Executing a Mass Departmental Exodus in the Workplace?

rerunn asks: "The recent story about the consultants from JBOSS walking out couldn't have had better timing. I'll save the drama and cut to the scenario: You and a few close co-workers make up the core grunts of 'the department'. The company relies heavily on your department for many services, some of which, other departments cannot provide. You like your job, it provides great satisfaction. Suddenly, the company realizes its in deep financial shit, and starts making cut backs. This impacts the department. You suddenly find yourself working 50-60 hour weeks, put on call with no compensation, given unreasonable amounts of work and generally treated like dirt. You get the feeling that the company is just going to take advantage of you no matter how and what happens. You get together with the rest of the department for a 'fsck this company' meeting and decide to walk out. Have you ever done this?? (We are so close!) What was the outcome?"

Comments

Re:Result

[Anonymous Coward]

Unlikely. Collecting unemployment usually requires leaving work through no fault of your own. Walking off just to prove a point or to be pissy won't cut it.

yeah, I've done this

[Triple Helix]

I came from a company that did exactly this sort of thing. I worked for a software shop that created enterprise software on a contract basis. Everybody worked 50 or 60 hours per week, and without fail every Friday afternoon the CEO would come into the office at 4:30 or 5:00 and give everybody some crazy new project due on Monday morning. In addition, he'd make all the developers come into the office on Sunday for a company meeting to discuss the progress of the new assignments. It was a complete mess.

So anyway, my project manager, two other developers and I got sick of this and decided to start a company of our own. This was back in 1998. We got some funding and made a go at it. Not two days after we quit and started up the new company did we all get slapped with a lawsuit from the previous employer. The lawsuit alleges that we stole trade secrets from the previous employer, which was completely baseless. But, it accomplished the goal of putting a huge burden on us while we were just starting out.

Fast forward to 2003. We were recently forced into chapter 7 bankruptcy, partly due to the legal fees associated with the lawsuit, but also due to the fact that my previous project manager (who was the president at the new company) was one of the worst businessmen on this planet, despite being a great project manager. The legal system is slower than molasses - we still aren't scheduled to go to trial until July of this year - nearly five years after the lawsuit was first filed! There have been some depositions, hearings, rulings, and appeals along the way, but man has this thing dragged out! Needless to say there's not any money for them to win anyway due to the bankruptcy.

Overall, walking out and starting a new company was the greatest business decision I ever made in my life. I'm getting all sorts of offers to do contract work on the side, plus one of our customers at the new place hired me with a six-figure wage plus great benefits, and actually allowed me to write a no-compete into the employment contract. In addition, they have picked up an attorney for me and agreed to pay my legal fees in the lawsuit.

If I could go back, I'd still say that the lean years at the new company were all worth it. My only regret was not doing it sooner - I'm already 24 years old and I'm not going to live forever.

Welcome to America!

[Anonymous Coward]

"Also, there have been a couple of lawsuits where people have sued for unpaid over time... a class action suite between Walgreens & their pharmacists(sp) comes to mind. Shoveling a ton of work on you because you're "salary", "a professional", or "management" is illegal, and if you work cannot reasonably be done in ~40 hrs/ week you are supposed to be compensated for overtime put in. "

I don't know about Walgreens, but Walmart has a long history of pulling crap like that.

Re:What's really important for you?

[SiChemist]

Perhaps you ought to think about how lucky you are to even HAVE a job right now

It's precisely that attitude that perpetuates the perception a lot of bosses (and governments, for that matter) have that it's OK to treat staff as consumables.

You're absolutely right. My previous employer often stated that an employee should be grateful to be employed and should be willing to do him personal favors and work overtime. What a load of crap!

The employer pays for services rendered; the employee supplies those services. No sane business expects to get services from other businesses for free, so why do they expect that from their employees?

Been there, done that. Twice.

[khendron]

I've been there and done that twice in my career. The circumstances were slightly different. The companies were not in deep doo-doo, but there was a well defined lack of respect towards the development team/department.

In neither case was the mass exodus (ME) planned, in the sitting around and plotting sense. It just happened. In both cases, the ME was preceded by a spontaneous, manager-led, group bitch session, where all the disgruntled employees got together and described what was unsatisfactory about their jobs. The complaints were summarized and sent up the ladder. If your place of employment has reached the spontaneous bitch session stage, expect a ME to follow.

Here are some interesting results from the MEs I have experienced.

• In both cases, I found immediate re-employment.
• In the first ME (in which a full one-quarter of the company's employees jumped ship), a number of the ex-employees (myself not included) formed their own competing company, and promptly got sued by the old employer. Today, almost a decade later, the case is still before the courts. I expect the eventual loser will be forced out of business.
• Stupid legal actions aside (see previous point), in neither case was the company that was a victim of the ME mortally wounded. Each has recovered nicely.
• In the first ME, many employees in the affected department that showed loyalty and did not quit were fired within a year.
• In the second ME, many employees in the affected department that showed loyalty and did not quit were offered enormous raises.
• I do not regret leaving either company.
• If you leave a company in an ME, expect to never be welcome back to that company as an employee ever again. This can have unforseen side-effects. In the second ME there was an employee who left the company close to the same time who were not really part of the ME. However he was *perceived* to be part of the ME, and when he tried to return to the company a couple of years later he was told he was not welcome.

Re:Result

[lophophore]

Better read the Fair Labor Standards Act before you decide to sue.

I.T. Professionals are specifically exempted from the Fair Labor Standards Act.

that's not quite true.

[No-op]

Specific sorts of professionals are exempt, and management is exempt. There's a special stipulation with regards to computer professionals, but it mandates that you must either be in management, or making more than $27.63 an hour (from the last time I looked at the regs).

So, if you're making in excess of $57k/year, and the majority of your work is self directed (or you are in management) then you're somewhat screwed.

State labor laws are also important here- State law cannot weaken the federal law ( if your employer falls under it) but it can make it stronger with more requirements. Check with your State wages and dues/labor/workforce department. They will also come in and investigate if you so desire, and can mandate that employers pay up to 2 years of back wages if they are found to have you wrongfully exempted.

have fun. it's never easy.

Re:Result

[SlideGuitar]

Sure, but I left my job when it got bad, sold a house in LA, moved to a cheaper part of the country and I could live off the house proceeds for a couple of years without worry and still buy another house....

I'm looking for work, but I'm not worried, and dear God in heaven, I'm so glad I left the job from hell... the only question is "why did I stay so long?"

Now my motto, and I really believe it, is "do what you love and the money will follow..." to which I add, "live where you love living... and life will follow." Why live in an industrial hell hole when you can just move to your idea of the most beautiful part of the country and work out the trivial stuff like how exactly you make a living once you get there?

Most people make a living in most places, after all.

That's my theory... but I haven't got a job yet, and in the meantime I have those house proceeds to live off of... :-)