Well, I made it happen. My unemployment stint was only active for one week before I was able to land another job, and this one even pays pretty well. It’s a warehouse job with a major retailer. I’ll start in their shipping department loading boxes into trailers. It’s a seasonal position and will most likely be over around January 1st. I’ll be working Sat-Mon, 6 AM to 6 PM. They hire about 90% of their people back for permanent positions. It’s tough work, but there are some definite pros.
One: The Seasonal pay starts out at 15.90/hour on the weekend shift.
Two: I will be working three 12 hour shifts, with four days off. Possible mandatory OT one day/week.
Three: I receive a 15% discount at the major retailer with a combination of 10% employee discount + 5% retailer debit card.
Four: The possibility for promotion to supervisor position is very real with having a 4-year degree – these start at ~65,000.
Five: The permanent pay is higher. Weekend shift permanent pay would be starting at 17.60/hour, or 16.60 non-weekend.
Six: Yearly cost of living raises, plus ~1.00 raise/year for 3 years.
Seven: Tons of time off, and an active job which helps keep me in shape.
Eight: 100% match on 401k up to 5% – Bingo! (This is if I were to get hired permanently)
Nine: If I get hired permanently, tons of training is available. I wouldn’t be stuck throwing boxes every single shift!
Of course, with a bunch of pros, there are some cons as well:
One: Very tough work; could possibly hinder weight training and add wear/tear on back/joints.
Two: I miss the majority of my weekends, which means less family time and less fun with friends.
Three: Exposed to a hot and cold warehouse – although protected I will be protected from wind/rain, etc.
As far as I can tell, the pros definitely outweigh the cons. Even if I don’t get a promotion (which I hope I do of course!), this is still a good company to work for, with great benefits, an active job, at lots of time off. The pay is fair. My ideal range would be upwards of $19 like I was making at Deere, but I am pretty close, and if I get hired permanently the potential for ~$20.50 an hour after a few years is definitely real. So far, I am able to provide a breakdown of what my expenses and savings should look like with three different spending brackets.
Working 36 hours per week:
15.90/Hr / 23.85/Hr OT
572/Wk Gross / 435/Wk Net
2288/4Wk / 1740
29744/52Wk / 22620
1: Spending 955/month with minimum SL payment: +11160/Yr / 930/Mo
2: Spending 1245/month with 350 SL payment: +7680 / 640
3: Spending 1555/month with 660 SL payment: +3960 / 330
So, looks pretty good, yeah? Of course it does! 660/month has me on track for a four year payoff, saving me a total of almost 6,000 in interest. Not to mention if I stay tight with spending, I should be able to take that ~330 at the end of each month and either put some into Roth/Personal portfolio, or continue to slam out the student loan, which is more likely. Of course, my savings only goes up from here. If I were to get hired permanently, I would get boosted up another dollar or so, plus raises from there!
Things are looking up. While it may take me several weeks to get adjusted to busting my azz again, and probably even harder than before, and during longer periods, that’ll be the most difficult challenge to overcome. Everything else after that will be smooth sailing. The potential for promotion, as well as another second job during my 4 days off, is definitely keeping me thirsty. Not to mention the accelerated payoff plan I will be getting on once I get the paychecks rolling in! I’m happy to say that “Phase One” of “The Plan” is now operational!
Have any of you readers faced a similar situation before? How did you structure your student loan (or other debt) payoff schedule? What helped you overcome the adversity of losing your job and finding a new one? Has anyone had to sacrifice weekends or significant family/friend time for a job? Feel free to share in the comments.
Take care!
Bloodstone Amplification 