I'm 59 and quit my job yesterday

[bobja]

And do I feel good! It was pretty much mutual - they wanted me out and I couldn't wait. I hated the job for a while, so this was overdue. They were unprofessional, and I was getting pretty stressed, so for my sanity and health I tendered my resignation, effective immediately.

I was a human resource supervisor, and an atheist working for a church. I didn't have much inner conflict working for a church since they are heavy on social services and actually do a decent job of helping the needy. They aren't heavy handed at pushing their religion, and I never had anything to directly do with that anyway.

However, they work you like a slave at low pay, and over time I lost any respect I had for them. I was exempt, and they took advantage of that - long days, weekends, holidays, etc.

I worked in the headquarters with about 60 other people. A work friend called last night and left a message saying my exit caused a "tidal wave". I'll have to call her back later to find out what she meant.

I lose my health insurance at the end of the month, and am in the midst of expensive dental work. Thankfully, Tijuana is just down the road!

It's both scary and exciting to quit at my age. But I've been through worse, am in good financial shape, healthy, and am ready for a vacation.

Yesterday I scraped The Salvation Army off my shoes, and look forward to the next thing.

[Journeyman]

1. I'm told Algodones, just across the border below Yuma, is well-established with dentists. . .

can't give a recommendation (just learned about it last week), but worth checking out. Let me know if you decide to go -- I'm seriously considering it for myself.

[Liberal_in_LA]

4. Lots of folks get good dental work across the border. Many of the dentist are American

and practice on both sides of the border

[petersjo02]

7. Algodones is a great spot.

Loads of eye doctors, dentists, hair dressers, great pharmacies that offer just about anything you need. A clean little town we felt safe in. It takes a very long time to get back across the border, though. Be prepared to wait in line to go home.

[grantcart]

11. Algodones, Mexicali, Tecate and TJ all have good dentists

Anyone that is interested send me a PM and I can give you the contact information for dentists that have been approved by an excellent dental provider for use by Federal Employees.

All of the dentists speak English and can, if necessary, write prescriptions in the US.

[yellowcanine]

2. Religious organizations are some of the worst abusers of workers' rights.

I can't tell you how many times I have seen ads from churches in my own denomination advertising "3/4 time" and "half-time" time positions and you know they are going to likely demand so much from the person that they might as well be working full time but they are basically being under-paid.

[Sal Minella]

3. "I've walked out on two jobs in my life,

and I been broke, but I ain't never been sorry."

One of my friends used to say that.

You have better days waiting for you down the road.

[Warpy]

5. The only saving grace (no pun) for Aunt Sally

is that their head honcho draws a very modest paycheck, too.

I don't like Aunt Sally's treatment of gays, but I know too many people IRL who have been helped by that organization, so I write a check every year.

I think most religious organizations work people to death for low pay. After all, it's GAWD and you should do the work for free, right?

Still, there is nothing to be ashamed about for having worked there and there is no shame about finally getting fed up and leaving.

You do have your passport, I hope. You know Stupid got paranoid and changed the rules, so we now need passports for Canada and Mexico. That cuts out health and dental care for a whole lot of people here in NM who can't afford the passport and the trip, together.

[TheKentuckian]

6. You're brave but it sounds like you did the right thing for your soul (nt)

[librechik]

8. You're 59? Congrats, you can retire early

call your local SS office. You are probably eligible for benefits, including Medicaid. They let you work part time, too. Check it out, anyway. A friend of mine just did this.

[smoochpooch]

9. Check out Costa Rica for dental work too. Many people travel there just for inexpensive dental work

plus you could have that vacation you wanted at the same time!

[Junkdrawer]

10. As a human resource supervisor, you know about COBRA....

Keep up the insurance until your dental work is over?

[bobja]

12. They don't use COBRA

They have their own benefits continuation plan, but I wasn't there long enough to participate.

And, as a church in California, they don't pay ANY unemployment benefits. I had to assist laying off someone last week after she was there 10 years. She does get her pension, which is great, but when you're laid off from a CA church, forget about unemployment benefits! They don't exist.

[Junkdrawer]

13. 20 or more employees?

COBRA, Cal-COBRA, and OBRA – The Different Continuation Coverage Laws

All three of these laws provide for the continuation coverage described above. They apply to different people for different amounts of time. It can be confusing as to when coverage under one law begins and when another one ends. For most Californians, COBRA, Cal-COBRA, or a combination of the two provides 36 months of continuation coverage. There are, however, differences between the laws:

COBRA is a federal law that covers employees of businesses with 20 or more employees. It allows up to 18 months of continuation coverage for an employee who loses coverage because of a qualifying event. The premium for these 18 months is up to 102% of the premium for current employees with the same plan. The time periods are sometimes different for spouses and dependents. COBRA will last for 36 months if you qualify for continuation coverage because of the employee’s Medicare enrollment, legal separation or divorce, loss of dependent status, or death of the employee.

Cal-COBRA is a California law that expands on COBRA. It allows 36 months of continuation coverage for employees of businesses with 2-19 employees. For employees of larger businesses who only have 18 months of COBRA, Cal-COBRA also provides an additional 18 months of coverage, bringing their total to 36 months as well. The Cal- COBRA premium is up to 110% of the premium for current employees with the same plan. Unlike COBRA, Cal-COBRA does not apply to self-insured plans, and those already on Medicare cannot qualify for Cal-COBRA. If you are switching from COBRA to Cal-COBRA, the health plan must send you a notice explaining the change in premiums and what you need to do to keep your coverage. If you don’t get a notice, and think that you should have, contact the health plan.

