I got an email meeting invite late Thursday afternoon for a video call with my director and the VP of HR for my area. That fucked up my evening. Then the call. They offered me a voluntary retirement package, with my last day being 12/31 if I accept.

The package isn’t bad. 62 weeks severance paid in a lump sum. 100 bucks per month company subsidy for Medicare B, C, D and whatever the fuck else there is. Our pension funds were all converted to a 401K two years ago so I would get that in a lump sum to roll into an IRA. I will be 66 in December so I can retire and collect a little over 2K per month from that source. I can also get another job if I want and make up to 40K per year before SSA starts reducing my benefit (1 dollar out of every 2 above 40). So what’s the problem?

I have to accept by 5 pm Thursday. 6 fucking days to make this decision. No where near enough time. No time to consult with a lawyer and/or a financial advisor. No time to talk it over with my kids. Just not enough time period.

I’m leaning towards declining. If Laurel was still alive, I would take it. If they gave me until June 30, 2019 like they did for some people, I might take it. But now I would still have to work to pay my mortgage. Both my manager and my director don’t want me to leave if I don’t want to do so. My director told me he is not being pressured to reduce his headcount (we call it FTEs now).

Today.

See, I may be many things, but I am not naive nor am I completely stupid. When people are offered voluntary termination, there is a benchmark (sorry for the buzzword) they are looking to reach. If not enough accept the voluntary package, will there be a plan B? Yes. No doubt, yes. Will the offer be just as good when it is involuntary? I’m guessing no. Why, do I work for a shitty company? No. They are all the same when it comes to “creating or maintaining shareholder value.” Anyone who claims something different hasn’t lived long enough to know better.

So on the week I need to prepare for my daughter’s wedding and my ex-daughter-in-law and granddaughter coming to stay with me for the weekend, now I have to make this decision. It sucks. But as the man once said, life isn’t fair. Anyone who tells you different is selling something.

EDIT: As an update, I opted in to the package before the 5 pm deadline today. Reason? If you opt in, you can change your mind right up to the week of your end date. If you don't opt in, it's all done. So I said yes mostly to buy two more months before I have to really decide.