IBM New Zealand redundancies – they are not rumours.
IBM New Zealand has refused to comment on rumours it is making 34 staff redundant in Wellington and merging its northern and southern region sales teams.
Spokeswoman Courtney Allen said IBM “continuously re-balances skills and capabilities to meet the changing needs of clients. While many of our competitors were contracting in response to the global financial crisis, we hired consistently throughout last year with over 80 appointments,” she said.
The leadership team was continually changing to meet the needs of clients and business, Ms Allen said. “This is business as usual for IBM.”
The subsidiary employs about 1000 staff. It last reported a reduced profit of $13.7 million on sales of $391.4m in 2008.
IBM’s United States parent this week cut nearly 1000 jobs from its worldwide work force of 400,000. The New Zealand subsidiary of its biggest global rival, Hewlett-Packard, this week reported a $8.9m loss and a 10.5 per cent drop in sales.
Dismissing the crap from the spokesman as absolute BS, which is what it is, I can confirm that IBM have made 30+ people redundant, with almost no notice and an appalling lack of anything approaching the legal standards for doing so.
Hubby is one of those people.
They were told on Wednesday (the same day believe it or not that we got confirmation of my brother’s residency), and were given till just Monday as a “consultation period”. Although there is no statutory legal minimum period that employers need to give for this “consultation” – 1 week is the standard that has been formed by case law. 3 days is unreasonable, and is grounds for seeking a Personal Grievance.
I cant say too much, as oddly enough, hubby is one of several people it seems who are doing just that. Its been a hatchet job: badly handled by people who really shouldn’t be allowed to keep their jobs, and basically its one almighty cock-up.
We understand that this has been done so quickly to keep the news out of the paper. So glad that didn’t work (and no – it was NOT me that told the Dom Post!)
And this isn’t business as usual for IBM. IBM New Zealand operates in a world of its own, and one that is frankly an embarrassment to the rest of IBM, if it was actually important enough for the rest of IBM to care what was going on down here. IBM as a company has always been clear that technical staff are not treated as lower class workers than management. If you are a technical specialist, which lets face it – IBM does kinda rely on – you can rise in the company as far as your skills will take you. Not so in New Zealand, where managers get easily offended at technical staff getting paid more then them, and and are not above lying through their back teeth to cover up their own lack of effort and skill.
THAT is what is “Business as usual” in IBM New Zealand. We have seen so many people shoved out in the last year or so because a manager didn’t like them: their “face doesn’t fit”. Hubby himself got a bad personal review last month for no other reason than a manager of his was upset over his high salary, and the fact the he wanted a pay rise.
All in all its a shambles. IBM NZ has been becoming more and more toxic as a workplace, and to be honest we knew it was only a matter for time before something like this happened.
Its things like this that mean so many people leave New Zealand. Working for people who just don’t know what they are doing can be very depressing. While there is a huge amount to come to New Zealand for, screwing up what was a brilliant career really wasn’t the plan, and should not be a cost of emigrating here.
So, now what do we do?
Well, not much really. We have an emergency fund which will cover 2 months worth of bills and living expenses, on top of another months pay and nearly 2 months pay in redundancy (at a reduced payment because IBM is not being exactly fair and honest about hubbies salary. Again.)
I cant stress enough the need to make sure you have these funds behind you, especially if you are taking high paid work in New Zealand. Tall Poppy Syndrome is a huge problem here, and if you are good at your job, and/or get paid a lot of money, there are some very short poppies here who will do their best to get rid of you.
We are far from the only ones that have been affected by this: its actually fairly standard. And certainly in high paid IT circles – it seems to be pretty much the only way to get a pay rise. So be prepared. Then if or when it happens, you have the distinct pleasure of being able to sit back and not in any way beg for a job from the people who just shat all over you.
Trust me – that is a nice feeling!
So, hubby has already started the process of having endless coffee meetings, phone calls and interviews. No point in waiting around! Oddly enough although IBM NZ claims it doesn’t need hubby any longer – they still expect him to work out his notice. Again, very different from IBM UK who have the sense to get disgruntled staff off the premises pronto.
And we wait for the lawyers to do their thing.
If you happen to be affected by this – we recommend an employment lawyer in Lower Hutt: Mike Gould at Gibson Sheat. He’s not cheap, but he’s good, and it really is worth every cent if like in this case your employer has not followed the expected process or has bullied you in any way. You are entitled to seek legal advice if you are being made redundant, and if anyone in management claims you are making a threat by saying you will be seeking legal advise, please make sure you tell your lawyer this. If you really cannot afford a private lawyer, don’t forget Citizens advice, who can offer you information for free.
BTW – while NZ staff were given three days “consultation”, UK Staff were given 90 days. Says it all about how New Zealand companies are run.