OBRA is a federal law that is meant to extend COBRA for a longer period of time to people with disabilities. If you are on COBRA for 18 months and Social Security determines that you are disabled within the first 60 days of your continuation coverage, you can extend your coverage for an additional 11 months. The idea is to protect health coverage during the period between becoming disabled and qualifying for Medicare. The premium can increase to up to 150% of the premium for current employees with the same plan.

http://www.disabilitybenefits101.org/ca/programs/your_rights/cobra_obra/cobra/program2.htm

[marshall]

14. And you can forget all your troubles in Tijuana!

Ah, Tijuana--I spent a wonderful weekend there a few years ago.

[imdjh]

15. Run your "exempt" status by an attorney- a lot of people really aren't, even though "salaried".

And it really adds up if your job doesn't actually qualify as exempt. Even ten minutes a day of unpaid overtime can be tens of thousands of dollars.

Edit- I had an acquaintance who worked for Exxon as a manager. He looked like a manager and had a lot of managerial duties, but something about his hours and schedule meant he wasn't a manager by Labor Dept. rules. He got something like $30K after lawyer for unpaid overtime.

[generous ginger]

16. Wow, you're lucky that you are in good financial shape

since you said you got such low pay! You must have lived below your means; very smart.

I admire people who decide that enough is enough, even when the economy is in the toilet. And it's also cool that you were apparently a catalyst for others to improve their situation. Maybe these people will learn a valuable lesson in humanity over this one.

[Obamanaut]

24. It has nothing to do with luck, but rather good sense nt

[TlalocW]

17. Religious organizations are some of the cheapest SOBs out there

And I don't mean the little churches. I'm talking about the ones who buy big-ass billboards around town, etc. Not even mega-churches, but mega-churches are included in my rant. I'm a part time entertainer - balloon twisting and magic, and these big churches constantly call me to find out my fees and then ask what my church fees are. Why would they assume that I'm going to give a discount to a church I may not even like? Good grief, get rid of those stupid billboards, hire me for my normal fees and then use the rest to feed the homeless like churches should be doing. Because of my job, I have a lot of contact with the magic stores in the area. An owner of one told me that one church keeps coming in every Halloween season DEMANDING not asking for free stuff that they need to put on their annual Hell House, and each year he laughs at them.

My regular job is working as a contractor for a company I used to be the head programmer at. They farm a lot of stuff out to me as the new guy can't keep up with it all (heck, neither could I), and the owner does a lot of businesses with churches, and I kind of get a weird feeling when these churches have online stores selling everything from t-shirts with their church logos on it to books written by the ministers. Even worse is when, like a recent client, wanted online donations set up as a subscription, where you could donate from $20 to $500 on a monthly basis for 12, 18, 24 months, or indefinitely.

TlalocW

[PlanetBev]

18. Bravo, brave friend

I'm going on 59, so I can relate. When I was 52, I was pushed out of a job at a religious institution by a girl half my age. Low-paying, exhausting, shitty secretarial job. Actually, I left by mutual agreement, but the HR dept agreed to unemployment insurance. I practically danced out of there, I was so happy.

Anyway, I determined to get a fresh start. Got a new career ten weeks later as a commercial property manager. No training in that field, but was fortunate enough to find an employer willing to give me a chance. Most important thing, I didn't buy into the doom and gloom stuff. When I was out of work, the media informed me that I would be out of work for at least 10 weeks, and that at 52, it would be hard to get another job. September 15th will be six years that I've been here.

Enjoy your time off and get lots of rest. Use this time to re-connect with yourself. When you're ready to go back, doors will open.

By the way, I'm about four hours North of the border, in Ventura County, CA. TJ really comes in handy, from time to time.

[CountAllVotes]

19. good for you!

and I do not blame you one bit. A good friend of mine worked for the Salvation Army for awhile and laid her off. After that she went to reopen her unemployment claim with a few weeks of benefits left on it and they tried to claim they'd offered her a job and they had not done so.

I absolutely hate the Salvation Army. Bunch of greedy hypocritical pigs IMO.

Congratulations on your freedom from these scammers!

:dem: :kick:

[noiretextatique]

20. congrats on getting out of that hellhole

i also work for a non-profit, and i think they are all dysfuncitional. too personality and title driven, too much nepotism, too little accountability at the top, too much work at the bottom. i've worked for non and for profit companies, and my next job will be with government. as non-profits go, government is far better than other non-profits.
best wishes on your new life, and good for you for getting out of there.

[Arkansas Granny]

21. Good luck to you. I can't imagine the luxury of just quitting a job without

having another one lined up to go to.

[misanthrope]

22. Congratulations...

...The end of a lousy job is a liberating experience.

[closeupready]

23. Good luck to you!

:hi: I know with your attitude, you'll land on your feet in no time.

Stories like yours make me realize just how lucky I am. :)

[liberalla]

25. Now you're FREE!

Good for you! I felt your relief as I read your post.
(but I'm curious about the 'tidal wave' comment :o )