Trade Adjustment Act

I've been coming in a few hours earlier than normal each afternoon to maximize my training time with B-Rad and Garden Gnome. At least working with both of them has been fun as they're a couple of demented little guys. Good senses of humor and they are up for playing practical jokes on almost anyone here at a moment's notice. So that's been interesting. I feel kind of bad about leaving Mini-Rel operations in the hands of Greasy Guy again because I know what is going to happen back there in the lab and chamber area. That goofball bastard is going to slam the brakes down hard on production so he has plenty of time to wander around in the engineering department chasing after secretaries. Just like old times. Nothing ever changes around here...

Boozealler is supposed to be training with B-Rad in the morning every day but so far it sounds like he's come up with nothing but excuses. He's too busy, has meetings to sit in, etc. All I see him doing is kick back in his cubicle reading real estate text books. That's it. Seems to me if he's got enough time to be reading school books while he's on the clock he should have enough time to learn the MI/EI process.

While I was in the Button Up area working with those two guys today, Garden Gnome quietly dropped a memo on me and told me to read it. He didn't say much else. Looking it over my eyes practically bugged out of my skull. Get this. The company had the nerve to tell the US Government that all our job losses and layoffs were just because the company needed to stay competitive. Corporate tried to bullshit their way out of telling the truth that offshoring to places like Malaysia was just to boost short term profits. Somebody filed a suit against the company claiming our job cuts were violating a law called the Trade Adjustment Act which I hadn't heard of before. The Government wasn't buying Super Geek's story and they got themselves busted. Neat. The gist of it is every employee who has been laid off over the past couple of years is now eligible for funding to go back to school and retrain in another field. There are limitations and strict guidelines on what you can do with it but that's very cool.

Thinking about this I realized the guys in corporate really don't have any credibility. I mean whenever they show up and try to bullshit us in a coffee talk and I read about crap like this I just don't have any trust or respect left for those people.