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Need Good Vibes (and lots of beer)
Some of you may remember that I am an American who has been living in Japan for three years (that's how I start off most of my posts 
). On April 6 I started a new job in a new town with a new company. And today? Everything I have is hanging by a thread: my job, my apartment, and my work visa. I could lose it all any day now.
The week after I started work rumors began to surface that the company was in real financial trouble and they were going to close down 1/3 of their schools. Then it all came to a head this week, now officially The Longest Week of Misty's Life:
TUESDAY (4/20): "We've called this company-wide meeting to assure all employees that despite what you may have heard, [Company X] is doing fine. No worries, business as usual."
WEDNESDAY (4/21): "Oops! We're bankrupt! And we've been bought by [Company Y]!"
That same day me and my fellow wage slaves traveled to the head office (at our own expense) to hear what was going to happen next. They told us the following in a brief handout:
*Company Y bought Company X on 4/16.
*Company X declared bankruptcy on 4/20.
*All Company X employees are hereby fired.
*Company X will not pay employee wages for the last 30 days (we have a line of creditors a mile long who are much more important than you).
*All schools will reopen under Company Y on Friday 4/23 (except for the ones they've decided to close permanently).
*Company Y will hire Company X employees under the same Terms and Conditions as your Company X contract though July 31. Starting August 1st, new Terms and Conditions will be in effect (their obligation under our agreement is over at that point, so you will officially be their little b****. They might keep you on or just cut you loose, we don't know. All we know is that it's not our problem).
Some of you may have noticed a few interesting things regarding the time line:
Date Y bought X: 4/16
Date X declared bankruptcy: 4/20
Date X declared to employees "everything is fine": 4/20
'nuff said
THURSDAY 4/22: Day off. Plenty of time to alternate between sitting in quiet disbelief and "what the f*** am I going to do now" crying.
FRIDAY: 4/23: Back to school and "business as usual" cleaning up Company X's mess. Students want answers. Employees want answers. Management from Company X has no answers because our new corporate masters at Company Y are not giving them any.
Finally, Company Y sends out "sample contract" and asks all employees who agree to their terms to send them a signed copy, and then they will send a "real" contract. The sample contract is brief and an important point needs clarification, but we hear no more from Company Y.
SATURDAY 4/24: We continue to await vital information from Company Y via email, but the computer at my school has somehow been infected with a virus. Luckily, we manage to beat it back from Outlook and receive some crucial information. It seems our new contracts will be faxed on Tuesday, but there is still no clarification on that important point. Thus we leave for the weekend with a cliffhanger: Will the new contracts come through? Will we finally get clarification? Is Misty saved or screwed? Stay tuned!!
...which brings us to the present. That important point I spoke of was what will happen after July 31st. Will they give us new contracts or will they cut everyone loose (or in my case, sooner because my work visa expires in 7 weeks). If Company Y doesn't sponsor my new work visa like Company X was going to, I can't get work here and must move back home to the U.S. with no money and no job prospects
I'm new in town and I know nobody, so tonight I must drown my sorrows alone. To all those out there who knows what I'm going through
). On April 6 I started a new job in a new town with a new company. And today? Everything I have is hanging by a thread: my job, my apartment, and my work visa. I could lose it all any day now. The week after I started work rumors began to surface that the company was in real financial trouble and they were going to close down 1/3 of their schools. Then it all came to a head this week, now officially The Longest Week of Misty's Life:
TUESDAY (4/20): "We've called this company-wide meeting to assure all employees that despite what you may have heard, [Company X] is doing fine. No worries, business as usual."
WEDNESDAY (4/21): "Oops! We're bankrupt! And we've been bought by [Company Y]!"
That same day me and my fellow wage slaves traveled to the head office (at our own expense) to hear what was going to happen next. They told us the following in a brief handout:
*Company Y bought Company X on 4/16.
*Company X declared bankruptcy on 4/20.
*All Company X employees are hereby fired.
*Company X will not pay employee wages for the last 30 days (we have a line of creditors a mile long who are much more important than you).
*All schools will reopen under Company Y on Friday 4/23 (except for the ones they've decided to close permanently).
*Company Y will hire Company X employees under the same Terms and Conditions as your Company X contract though July 31. Starting August 1st, new Terms and Conditions will be in effect (their obligation under our agreement is over at that point, so you will officially be their little b****. They might keep you on or just cut you loose, we don't know. All we know is that it's not our problem).
Some of you may have noticed a few interesting things regarding the time line:
Date Y bought X: 4/16
Date X declared bankruptcy: 4/20
Date X declared to employees "everything is fine": 4/20
'nuff said
THURSDAY 4/22: Day off. Plenty of time to alternate between sitting in quiet disbelief and "what the f*** am I going to do now" crying.
FRIDAY: 4/23: Back to school and "business as usual" cleaning up Company X's mess. Students want answers. Employees want answers. Management from Company X has no answers because our new corporate masters at Company Y are not giving them any.
Finally, Company Y sends out "sample contract" and asks all employees who agree to their terms to send them a signed copy, and then they will send a "real" contract. The sample contract is brief and an important point needs clarification, but we hear no more from Company Y.
SATURDAY 4/24: We continue to await vital information from Company Y via email, but the computer at my school has somehow been infected with a virus. Luckily, we manage to beat it back from Outlook and receive some crucial information. It seems our new contracts will be faxed on Tuesday, but there is still no clarification on that important point. Thus we leave for the weekend with a cliffhanger: Will the new contracts come through? Will we finally get clarification? Is Misty saved or screwed? Stay tuned!!
...which brings us to the present. That important point I spoke of was what will happen after July 31st. Will they give us new contracts or will they cut everyone loose (or in my case, sooner because my work visa expires in 7 weeks). If Company Y doesn't sponsor my new work visa like Company X was going to, I can't get work here and must move back home to the U.S. with no money and no job prospects
I'm new in town and I know nobody, so tonight I must drown my sorrows alone. To all those out there who knows what I'm going through
Oh, and while you're there, try squid jerky. 
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