Company I work for announced that our department was going to laid off in Jan 2023. This was around March 2022 that they announced the lay off. So we had almost a years noticed, and offered us severance, bonuses for staying on and a BIG payout to finish out our work until the last day. In addition, we were guaranteed offers at the new company when they take over. Which was all dandy and the best case senerio for a lay off.
During the time they announced the lay off and the plan to move us over to the new company, but I already was fed up with the job. I wanted to quit in March before the announcement, but was taking my time to find a new job. However I convinced myself that staying for a little more then a year would be worth it. That way I could have a good reference and I could leave with no bad blood and with all the bonuses and the payout, it would be financially stupid to not stay. So I was making my bag, and working this shit job and planned to hop company's after the lay off. So I quiet quit, obviously.
But since July, I just slowly jusy stopped working even close to my capacity as normal. 3 of my supervisors left throught the last few months, including my direct manager. So I have to report to someone that is kinda in my department but really. He doesn't understand what is going on. He was also phoning it in, considering we are getting laid off, I don't blame him for basically ignoring us. So I have been working the BARE minimum and getting away with it. The amount of clients and tasks I was working on is small and I was barely doing that. I basically was only doing the necessities, because the department still had to be in business until the merge. There was no way they were going to fire me, because so many people were leaving after the lay off, my department only had half the staff as usual
So thats how i fucked around, and today i found out. Today we had a meeting and basically, the new company we were merging with has been going under, and the merger is now off. And we can stay in our current positions permanently. Ahhhh hahah fuck.
Good news: bonuses and the BIG payout are still on the table if we stay. Mostly because I think 1) they will try and replace us before January or 2) they know we would probably all just leave in that moment if they didn't keep those payouts going.
Bad news: they announced that they are going to hire new supervisors at some point. someone will probably see the drastic drop in my productivity. And I'm worried about not getting my bonus, and for the company I worked the last 3 years for me to leave on bad terms or fired.
Side note but, Even worse: chances are my Co worker that has been talking shit about me will probably become my manager. She has been kissing my bosses ass even with the lay off. She has been gunning for a manager role since she started, and she has been the one to lead our meetings, answer manager questions. So i know she is probably going to get a supervisors role soon. But ive seen emails and text from her saying how im so annoying, and I dont deserve the big payout or be a part of the company because i dont “believe in the mission of the company.” (Which I cannot understand we work at a bank.) The mission is just moving numbers from one place to another and filing documents away.
I never planned on going over to the new company at all and I was just going to keep collecting the checks doing the minimum until January. But now I have to be nice, and try and take on more responsibility all for a company that was going to get rid of me a few months ago. And basically I'm financially strapped staying because there's no place for me to go that is going to pay as much as they are paying me now. Also with the big payout in January, I was going to use that to put a down payment on a house (to give you reference, it's life changing amount of money on the line for this bonus) There's a pretty big chance that I'm going to get fired or replaced at any point and now I have to keep doing bullshit tasks and take on more clients to keep my productivity up and I just can't fucking take it anymore this job fucking sucks.
In the end I know it's all meaningless. The work I do barely means anything to the point that I stopped doing it and barely anyone noticed. And now I just feel like I have created a giant target on my back to justify firing me before I get my bonus. And I just find it hard to motivate myself to try harder for 4 more months and I still might end up getting fired at any point because of my performance the last few months. And I know if I leave I'll never be able to see that bonus but now I'm just hanging on by a thread.
TLDR; company was planning to lay off everyone off next year and was giving everyone a BIG bonus. I “quiet quit” but then just slowly became underproductive and objectively probably have been so underproductive that it would justify me being fired. The layoff is no longer happening. They are seeking new managers and somebody soon will find out what is going on and see I'm underproductive. I will probably be fired/replaced anyway, meaning I stayed at this job for nothing and won't get a big payout.