My husband will be losing his unemployment if nothing gets past. He is NOT lazy whatsoever. My husband made ~$80,000/year working as a Project Manager for a civil engineering firm where he worked predominantly on the civil design (design for grading, drainage, sewer, water, storm drain, ADA Access & Compliancy, etc) for new schools (K-12) and new additions to existing schools. He occasionally worked in residential and commercial development. He spent 18 years in the industry and busted his butt for the company as well as us at home. He put me through college during the last few years as well. THERE IS NO WORK IN HIS INDUSTRY IN OUR AREA!!! The state of California has been closing schools and cancelling projects that were scheduled to be built. They are not going to be starting new ones! If there was work in the field, he would be working right now. I get extremely frustrated when people say things that imply that the unemployed are lazy. YOU HAD TO BE WORKING TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS!!! My husband has always taken pride in that he was hard working, well respected with his clients and coworkers and that he could support us without me working. Being unemployed has made him feel like he is worthless now.
If he could find a job, he'd be working! OUR AREA HAS ~20% UNEMPLOYMENT!! HUNDREDS of people line up outside when a fast food place says they will be hiring. A job expo has to close its doors by 10 am when they reached maximum occupancy! People with Master's degrees are flipping burgers. There is very little work in our area for even part-time work.
When DH got laid off, I was still in school. My PT research assistant job and his unemployment paid very little. We went through what savings we did have quickly. Now, that his unemployment will be ending, we don't have that cushion anymore.
Because I work and the nature of my line of work (environmental work; geologist/hydrogeologist), I have been taking extra hours at work to help with the loss of income (I am salary and get paid straight time, not time and a half, etc). Up through T-giving, I worked 60 hour weeks and for over a month straight (NO DAYS OFF). I don't make anywhere near what DH made, so things are tight now. When his unemployment ends, things will be very tight. I should also note that in order for me to get a higher paying position (and much better experience with a reputable firm), I had to take a job in the big city (Orange County, CA). I commute 74 miles one way to work every day. In CA traffic, that is 4 hours roundtrip minimum, not uncommon to be 5 hours. So, add in 60 hours a week billable hours (overhead hours like proposals, etc are not billable) and 20-25 hours a week in travel time, and I am exhausted. I LOVE my job, wouldn't leave it, but also understand that I am sacrificing time with my husband to ensure that our bills get paid and I get the quality experience I need that can lead to higher pays and eventually promotions. I need to work my butt off since I know that there are people out there who would like my job and have strong resumes.
The only thing that has been keeping my husband and I afloat is our frugal lifestyle (now getting even more frugal) and the fact that he supported me through college, which has now provided me with a job that pays well enough to get our bills paid (little left over, but we are extremely grateful for what we have!!). We are EXTREMELY grateful for my passion in a less impacted field (compared to his) and that I have found work. We realize we could be in a worse situation. But, we also feel the strain and struggle since we live paycheck to paycheck on a much more frugal budget....and that is with his unemployment! Come the end of his benefits and we will be hurting, even with my working.
What do we do for food, utilities, etc? We keep our bills low by being conscious of electricity (lights off, etc), only heat our house at night (if necessary, and it is usually set at 60*F or so), garden in the summer and can stuff to last us, shop at the lower priced grocery stores, rice and veggies is always tasty and cheap, stews are cheap, pasta is always a safe bet, drink water or homemade iced tea only, make our own laundry detergent and dishwasher detergent.....whatever we can do. If the temps are too bad, we will tuen the heat off and use more blankets.
My mom has been in the same industry with MORE experience. She has been unemployed for 2 years. She has sent out over 200 resumes (not exaggerating) nationwide and her employment has run out. What is she suppose to do? She has been applying for whatever she can, but can't find anything in her area (SE Idaho, which is currently being hit very hard by the economy). My mom is looking at losing her house if she can't find something. She called today and said she may have found a part-time job. This is the first lead in a long time!
If my mom loses her house, then that means that my mom and my brother will have to move in with me. That leaves me to support 2 additional adults in my home (plus DH).
When DH got laid off, I was still in school. My PT research assistant job and his unemployment paid very little. We went through what savings we did have quickly. Now, that his unemployment will be ending, we don't have that cushion anymore.
Because I work and the nature of my line of work (environmental work; geologist/hydrogeologist), I have been taking extra hours at work to help with the loss of income (I am salary and get paid straight time, not time and a half, etc). Up through T-giving, I worked 60 hour weeks and for over a month straight (NO DAYS OFF). I don't make anywhere near what DH made, so things are tight now. When his unemployment ends, things will be very tight. I should also note that in order for me to get a higher paying position (and much better experience with a reputable firm), I had to take a job in the big city (Orange County, CA). I commute 74 miles one way to work every day. In CA traffic, that is 4 hours roundtrip minimum, not uncommon to be 5 hours. So, add in 60 hours a week billable hours (overhead hours like proposals, etc are not billable) and 20-25 hours a week in travel time, and I am exhausted. I LOVE my job, wouldn't leave it, but also understand that I am sacrificing time with my husband to ensure that our bills get paid and I get the quality experience I need that can lead to higher pays and eventually promotions. I need to work my butt off since I know that there are people out there who would like my job and have strong resumes.
The only thing that has been keeping my husband and I afloat is our frugal lifestyle (now getting even more frugal) and the fact that he supported me through college, which has now provided me with a job that pays well enough to get our bills paid (little left over, but we are extremely grateful for what we have!!). We are EXTREMELY grateful for my passion in a less impacted field (compared to his) and that I have found work. We realize we could be in a worse situation. But, we also feel the strain and struggle since we live paycheck to paycheck on a much more frugal budget....and that is with his unemployment! Come the end of his benefits and we will be hurting, even with my working.
What do we do for food, utilities, etc? We keep our bills low by being conscious of electricity (lights off, etc), only heat our house at night (if necessary, and it is usually set at 60*F or so), garden in the summer and can stuff to last us, shop at the lower priced grocery stores, rice and veggies is always tasty and cheap, stews are cheap, pasta is always a safe bet, drink water or homemade iced tea only, make our own laundry detergent and dishwasher detergent.....whatever we can do. If the temps are too bad, we will tuen the heat off and use more blankets.
My mom has been in the same industry with MORE experience. She has been unemployed for 2 years. She has sent out over 200 resumes (not exaggerating) nationwide and her employment has run out. What is she suppose to do? She has been applying for whatever she can, but can't find anything in her area (SE Idaho, which is currently being hit very hard by the economy). My mom is looking at losing her house if she can't find something. She called today and said she may have found a part-time job. This is the first lead in a long time!
If my mom loses her house, then that means that my mom and my brother will have to move in with me. That leaves me to support 2 additional adults in my home (plus DH).
