www.iva.co.uk

Hi all,

Not been on for a while, as I have felt that I have not a lot to offer the forum and things have been getting on top of me. Barclays have still not stopped calling, although, hopefully Liz (at Mel's office) has now sorted that.

Also, I had some bad news last Friday. They are cutting our hours at work by 20% from 1st February. At the moment I’m not entirely aware of the financial impact, as I am salaried and don’t get paid by the hour, but potentially, a 20% drop in money could be around £300 per month. They are saying it is a short term measure and it will be reviewed on a monthly basis. We can tighten our belts to a certain degree and will know more once the powers that be have worked out the impact on management workers, but as you can imagine we are a bit concerned a bit being left with enough to live on once the IVA payment has gone out. I am aware that we can perhaps request a payment break for a couple of months but I really don’t want to do that. I have also been informed that we can offer reduced payments by 15%, but would have to increase payments at a later date. Our other option is to ask for a variation meeting. At this stage I am tempted to just suck it and see. I appreciate that I am not alone in this situation and can assure you that I am not wallowing in self pity or anything. Just looking for some reassurance I suppose.
Cheers guys.

Hi Carl -nice to hear from you and what do you mean you have nothing to offer the forum????? Of course you do, we all do, we have experience and support.[;)]

Thats a big pay cut for you to deal with, have they given any indication how long it will last?To say they'll review it monthly isn't much use. Why don't you talk it over with your IP (Mel isn't it?), Maybe you could make a reduced payment and see what happens the following month?

I'm not much help sorry, but just wanted you to know we're here for you [:)]

xx

I am sure that you are talking to Laura and her team about your concerns on a regular basis, and a payment break can definately be agreed if it comes to that, but do give me a ring if you want to have a chat about this as it is natural to feel worried.

Nice to hear from you again Carl, we're always pleased to hear from you.

Sorry to hear about the cut in hours, that's a bit of a bummer.

If you can manage then obviously that is good, but please don't stretch yourselves too much.

Don't leave it to the last minute to get things sorted out though.

Just heard that we are to lose 8 to 11 staff as well as the cut in hours. That's a lot for a company that only employs 40 people.

It certainly is a lot Carl. Fingers crossed that you are not one of them!

Just lost 9 people today. Thankfully, I am not one of them, but I still feel pretty miserable. Probably guilt as some very close friends have lost their jobs today. The future doesn't look good.

Hi Carl,

I can understand your guilt, it's not good seeing your friends lose their jobs.

Glad you have still got yours though.

Try to keep positive Carl - its horrible on the job front at the moment. I can understand you feeling miserable but try not to let it get you down.

xx

Hi Carl,
its so differcult when all their seems to be is bad news, I wish there was an easy reply, but there is not, keep positive, I know its not easy, however it does help, it keeps you focused on what you do want, its so easy when your down to get dragged into the mire.
My thoughts are with you if that helps
kindly
Matt

It is horrible living on a knife edge of not knowing whether you are going to have a job or not in the future. Glad to hear that this did not affect your position today, but so sorry to hear about your colleagues - this is happening in so many firms at the moment.

Sorry to hear about your colleagues Carl.

Our company has recently made 250 people redundant across the company (UK, France, US and Philippines). My best friend leaves tomorrow. In the US they were told and given 15 minutes to clear their desks and escorted from the building by security.