Mike Gould: Gibson Sheat:
04 569 4873
mike.gould@gibsonsheat.com
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Should New Zealand have an emergency fund for Migrants?
Filed under: Cost of living, Getting to New Zealand, NZIS & Immigration issues
One of the two families in the news lately over losing jobs and having to go home, had now left New Zealand. Having paid $11,000 to a licensed “Immigration Advisor” (and I use the term loosely) – it seems they too had little money to get home, and had nowhere to stay. Hmm, I hope the Immigration Advisors Authority has read about this and looks into whether this advisor followed the code of conduct.
Everyone but the father has now been repatriated back to Germany – it sounds like the local List MP helped them out. (If Only our list MP had been so useful – he couldn’t have given a toss!)
There are also calls (unsurprisingly from opposition MP’s who need a political stick), to set up a fund to help Migrants in need. I can’t help but think this is just wrong on so many counts. For a start I am offended that an opposition MP who oversaw a catalogue of problems within NZIS and did sod all about it, now claims to have Migrants best interests at heart. The hypocrisy is nauseating.
The impact of the recession on temporary and permanent migrants occurred in a way not anticipated by us or them when they came here,” [Jim Anderton] said. “They came here on advice, so we can’t then blame them when things go wrong.”
The problem with this – while nice – is that what happens to the migrants that just don’t settle here and go home? Do they get their flights back paid for them as well? You see it’s not just the recession that forces people to go home. Given that net migration figures are always ridiculously low (there are however no figures on how many of the ones that leave are migrants as opposed to Kiwis) – if the New Zealand government helped out every migrant who –for whatever reason – had to leave it would simply be unaffordable.
And to be honest – I really do think we need to accept that there are no guarantees that it will work out for us here. We need to be prepared for the fact that we may need to leave, and it should be up to us to have the emergency fund to get ourselves home. Even if you have a Permanent Residency Visa, can you afford to stay here without a job? We had been here over 4 years and were citizens, when it was looking highly dubious that Hubby would get to keep his job. Added to that – it was looking very likely that the Family Residence Team in London would do everything in its power to ensure that my family did not join us. There were many days when we had to look at what we do if we had to go back. The cost to us would have been phenomenal. We did however have emergency funds to deal with loss of income, and we could have got flights home. Dealing with our properties however would have been horrendous.
There is simply no way of knowing till you move here and live here how you will settle, and there is always the risk that your job may not work out. You need to have funds to live on or get home and you need to have a plan. I also wonder how many people moving from the UK to New Zealand would be happy if the UK government did the same for it’s migrant population. I doubt it would be many.
Please ensure you fully understand the costs involved in emigrating to New Zealand, and if you sell a house in the UK – keep some of the money back to cover situations like this. It can happen to any of us, and it does not happen simply because we are in a recession – that just makes it more likely and more newsworthy.
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The face of the “recession”: check how much you are spending!
Filed under: Cost of living, General Budgeting, Property Investing
This is not the first “riches to rags” story that has been printed in the papers this year so far – and it won’t be the last; about a couple are stars today after trying to sell everything they splurged on over the years so they can pay their mortgage and bills.
The successful plumber has come unstuck, not because his business is struggling, but because other business are and didn’t pay him the money they owed him. He is apparently owed $95,000 – and not many of us can cope with a $95k paycut! (We only manage with our $28k because we never actually had the money in the first place – not that this in anyway lets IBM off the hook in my opinion.)
So they are taking everything that they spent all their money on without thinking about it – and are now selling it for a helluva lot less on Trade me. Now I’m all for getting rid of stuff you don’t really need on Trade Me to make a few extra bucks – but please – get things under control before you HAVE do this. Its one thing to sell a load of stuff because you are emigrating and it will save on shipping (and it acts as a clear out of your old life), but to be in a position where you need to use trade me so that you can put food on the table is not somewhere you want to end up.
Even the childrens toys are being sold (though I have to say I feel more sympathy for them being called Porche and Jag – don’t get me wrong I love Jags but it’s just not fair to name your kids after cars!).
One of the really telling comments is that the wife, who is having to sell a lot of her clothes and shoes, says: “”I certainly don’t go shopping any more. I used to go shopping and do lots of it. I hadn’t looked at the bank account for years and I said, [to Regan] `Oh my God, why didn’t you tell me to stop shopping?”‘
This was exactly the same reaction we both had when we realised we had been overspending and ended up with no money. In some ways I guess we are lucky that we figured it out before a recession hit, so we are used to doing all the cutting back and not spending on stuff we don’t need. I’m also glad that we had learned this lesson before we went in to property investment – because the lessons we have learned have meant that we are still comfortable even with values dropping and rents not being as high as we would like. I may not have a closet full of shoes, but I can go and splurge on a pair now and then knowing that I wont be having to sell them in a few month for a lot less.
