But day brought reality, responsibilities and work.
Mails to be answered, messages to be checked. A quick bath, a quicker breakfast and I was ready for job.
Before that I had caressingly and carefully kept the pink slip, memorabilia of last night, a birthday which I don’t know have celebrated after how many years.
Tired hours, loneliness and nobody to share it with made me almost erase it from my calendar.
I was crooning, whistling, an old habit had suddenly resurfaced and I decided to take stairs and not lift.
My antenna was trying to tell something but signal was not very clear and now only in hindsight I could decipher, there were more cars in the parking esp. higher management type cars. Some new security guys, more alert and agile. Elevator coming to my company’s floors was more crowded with relatively unknown persons, very stiff and reserved in their attitude, mostly suits.
I was lost like every day, in ticking boxes. Mails to be made, schedule to be juggled and some things to do with my personal finance which was in a bad shape.
My doctor’s appointment was also overdue, company provided excellent medical facilities but time to use them was another issue.
It began as a normal day, exchanging good mornings with some, waving to pretty lady of HR and after opening the cabin, looking at paste on slips, and schedules and meetings on my terminal.
No meeting .
It was exceptional but not strange.
Outside my window, city was churning, people were rushing, kali –pili taxis honking, BEST buses creating jam, an organized chaos, a typical Mumbai morning. May be true for every Mahanagar. Only thing that changed it was a typical Gothic sky line of Sobo, (South Bombay, to non-initiates), Gables, Turrets, Spires… and a towering Rajabai Tower.
As usual, work consumed me.
Apocalypse came at 11.05 or at least the first signs of it
At 11.05 I got a message from a colleague in finance section to watch ticker and he said that our stock is behaving abnormally.
At 11.25 a message flashed at my terminal that server room is getting closed for some repair so all communications and access to server, including both intranet and internet will not be available, till further advice. I should have been able to read the tea leaves, but failed.
At 11.45, there was some commotion and somebody barged into my room telling that everybody should come to hall were HR will be talking.
And then there was blood bath.
At 11.50 when I came out, there were a few suits (totally unknown to me, new) and number of black shirts, new security personnel ,moving with authority . Two new desks have been set up.
Table of GM HR was crowded, a middle aged lady, very sweet and she was accompanied by somebody new, a suit.
And then I realized what is happening.
Announcement was made that all passwords have been changed so no work stations will be working from now on. New HR lady was shooing away everybody and telling everybody to move to new help desks individually.
She had a list,
The list.
Fortunately I could peep into that list, thank god my name was not there, mostly juniors but three of my colleagues and two persons senior to me, and I was having tachycardia.
I surreptitiously asked GM HR and barely able to control her tears, she nodded, her name was there. Total 242 persons, almost 60%.
And my exclusion was further confirmed that by 12.30 everybody from 242 was asked to report at those two tables, but not me. One help desk mentioned HR and other mentioned Relocation.
On HR everybody was given a piece of paper with lot of x marks where they had to sign. It included non-disclosure agreement, no claim declarations and many more. In lieu of notice salary of next three months were already transferred to their bank accounts.
Relocation was giving them a reference letter for future jobs, a sheaf of papers which was supposed to help them in finding new jobs and they were registered at a Job hunting company, where their CV was already loaded.
If anybody has any objection, he was being hustled to a room which was isolated and was being taken care of by legal and security guys.
I could know with my experience what is happening. Either you leave voluntarily, with whatever is being given or get ready to be removed under some trumped up charges.
Cold and surgical.
And one suit came close to me, unceremoniously, almost pushing, commanded,
“If you don’t have work here, go to your work place. It was 1.10
............
1.15 -Moved inside my cabin, I was looking at ash faced, suddenly aged, GM HR who used to be such a charming, chirping lady in the morning.
I could understand her trauma. Her husband had some job and health related issues and now it was her turn...
But soon my relief of not being in the list overshadowed everything.
So many of my friends , colleagues will not be there tomorrow , I knew and worse I was not feeling bad, getting reconciled very fast, just because I am not in the list.
It was an acquisition, no question but by whom nobody knew and our communication with outside word was totally cut off.
People in the hall who were giggling, chatting, gossiping had suddenly fallen silent, suffering alone, signing papers in mute surrender.
It is bad but, but once you join a private sector job; you should be ready for such uncertainty. If you want security, become a babu , go join a poorly paid govt. job.
You cannot have best of both worlds, security and glamorous pay.
Secondly, why blame acquisition vaalas, we all knew company is in bad shape, debt ridden, so who knows, instead of those who did acquisition our company would have doled out pink slips in dozens.
One must be ready for a rainy day, I was ruminating and rationalizing, why blame others.
Three persons above me have been cashiered so may it will be boon in disguise for me. I am stagnating for such a long period may be I will get a promotion, become President or something.
Lunch time has come and gone but I was glued to my chair.
Crowd in hall has thinned but those two desks of HR and relocation were still manned.
Suits with some IT guys were checking work stations.
3.25 There was a message that I should come to Board room at precisely 3.55.
I thought may be new owners want to meet the remaining management and discuss growth strategy, or may be just introductory. My hopes went up, I brushed up certain stats, some salient points and was in Board room at 3.55.
3.55 PM-
But mood in board room was sullen.
And this time I read the signals correctly, there were no chairs. 4-5 VPs like me and two Presidents, head of their verticals, everybody ashen faced.
And it was confirmed at 4.00 PM, when our MD came and just said, hurriedly,
“I hope you will understand that certain decisions are necessary in the current situation.”
Before he could say anything, new team came and he was hustled out by suits. It was,
4.10 PM
And she, I mean SHE was leading the team in a professional suit, stern looking.
She talked to her team members and came towards us.
She was head of the acquisition team.
We shook hands. Yes there was a recognition in her eyes, but not in her voice.
“Nothing personal, but in our organization, your team is redundant as we outsource it and already have a contract in place.”
I almost said, ‘Eh Tu Brutus’ but she had moved to next VP.
I was trying to linger but a suit and a security guided me back to Hall and I knew the drill, first HR and then relocation.
All my cards, club membership, cashless medical, credit and debit cards for entertainment, everything ,I just emptied but HR girl was looking at me expectantly and I realized, key of company car, and it went to her hands.
“Company flat you can retain for a week, and relocation will give contact number of mover to you, who will be doing relocation at company’s cost."
Dozens of papers, I signed without looking, non-disclosure, no claim and what not.
When I reached in my cabin it was 5.00 PM and a carton to pack my personal things was already on the table. One security was waiting.
Stunned, shocked, stupefied I sat and first thought which came to my mind, now I will have time for my Doctor’s appointment.
But my medical card was already surrendered.
Alternate Job …I was holding my head, whatever relocation desk was saying, very difficult.
With this acquisition itself, so many persons have been thrown to market, younger, better qualified, and ready to work at lower wages.
No transport, no house, no address
"Do your packing fast, only 10 minutes are left. "
Security almost shouted.
A last lingering look, a wistful look at evening peeping through my window, used to be my window,
And I was out. With my carton.
Sky has suddenly become dark, ominous and opened up,
A sheet of water hard to look beyond, beyond today
No tomorrows
From music shop close by, Bob Dylan was crooning,
Oh, what’ll you do now, my blue-eyed son?
Oh, what’ll you do now, my darling young one?
I’m a-goin’ back out ’fore the rain starts a-fallin’
I’ll walk to the depths of the deepest black forest
Where the people are many and their hands are all empty
Where the pellets of poison are flooding their waters,…
And it’s a hard, it’s a hard, it’s a hard, it’s a hard
It’s a hard rain’s a-gonna fall.
