In the corporate world, looking back, every boss I ever had eventually got "downsized". Most were very knowledgeable, experienced and decent managers, but there are only so many seniority positions. I hear the military is the same. Most people either stop or step aside in a skilled position. Upper management has to decide if a person's experience outweighs his raises over the years. If cheaper people are coming along and gaining in experience, you can see the pressure to move out the older generation.

Cathleen

fortunately right now it seems to be secure, we do have contracts coming up in August so we'll see after that, the one thing we do have to fall back on is that he is going back to school and is hoping to graduate in December with one of his degrees, so if he were to lose his job and or benfits, he can hopefully find an HVAC job! We were hoping to hold onto the current job til spring, but we'll see.

I'd say his job is fairly stable - there's always trees growing around powerlines, and they need to be trimmed. That's not a job that most folks really want to do and he's been doing it for 15+ years.

That said, it is extremely dangerous. The joke is that linemen (powerline workers) and line clearance workers (tree trimmers around powerlines) "don't retire, they expire". I think it was Thursday DH came home and showed me his shirt, which had a small hole burnt into it. The hot phase of the powerline had arced to the neutral phase, and since DH was right up next to the neutral, in a tree, the line arced to his shoulder and burned his shirt and about knocked him out of the tree. He was sore most of the weekend from it.

He has life insurance....

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The military is the same in a way. They go through spurts of needing people and then downsizing. My dad served for 20 years, and saw it happen quite a bit. Something someone did as a young (stupid) soldier will bite them in the butt 15 years later when the military doesn't need you anymore.

I don't think that the military will downsize an experienced leader (unless there are disciplinary issues) but the higher rank you are the less positions are available and a lot of people choose to get out after 20 years when they are eligible for retirement.

very... my husband is a tax accountant... death and taxes, you know. He is the only person on his "level" at the firm and he is very good at his job. I am very confident in his skills and ability to get a new job, even if the unthinkable happens.

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It's not what you make; it's what you spend.

Honestly, in this economy, my dh's job is probably about as stable as anybody else's.

I agree with the other warnings about thinking your dh could never get downsized. Years ago, at another company, my dh was the only one who did a certain job and he was laid off. Even though he's very intelligent and has contacts, it took him almost 6 months to get a job in his field and, even though he's been at this company for a while, he's still not making the money that he used to make.

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"I live for myself and I answer to nobody." ~ Steve McQueen

I agree. As secure as dh's job is, I'd never say they couldn't do it without him. Maybe they couldn't replace him, but his job would be broken into 20 pieces, given to 20 different people and there you go. I'm also very wary of companies that insist on 110% company loyalty. It seems those are the ones who have no employee loyalty, and if they decide you are expendable, your notice is given and the "sorry, nothing personal, it's just business" line is fed to you.

I agree with never thinking you are completely secure...nothing is secure. Companies aren't owned by locals anymore, there are buyouts daily...owners change hands frequently, and therefore any job you have could be eliminated. How do you lay off after someone is trained...well why not, that money comes from the training budget, which has nothing to do with the overall company plan....we've done it many times...you train as if everything is fine, knowing full well that a particular department will be gone in a week. There are layoffs at universities and UPS, etc., (to minimize costs and consolidate departments), so, no, I would never feel 100% secure. You need diversification (like in your investments), so if you/your dh have different skills, great! The tax accountant is pretty good, because this person can work for a company or for himself. Sometimes its great when hubby is the only one performing a function and is highly skilled, other times that's the part that gets him...they eliminate the highly skilled function and go with something else. Always have a plan (even if it means living with family), just in case. Older and highly skilled=too much $; young and eager=easily replaced. Don't get disillusioned into complacency. Gosh, with all my rants, you would think I've had it rough, but in reality, I've never once (nor my husband) been laid off, I've always had great jobs (have one right now)...I just like to be prepared.

sorry for my long rant

My dh has been in the military almost 20 years, so I have never worried about him losing his job.