Retirement....Shit hit the fan......

hawkeye5766 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Retirement....Shit hit the fan......

64PARCONUK · Addicted!

I'd offer to do the odd day twice a month at twice the money, they'll probably ask you to do 3 days a week for 50% more than you were on. (I've been to the moon and back five times in a panel van, on just one corner of our little island)

CdnGMfan · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Jim, you are actually "in the driver's seat". Do what gives you peace.

When I left computer support, the first day of freedom saw me actually go into work Monday morning because my computer took a dump. Did my ex boss ever look surprised. Of course while I was there I was providing support in my spare time.

tburgGM · Addicted!

I guess you need to decide if you are wanting to go back to work and how much time you want to offer them.

If I was called back to work I would ask to be a contractor, not an employee. I would ask for 1.5 times what your salary and benefits cost the company at the time you left.

As a contractor you can write off personal expenses that you are not able to do as an employee.

Frank

seventy2plus2 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I'd say this is not your problem. You did you duty for years & years, gave them more than ample notice, and it's up to them to sort it out.

DANO65 · Poncho Master!

Jim, I know it goes against your grain, but it's not your problem anymore. The worker pool is rather shallow these days, but again, not your problem. You gave them plenty of time, they will figure it out. Take at least a month before you consider going back to help, otherwise you will just get sucked back in. They will figure it out.

Prefectca · Poncho Master!

The wife of a friend retired, gave lots of notice and retired with a pension. She was in the finance department and the employer realized that they hadnt trained anyone to do her job. She was hired back as a contractor for two years to train her replacement. She didnt have a problem going back but lost a lot of her pay to taxes because she was also drawing a pension. I dont know your financial situation after retiring, but I would look into how much you would lose to income tax.

4SPEED427 · A Poncho Legend!

Dano nailed it. It's not your problem any more. I think I remember mentioning here one day when we had a retirement discussion how one of the negatives to it is the guilt. In a nutshell, I suffered with it for about 3 months because former co-workers as well as customers were telling me how unhappy they were with my replacement when many of them had been working/dealing with me for 35 years. Finally one day when I was driving I said to myself "Get over it and enjoy retirement, it's NOT your problem" and I stuck to that though.

It's tough to do when work becomes your identity. That is a hard thing to give up but you can do it and you will be happy you did.

hawkeye5766 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Thanks for the input guys. Didn't think the new guy would last long. They already had another new driver in the wings, so I told them I would come back for 2 weeks to train him. Then that's it!

ABC123 · Uber Guru

We just lost one of our managers today, I never asked for details, I just laid low for the day.

I was asked to do a job fair next week, on my day off.

Without a pause, I said yes.

The best thing you can do for your company is to find your own replacement biggrin

Doc69 · Veteran Member

Does that mean you are getting a promo. Lol

Lemans64 · Poncho Master!

Sorry to hear of this Jim, maybe take it a little slow the next 2 weeks, maybe they will fire ya, LOL.
It will go fast so sit back and let the new guy do most of the work.

Lemans64 · Poncho Master!

Was at my old place of work today and got asked if I wanted my job back, LOL. Another guy just quit. Guy had moved into my old spot so I could get my old spot back.
NOT. Jim you jinxed us.

LeeRoy · Guru

Hey Jim. Make sure they cover your expenses and pay for overtime. My dad told me retirement is comparable to a young animal learning how to swim. Jump in and you soon learn how its done. Sent from Celebrity Solstice half way to Australia. Retirement sucks for me!

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

4SPEED427 wrote:
Dano nailed it. It's not your problem any more. I think I remember mentioning here one day when we had a retirement discussion how one of the negatives to it is the guilt. In a nutshell, I suffered with it for about 3 months because former co-workers as well as customers were telling me how unhappy they were with my replacement when many of them had been working/dealing with me for 35 years. Finally one day when I was driving I said to myself "Get over it and enjoy retirement, it's NOT your problem" and I stuck to that though.

It's tough to do when work becomes your identity. That is a hard thing to give up but you can do it and you will be happy you did.

You nailed it as well.

It took a while for me to get over it also. I kept expecting to wake up from the dream of staying home and still getting paid for it, but then it finally sunk in that this was what I worked for - why I battled morning rush hour, and worked until long after everyone else went home, only to go home and feel like I missed half the evening while I ate supper at 8 or 9 pm.

I left it with the guys to call any time if they had any questions or needed help wading through some of the more difficult stuff, and they did, but that eventually petered off, and now I'm so far away from it I don't even think about it much anymore. If I do start to miss it, I just remind myself of the 3 hour Friday morning video conferences with "Toronto"... and I get over it pretty quick... lol

Life moves on, and when I feel guilty about retiring while leaving the guys with all the work, I remember that when I was younger I had to work through all that stuff. It's their turn to do it, and my turn to other things now, better things.

So yeah, Jim, I'm another one saying "it's no longer your problem"... they'll figure it out, and I'm sure the right guy is out there for the job that will take it and run with it... they just have to find him, and that's their responsibility, not yours. Enjoy! :)

Canadian Poncho · A Poncho Legend!

Well said Mark. I've worked with people who should have retired years ago but for some reason their identity IS the job. Very sad. Now it's different if you truly love what you do.