It is incredibly hard to maintain a positive environment at work when we keep having constant layoffs with no end in sight. I have coworkers who left and who keep trying to get me to do the same because, and I quote, their mental health improved drastically once they left this place behind. I would love to be able to do that but after 15 years here, it's not as easy as it is for some others.
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As a client, for those of you still at the company: thank you. I have encouraged all my colleagues to make ourselves as proactive and "easy to serve" as possible. Not to take pressure off the company (with what little leverage we have). But to tamp down and minimize our use of the resources we see are diminishing. If I were in your shoes, I would be preparing to leave too. But while you're there, thank you for serving us.
Stay on and force them to pay you to leave. They are making conditions bad to get people to voluntarily leave. Hang in there and get the severance package out the door.
I’m sorry it has been hard, and I hope things get better for you. But I wanted to say that it is not easy to make a change that involves leaving an employer no matter who you are. I was with Fiserv pushing two decades before I left this summer and with friends and team I worked with for many years, there was no “getting over” any of this bad situation. It was stressful for the entire time I was there in 2022 because I was training others to take over a job I thoroughly enjoyed simply because I would not move to New Jersey. At the same time, I was updating resumes, applying for open positions, taking time off to go to job fairs, dispensing with leisure time to learn new skills, etc. It took a lot of effort and sacrifice…
On the other hand… I have a new job at a forward-thinking company that cares about its employees. I have budding friendships with the team there and my fellow employees are eager to see me succeed. I need to still spend time and effort to learn the new technologies I am being exposed to and I expect this to take well into 2023. But -surprise- it is refreshing! In short, I reiterate what you say others have told you – it IS better for your mental health to leave. Don’t stick around a place perpetually that is draining you.
It takes a great deal of effort to make changes in a career/employer and for the most part, I think we humans all struggle with it. But spend a few months now, putting the minimum to keep your job with its paycheck and the maximum to jump ship and it will pay you dividends long term.
Fiserv is no longer capable of being an employer that values people and things won’t change so long as Frank and his cronies are at the helm. Move on and make a better life for yourself. Good luck!
FWIW: I was with the company for over 20 years and enjoyed what I did the majority of the time. When the FD merger happened, I continued with a roll that was similar but not quite the same. At first, I was happy to see some of the changes and there were some good things that were brought but my mental health did decline over the course of 3 years as things continued. I watched many very talented people get the boot just because they were remote and would not relocate to the east coast. While I was technically spared for the time being (I was remote) there was always a good chance that next time I'd be on the block. I saw people that were 'astronauts' that were let go later. I started looking and took my time in doing so while I was still employed knowing at some point the likelihood of getting a pink slip was high even though I was told I was safe.
It is difficult to look after you've put in so much time and yeah, the severance would have been nice, but the peace of mind of not constantly worrying about the next layoff was worth it.
Why wait? There's no prizes being given for being the last out the door. The staff has been slashed to the point that productivity is almost impossible.
Make Your own path. Own your own fate.
Do not wait. Start by updating your resume so you are prepared when the ax falls. Everyone is applying for the same positions so field is a bit crowded. Enlist the help of a recruiter to assis you in your search. Don’t hesitate, the clock is ticking….
Fiserv is like being in an abusive relationship…it keeps beating you up, but you stay because the blood, sweat and tears you put into a one way relationship, or because you see a small glimmers of things getting better when in reality it’s just the calm before the next beating. Get out before the next beating is your last beating. It’s not worth it to your mental health. As far as your clients go, you can do so much more for them on the outside working for a competition.
I know the feeling. I'm still at Fiserv by the grace of God. So many good, talented people hVe been laid off just so we can make the quarterly accounting numbers. This time I think we cut too deep and it's going to be difficult to keep things running. Just my two cents.