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When do you cut the cord?

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16 replies

by valakan

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All:
I recently changed jobs. I worked for a little over 5 years at my last position pretty much taking care of all of the IT work for the four sites.
Well my current opportunity became availble and I accepted it. I notified the manager of the facilities that I would be leaving and gave him the two week's notice document.
He didn't really seem too pay much attention to the situation. He did't make any counter offers or even give me the "nice working with you" speech.
Two weeks goes by and nothing more is said about it. No one is made availble for me to train, no inquiries about how anything works, nothing.
My last day arrives and I go in to turn my laptop and keys, ( I had already taken all of my person stuff home over the past two weeks). My manager's response was scowl and the statement "If you are going to go then go."
So I start my new job the following Monday. I am getting settled when my cell phone rings. It is one of the folks at the old job asking questions. They are pretty simple issues so I answer the questions and move on.
The calls start happening 5 and 6 times a day. After a week and a half of this I contacted the management of the old job and asked about the situation. Their response was that they had no plans to fill my position but that they expected to be able to continue and call me if they had questions.
The conversation got a little intense after that. When I mentioned a consulting arangement Management accused me of trying to "extort money from them".
In any event It has been a month now and I STILL get calls!!. Sometimes I answer the questions, sometimes not. NOt answerring the requests usually gets someone calling or e-mailing me with some kind of angry/offended statement.
I guess my question is..
What is the protocol for this kind of situation?
I am prefectly happy where I am now. The job is easier and I make a little more money. However thse folks just will not let it go.
Suggestions???

16 replies

by tony hopkinson

Block emails from their domain.

Some nasty b'stard is using your own sense of duty and professionalism against you, there's only one solution to that, you gleefully descend to their level and you give them a right good kicking.

The only leg they have to stand on is the one you are lending them, stop it.

by deadly ernest

the very second your pay ends they have no moral or legal right to ask or expect you to do anything for them. I had this happen to me many years ago, I ended it by simply faxing them a Consulting contract for the phone consultation proposal offered by the lower staff. Senior management refused to make a contract and investigated why junior staff were offering such proposals - the calls ended that day.

by shellbot

Your a very patient person...

Personally..I always give a week or two to answer any questions..however, it's on the understanding that I have a new job and limited time to help in any way. And I do not accept phone calls unless previusly arranged..its always by email and i reply at my own convenience.

A while back I got an email from a place i worked at 2 years ago. I did help them out, because it was a system i knew intricatly and no one else did..however, they were extremely polite and stated that if I didn;t have the time that was ok..

I think you are being taken advantage of.
Offer them support at the going rate and see what they say. If they say no, change your number and forget they exist.

by darryl~

I too still keep in contact with a former corp. Purple & I were contracted to do work for....we don't so much help out the "owner" as we do the "database" person I left behind....at first we helped her on a weekly basis...that dwindled down to monthly...I spoke to her a couple weeks ago & she has finally had "enough" also.

She is a professional & knows proper protocol...not like the above scenario at all!

edit - spelling (that I saw)

by darryl~

End receiving calls NOW! You're still under probation on the new job.

If the old company doesn't want to hire you as a consultant....well...F**K THEM! They're getting FREE support from you right now! You have to put an end to it.

You're being too much like I've always been...you're trying too hard to make everyone happy & you don't want to lose friends that work with your past employer.

Focus on your new position....you'll make new friends there ;)

by kevaburg

He is being taken advantage of simply because of his good nature. If his ex-management can't sort their lives out and get someone trained within the specified timelines, then it is their fault.

And to be honest, if this company make a habit of behaving in this way, then he should definately show them the finger and his ex-coworkers should consider whether or not they want ot remain!

by nicknielsen

YOU need to cut the cord [u]now[/u], before your new easier job and the better money go away.

To get their attention, submit an invoice, billing them for every call you've accepted, at $25 per call. If they refuse to pay, take them to small claims court. Use your phone records as evidence. Even if you lose, I'll bet they don't call any more...

by valakan

I am just going to send the site manager an e-mail stating that since he is not paying for the support the free lunch is over. THen just sit back and watch them go down in flames.
The REALLY funny thing is that even if they do wake up and hire a new person they will fail anyway. No one over there knows how to get into the systems!! REmembetr they never asked any questions about anything before I left??
Now I can focus on learning everything for the new job.
Thank you

by shellbot

Make it a nice email..professional like..and offer PAID support to him on your own time.
Ya never know..might make a few bucks..

To be honest, the place sounds like a bit of a joke..I mean..if they knew you were leaving and didn't bother to even ask you anything...doesn't sound like its run very well

by jkameleon

Yeah, well, you can try to charge for your support, but I don't think you'll get any money from them. They are probably already under water.

by valakan

From what I understand they are not planning to hire someone to take my place. The info I got states that they are going to try to save money in that fashion. .

by jkameleon

One or two calls for week for a first couple of months after should be more than enough. A polite calls. VERY polite.

> What is the protocol for this kind of situation?

The same as for any other harassment via phone or email.

Looks like your former employer is in dire straits. They were happy to see you go, because you saved them the trouble of laying people off.

When management is driving people harder, blame gets passed around, and blame tends to stick on the guy who isnt' there. It goes like this:

Management: "Why haven't you finished your project? I gave you the whole 30 minutes to do it! Lazy bastard!"

Your former colleague: "I'd do it, but the goddamn LAN doesn't work! As you already know, Valakan left a mess behind".

That's the most probable reason that you are getting offended statements from them. It's self-reinforcing, the more blame gets dumped on you, the more you attract it. Worse still, your help is probably interpreted as admission of guilt. Consequently, they will only get more aggresive and more offensive.

My advice: Cut them off. Change phone number, get a court restraining order, whatever. Don't even try to do any business with them, it's hopeless.

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