How are you all coping with the recession?

[Coolest_Gurl]

This one seems to be a long one. How are you all handling it. Are you laying off staff, have you been laid off. Are you re-training your staff to be more customer friendly. Are you cutting down on buying luxurious stuff. Is your over head bigger than your in-take. Are your kids feeling the crunch. Is your partner feeling it. ?

Our sales are 30 % down the last 1 1/2 year, production is down. Sales not the same had to let a few go a few and kept the good ones. How is it out there?.

 

[Mr_University]

I find it's been pretty good, although I think this new HST is going to take a bite out of consumer spending.

 

[Digital Age]

My shop made it through so far fairly unscathed, but not without some scary weeks. I took the opportunity to clean house a bit and let go a few staff. The good news is that the talent pool is deep in a bad economy so recruiting new staff worked out well.

I'm more concerned about the next twelve months. Stimulus spending is all but done and the rest of the world is still in recession. The Canadian economy is starting to remind me of the ABCP market - fiction and folly.

I'm scrambling to build my reserve funds, either to cushion my fall or to go deep when the next stock market "correction" comes.

 

[Papa B]

There's a recession?

 

[beartree]

When one door closes... another opens. :great:

 

[parkermbg]

It has been tough. Laid off, working in the same field but in a different capacity and for a lot less money, doing jobs on the side to try to make up income... For me it has been a son of a bitch.

 

[talker1996]

I let go two of my dev's and keep the others for Admin purposes mainly. I've taken on more hands on stuff lately and also a large scale project that I'm managing and consulting on my own and not using any of my staff or outside resources. This is the cushion

 

[Seth H]

Keeping afloat of the competition, hustling for the dollar but stable for now. I do know of many that have lost their jobs because of layoffs.

 

[loraine]

+ 1 :great:

 

[antivirus]

I retired in 2007, and decided to sit this one out. :tongue:

 

[Naturepants9]

Had to take a 20% pay cut last year but kept my good job. Lower management staff had no such luck. Its tough out there.

 

[Loogle]

Been putting $7,000 a month from my own pocket the last 9 months to maintain my business. Laid off 3 staff members and others are working less days. I get 10-15 resumes a week from those looking for employment.

 

[Thursday]

I feel sorry for those who were affected by the recession and I am okay with getting flamed for my opinion.

My career was unaffected and infact helped to improve our company as we "trimmed some fat" and got rid of some unproductive employees and helped us get back to basics by improving customer service and watching unnecessary spending.

The part that does make me wonder is how everything will fair as the stimulus spending dwindles down.

 

[frenzalrhomb09]

Have you ever heard of the double dip recession. One of my professors thinks it can happen, here is what I have found.

Double dip recession: What are the odds

Europe's debt crisis. Companies still not hiring. The Gulf oil spill. These are uncertain times to say the least. But while you might think economists would be running for the hills and looking ahead to a so-called "double dip recession," that's not necessarily the case.

http://money.cnn.com/2010/06/09/news/economy/double_dip_recession/index.htm