Have we all forgotten? Most businesses rely on employees or they wouldn't be in business. Isn't it a fact that it all started by employers paying employees because they appreciated the work that they did for them? And the exceptional employee would be given bonuses and benefits because they were greatly appreciated. What went wrong? For the past 30 years my husband worked for a large company. He's been with them through all of it's ups and downs including the spinning off two times into separate companies and most recently being bought by another company. Here's where it gets ugly. The new company only needs certain parts of the old company's workforce so they are going to be downsizing. The unit in which my husband works is going to be staying, but not as many people are needed. So guess what? That's right! After 30 years of helping the business get where it's at today, they are letting him go. Not the woman who's been there three years but the older man that's been there 30 years. I can understand from a business point of view that a younger person is more able to work longer hours and more than likely their minds are a little bit sharper. That, unfortunately, is a fact of life.

Although my husbands performance reviews have all been exceptional performance reviews they are still letting him go. Why then, are they letting him go? We came up with 2 reasons. A couple of months ago my husband was diagnosed with Hep.C. The treatment for the disease is very brutal and can cause some horrible side affects. Some people have been known to commit suicide because it can cause severe depression. Knowing what the side affects can be, my husband thought the right thing to do was to tell his supervisors what to expect. Well, three weeks later they pulled him into the office and suggested that he go on short term disability because he was on the list to be laid off. They also told him they were doing him a favor by telling him this because the company has not yet announced the layoff and they asked him to keep it quiet until then. Since my husband has not yet started treatments, this is not an option. They also suggested that he might think about retiring and even asked him if he could afford to do so. My husband is turning 55 this year and with his time of service he is in range to do so. Unfortunately though, last year they did away with early retirement and my husband would receive only 50% of his retirement which would equal 21% of his monthly salary. Sure there's a separation package but it is given to all employees no matter what their time of service is. Oh by the way, when they took away early retirement they also took away retirement health benefits. Think about this. Most people don't use most of their health benefits until they reach the age of 50 when most health problems occur. My husbands prescriptions, without insurance will be costing over $2000 a month. His pension will be $1700 per month. Easy math, it doesn't work! The treatment is 48 weeks. Out of respect for his service to the company couldn't they at least keep him for one more year as a show of appreciation for dedicated service? Yes, I do think that there should be higher standards in treatment of employees. I'm sure my husband is not the first to go through this and unless things change he won't be the last!

Learn more about this author, Susan Bieber.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

---

Add your voice

Know something about Should employers be held to higher standards in their treatment of employees?
We want to hear your view. Write now!