What would you do without a job?
 

My brother's been through a hard time the past couple of years. He developed a benign spinal tumor that was surgically removed but has left him with a slight limp and some chronic pain issues. His office (major pharma) got a new president who overhauled, leaving him without a job. My brother fought back and a nasty fight left him with a good settlement but it's run dry. Prior to this job, he jumped jobs a bit too often leaving his resume a bit scattered.

He's gone on at least 40 interviews over the past 2 years and has gone deep into the hiring process at least 20 times. Each time it's come down to the last 2 or 3 candidates and they decide to hire someone else. The limp? I dunno. The scattered resume? Likely. The nasty battle with former employer? Maybe.

He's gotten by through his own consulting work, ironically getting work from his old immediate boss at the pharma that fired him. He uses his consulting company's name so that the pres who fired him doesn't know that it's him.

Because of the medical issues, he really needs a health insurance through a big company. It's tough to get on your own with a complex med history.

I'm at a loss. I wonder what he needs to do next. He's obviously depressed. He's only 41 and has a wife and 2 kids to take care of. He's got one major pharma who seems about to hire him but we've been down this road before. What would you do if it seemed like you couldn't buy a job? I've suggested going back to school but it'd mean taking on debt for no guarantee.

What would you do???

This, unfortunately, is a take-what-you-can-get situation. He needs to find a stable job asap and stay there for t least a year. It might be selling cars or taking customer service calls, but he has to win the bread or else his family could go hungry, and he has to get that resume under control. If he does well, and I'm sure he will, he will have more references and can start again from there when he finally does get hired at a [pharma(cy?). If it makes you feel any better, I'd hire someone like that in a heart beat.

It's a disgusting situation, and old new president was a complete dolt for firing him (as he is a consultant for them now, they obviously need him).

Yeah, he is a dolt and more shit has happened there since my brother was canned. Sorry I didn't make it clear, pharma = major pharmaceutical company. My brother has been a marketing manager, getting paid over $100k. As bad as it is I can't see him taking on a call center job or something like that. Yet.

I don't know that I have much advice to offer beyond network, network, network. The whole point of marketing guys is that they know everyone.

Many companies run credit checks and if his battle went through the courts, it's probably on those. No one wants to hire anyone who might remotely sue down the line. Once someone is considered, the check gets run....the better background check wins.
If he was making that kind of money, he probably had a pretty good middle class life-that might need some paring down.
I agree-network. A lot. Go to smaller companies for a position. Take a smaller paycheck for now-it's better than nothing.
Get counselling to both overcome the depression setting in and to build esteem.
Does he have a college degree? To help offset bills, while jobhunting, he could substitute teach.

what would I do without a job?

I wish i knew, because i've been out of one for a month now.

sick wife, high med bills, no income, I feel so screwed.

I'd go on a world tour!


I'm sorry to hear that your brother is having such a hard go at life at the moment. It sounds as if he's doing all he can to recover so there's little advice I can give. He has my sympathies...

Could he go back to college and get the student healthcare? It would be an expensive way to go though, but it would be a good reason for a gap in the resume.

Could he expand his consulting business?

If it were me, if I had to, I could move to Wash. DC and get a job pretty easily. I would rather start looking for jobs out West first though. My current plan is to take 6-8 months off to travel the world and get my life organized. Then I would try and start my own company for the next 10-12 months, and if it wasn't going good after a year, I would get another job.

Been there, done that, and not a fan (since I didn't have money saved up for this). If I had some cash, I could have waited a long time for job, but with 4 kids, and a wife, I took the first job that came along. The only thing good about unemployment, the free health care. Once you have it, it doesn't just go away either. You have about 2 years once you have job to get off the "transitional" insurance. Other than that, it really sucks not having money.

Sure going back to school is a big investment and yes, debt builder....but some programs do actually result in employment. Going for a philosophy degree isn't going to pay big dividends right away, but other more technical courses do.
I guess it comes down to whether its worth the investment for longterm payoff.

i don't think this would work for everyone, BUT if i didn't have to work i would write, books of poetry, journals, short stories, and walk, walk, walk, walk, walk. . . .

Take any job you can and then look for a different one. I recently changed jobs. Was doing home childcare for 5 years. Got a job as a cashier for $6.25/hr. I've got a BACHELORS degree but I took the first thing I could find. Now I've got a part time modeling job and a shot at the Sherriff's department. You start small and work your way up. Just having ANY old job will improve your (or in this case HIS) chances of getting another one.