One of the really unfortunate things in this story is that this couple asked their bank for a $100,000 loan to help tide them over and the bank refused. Now obviously we can’t know why the bank did that, but isn’t this the whole point of the bank guarantee system and all the work the government is doing to keep money moving??? And given that this week Westpac did advance an overdraft to a couple in a similar situation who were obviously not a good risk – I do feel a bit sorry for these people.
Hopefully these stories will start making people generally more away of their spending habits – and hopefully more people will start looking at what they spend their money on.
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What do you do just in case things do go to hell in a hand basket?
Filed under: Cost of living, General Budgeting, Jobs & Work, Life in New Zealand, Mortgages in New Zealand, interest rates
Irrespective of what I personally believe about what is happening in New Zealand financially or with jobs; there is no denying that people are scared. I may have a gut feeling that people do not need to be – but let’s be honest – it is hard to ignore all the headlines telling us “The Sky Is Falling”. It does sound as though you will be out of a job and on the street tomorrow.
So what can you do if you want to be prepared just in case the papers get it right – whether or not they base their assumption on something as silly as what happens in the US?
Well, in a meeting with my Bank Manager just before Christmas, I was told that the bank was figuring on another 2 years of pain before things start getting better. The length of time this “recession” will last depends entirely on who you ask – so I wouldn’t place any bets just yet. But as we talked over a few things: I figured: why not plan for the worst and hope for the best.
So – in addition to making sure I put as much money as I could into our emergency fund (IBM still haven’t sorted out Hubby’s Job Contract – despite the 15 mangers signing off on it), we are doing the following:
Paying as much as we can off our Personal Mortgage as fast as we can.
Not using credit cards if we can’t pay off the balance in full each month.
Watching our spending so that we spend significantly less than we earn.
Basically – exactly the same things that we do anyway.
If you don’t do these things already – now is the time to start. If you have credit card debt – make it a priority to pay it off as soon as possible. Throw any spare money at it you can. And cut up the card so you don’t add to the problem. Remember that credit cards in New Zealand charge a stunning 20% interest. And if you don’t already keep a close eye on your spending – then start.
Apparently the “economy” needs us to spend up large to keep it afloat. Well, the “economy” can cope without my money. It hasn’t had much of it for the past few years – so it won’t miss it now. If it wants it – it can reduce my fixed rate mortgage interest – and then i’ll think about it.
Will New Zealand’s interest rates fall again this week?
Filed under: Banks, Mortgages in New Zealand, Property Investing, interest rates
The reserve Bank of New Zealand meets again on Thursday this week, to decide on Interest rates.
According to Interest.co.nz – it is expected that Alan Bollard (bless his little cotton socks) will reduce the official cash rate (OCR) by 100 points (That’s 1% to us normal people).
Of course – this is no use whatsoever to me personally when I have 2 large fixed rate mortgages with another 4 years to run, and I know I’m not alone.
And it won’t help that many first time buyers as the banks are being rigidly unhelpful at the moment – you need a 20% deposit to be able to access the new low mortgage rates. For the same reason – I am not the only property investor who can find really good cashflow properties; but cannot actually but them.
Interestingly – if Mr Bollard does reduce the rate by 1% -taking it to 4% – it will mean that New Zealand has the lowest official cash rate it has ever had since the OCR was introduced in March 99 – when it was at 4.5%.
You know – the one thing that really peeves me about all this – is that Mr Bollard has not apologised for screwing up the interest rates in the first place. Now – it is just my opinion – as a non-economist – that he did in fact screw up – but I vividly remember his snotty pronouncements last year that he had to hammer us all for spending too much money, and he would keep raising rates till we did as we were told.
So having left many people, including banks and mortgage brokers, with the expectation that rates would keep climbing and climbing till he had inflicted enough pain – he then did the most amazing U-turn and rates have been dropping like a stone ever since. Which leaves a lot of people up the swanny. If you can’t access the new low rates – you are still paying around 9%-10% on your mortgage, with no way of getting out of it. (The Break fees basically mean you pay the next so many years of interest in one hit).
It is an uncomfortable time for many people. We are personally in an OK position. We did not have time to overextend ourselves with our rental properties, and we still have a relatively high income – which means we can actually pay all our mortgages – even at the high rates. And we do have emergency funds to call on, and shares we could sell if we had to. Many people who fixed their mortgages in the belief that Alan Bollard would keep raising rates as he said he would – are not in such a good position.
While I do not think either the banks or the Reserve bank should take responsibility for the decisions of individuals to overspend – I do feel that they could be just a little bit more contrite about their own roles in the ensuing financial crisis. As ever – it is businesses and banks that get guarantees and bailouts.
