According to BC law, employees who got laid off get about 1 month per year of employment in severance package. It is quite expensive for the company to lay off anyone here. The CEO want us sign a new contract, limiting the severance to 2 weeks per year and capped at 6 months total. The new contract is so far so good if it is given enough incentive. However, the only benefit for signing the new contract is we are allow to keep our stock options, which is worthless anyways. Anyone with a right mind will not sign the contract. You forfeit half of your severance package for virtually nothing!

The new contract on its own is just plain stupid, but the CEO’s Q&A session make it out-outrageous. It is obvious we will ask why should we sign such as stupid contract. The CEO replied that the cost of doing business is too high in Canada. He threaten us that too expensive to lay people off will make the company stop having further investment in Canada. He pull up some statistic citing it is really too expensive. If we read the number, the Canada is about the same as other developed countries, like UK, Germany, France, Japan, the only exception is US. The most outrageous part is that the CEO present it in such a way that if we sign the contract, we will have better job security, but it doesn’t make sense at all. How can you get more job security by making the company easier to lay you off?

I think his threat is just a bluff. The investment decision won’t affect by whether or not we all sign the new contract. The new hire has to sign the new contracts. US is cheaper to lay people off, but more expensive to hire. Most employee in our Silicon Valley office is already laid off. Our cost is still too high comparing to India or China even if we sign the new contract If we are really too expensive, the jobs will go to India or China regardless whether we sign the new contract. Signing the new contract will only the cut happen sooner than later, if the cut is inevitable.

If the company really want us to sign the new contract, they should give us some incentive, say a buy out of $1000 per year of employment. Treating us like idiots and try to use an empty threat to make us sign the new contract really hurt the moral in the company. I guess the lost of productivity is already more expensive than the saving they could even get from the new contract.

Now box Kleenex is gone, what’s next? I am pretty sure the company is seriously considering cutting the toilet paper. Maybe that’s why they send us to India, prepare us for a paperless toilet. Instead of having toilet paper in the toilet, they will put a small bucket in each stall like in the Indian office. After you done your business, you can fill up the bucket with water and then use it to clean your bottom. Then maybe they will cut the utensils in cafeteria. Why waste money on plastic forks or money to wash the metal forks. We can eat with our hands too! The only thing that you have to remember is the left hand is the toilet hand, the right hand is the eating hand. Don’t mix up!

大慨是香港回歸後經濟一直向上﹐香港人已經忘記了經濟有起有跌的定律。就算當年SARS也只是短時間的陣痛﹐外圍有利因素保持不變﹐經濟在疫症過後也快速反彈。今次金融海嘯全球國家無一肯免﹐外圍經濟因素大逆轉﹐香港這樣的出口型經濟﹐明年恐怕將會是一個漫長的經濟嚴冬。也許今年企業的業績還有盈利﹐但對明年的預測數字恐怕不怎樂觀了。若到出現赤字時才裁員﹐那已經為時已晚了。在經濟增長時錢很易賺經營很容易﹐到經濟衰退時才出管理顯真功夫。只要企業保持生存空間﹐挨到經濟從谷底反彈時﹐競對手﹐淘弱留強死了大半﹐輕易奪取市場佔有率﹐增長比衰退前更加壯大。當然前題是企業要挨過衰退期﹐沒有倒閉沒有被人收購﹐亦沒有裁員過度削深入骨﹐自癈武功斷絕谷底反彈的競爭力。

今次金融海嘯暫時還未吹到我公司﹐但自出來做事後也經歷過數次裁員﹐幸好每次都大步檻過。最記得第一次裁員時﹐科技泡沬剛剛爆破﹐公司股價在數月內蒸發九成。在大刀砍下來之前﹐我們早已收到裁員的消息﹐人事部開不尋常的週未會議﹐IT部漏夜急召開工﹐只是不知道誰會遭央。我部門的行政主管比較不幸﹐在裁員前一天已收到離職通知。我們下面的員工頓時成為無主孤魂﹐人心惶惶不知會否整個部門給關掉。正式裁員的那天﹐我們如常上班如常無心工作﹐十時收到總裁發來的電郵﹐公台裁員行動開始。我們要安在座位等候命運﹐若要收大信封的話﹐經理會來捉你入去會議室。好像捉越南難民般即捕即解﹐收了信封後由保安送出門口﹐再約個時間回來簽離職文件和搬箱。我四邊座位有三個人給經理捉了去﹐恐怕下一個就輸到我﹐一直挨到午餐時候裁員結束﹐大家同事才出去吃定驚飯﹐有些女同事還驚到哭了出來。

到第二次裁員公司吸收了上次的經驗﹐不再和我們玩恐懼鬥室﹐直接給我們來個爽快了結。裁員電郵在向外發佈消息的同時傳來﹐把所有人叫入不會議室開會。入到會議室時大家也不知會發生什麼事﹐人齊後高層開腔發言說我們全部人都安全﹐被解僱的同事在另一個會議室。這時我們才你眼望我眼﹐看看誰人不幸不在這裏。後來第三四五次裁員﹐大家也漸漸麻木了﹐反正這個年代已經沒有一輩子的工作保障。當經濟好景時外邊高薪挖角跳槽﹐經濟不好時公司裁員削減人手﹐雙方關係不過是一紙合同﹐合則來不合則去﹐沒有什麼責任可言。只要保持個人競爭力﹐被炒了也不用擔心沒有會失業。看上次裁員給解僱的同事﹐有些人很快便找到工作﹐有些人回校進修讀個MBA﹐有些人索性轉行做政府或教書。被裁員也不一定是壞事﹐可以當是一個重新開始的機會。反過來我公司的一些競爭對手﹐衰退初期持著招股時集資不少﹐堅持不裁員希望難關早過﹐結果因為衰退比所有人預期都長﹐錢最終還是燒光了﹐難逃被收購拆骨的命運。當然炒人也不是沒有風險﹐若果衰退比預期的短﹐衰退過後就沒有反彈的實力﹐不能搶佔有利增長的市場位置。