Laid-Off!

So I've been laid-off due to a company merger. My last day of work was Friday, October 30th 2009, but I was walked out the door Tuesday the 27th of October. Me and what I suspect was about 300 to 400 other employees. It was one of those things that you know was going to happen after the merger was announced but when it came it was still a big shock.

The month before Christmas and the month of Christmas is not a good time to be laid of. If you look on the job boards you will see that CICS System Programming openings are few and far between and you can almost count them on one hand!

My resume was not in too bad of a shape but with the help of some friends I did a complete re-write and started to apply for jobs. Let me tell you... it is slow going! Some companies do not even respond after you contact them. That can be very frustrating.

What came as a shock to me was the amount of Mainframe System Programming jobs out there. Very few. Ten years ago when I looked for a job there was a lot more. I can't help but get the feeling that we (Mainframe System Programmers) are a dying breed as more and more big corporations merge, shops close and others are moving away from the mainframe.

But a new year brings new hope. I will compile a list of what I perceive as Do's and Dont's for anyone else out there that may end up in the same position. (I hope that it will not happen to anyone else!)

If you have some advise or leads, please feel free to post them here. It will be greatly appreciated and may help me and others in the same situation.

Happy New year to all of you and may 2010 be a great year!

Regards
Ian