Individuals get bugger all and forced into Mortgagee sales.
Wehey! We Don’t Need to dip into our Emergency Fund after all!
I mentioned here that we may need to dip into our emergency fund:
IBM were only taking staff on as 2-year contractors, and that was coming to an end next April, and hubby has been trying for months to get the contract made permanent.
Finally, after a lot more hassle and way more meetings with managers than should have been needed, the approval has come through for Hubby’s contract to be made permanent.
The funniest thing? Or perhaps the most utterly annoying and frustrating thing (that had us screaming and grinding our teeth)?
15 people had to sign off on making the contract permanent:
Manager (New Zealand Based)
2nd Line Manager (New Zealand)
2nd Line Business Executive (Aus)
Finance Manager (NZ)
HR Manager (NZ)
Resource Manager (Aus)
Talent Leader (??!) (Aus)
HR Manager (Aus)
3rd Line Business Manager (NZ)
General Manager 1 (Aus)
General Manager 2 (Aus)
General Manager 3 (Aus)
Finance Manager (Aus)
Vice President of Finance (Japan).
Director of HR (China)
Notice: only 5 people on that list are actually based in New Zealand!
Maybe THIS is why so many migrants find it hard to get job offers from NZ companies. The problem we found, both here and with Unisys, is that the New Zealand company is seen as a bit of a poor relation to the Australian branch. It’s not the first time that hubbys job has been decided by people in Australia rather than New Zealand.
Anyway – as we were shoving extra money aside – we now have a few extra thousand dollars in the emergency fund. I figure it may as well stay there.
But as we don’t need it just yet – I’m going back to pouring the money into the mortgage. I was able to divert my normal mortgage payments into the slush fund because I’m years ahead on the mortgage anyway – but I have to say I’m real glad to be able to get back to killing the mortgage!
P.S. All this effort was just to get approval for the transfer. Salary negotiations are still to take place.
Why do you need an emergency fund?
You often hear people saying you should put aside at least 3 months expenses as an emergency fund. So – how many people do you know who have done that?
Not Many? A few? None?
Well, we have a “situation” looming where for the second time since moving to New Zealand – we may need our emergency fund.
The first was when Hubby was “made redundant” from Unisys, after the installation of a new manager who really didn’t like him. (The feeling was mutual). Hubby really disliked the job, and morale in the company was at rock bottom, with staff leaving in droves. (Over the 15 months that he worked there, the staff levels were reported to have gone from 600 to 400).
The redundancy notice came in on the 4th December (our wedding anniversary as it happens – a nice pressie!). Hubby managed to wangle some redundancy pay – so he was the only person to get a bonus that year – but it was only another month’s salary.
It took till April to get a replacement job. This is primarily because a/ He costs a lot to employ and b/ no one cares about looking for new staff in the run up to Christmas and c/ people care even less about looking for new staff during January because the beach is calling.
So for a few months – we had to manage with no income. We still had bills to pay, had to put steaks on the Barbie, and had to pay the mortgage. Without some funds behind us – we would have been stuffed.
As it was – we got through with a sense of freedom and managed to spend quite a bit of time at the beach and Hubby didn’t have to spend all day every day looking for work.
The new job came from IBM, who hubby had worked for for 10 years in the UK. So it was a good fit, and something he really was chuffed to get. Only problem was – IBM were not taking on Permanent staff - but only willing to sign a 2 year contract, to be converted to a permanent hire once you prove yourself (the 10 years in the UK busting a gut evidently did not constitute such proof).
Well, the 2 years are up next April. After 6 months of wrangling – there is still no sign of the promised permanent contract (apparently its stuck on someone’s desk in Asia Pacific waiting for a signature – it doesn’t do to rush these things). So hubby is once again having to look for a new job just in case.
Only this time – we are in a country that like everywhere else is in financial turmoil, so we have no idea at the moment how this will affect the search for a new job. We know we have income till April, but after that – well – your guess is as good as mine.
So once again, I’m immensely grateful to have set aside funds for this. It means we can last till August if the worst happens and the new contract doesn’t appear and it all goes to hell in a hand basket. I’m spending between now and then just adjusting our spending to allow me to add more to the slush fund, so that we don’t have to panic.
Its something we have found really odd about our lives in New Zealand – this lack of longevity in the jobs. I guess after 10 years with the same employer – you don’t really think that you are going to get through 3 in 4 years. We haven’t really got used to the fact that people change jobs so rapidly, and at least in the IT sector, the companies seem to be fine with this.
So yeah – 3 months slush fund. Be different – and be one of the few to get one set up. Then if this whole new-job-needed-every-18 months is not just us – you don’t have to panic – and can spend some of your redundancy time like this:
Being made redundant - Kiwi Style
