Dog Laid Off

In Aberdeen, Washington, The Aberdeen Police Department has laid off its K-9 dog Nitro due to budget cuts. But public outcry and support could land the pooch back on the force.

Officer Steve Timmons is raising money to bring his partner back after the German Shepherd was cut from the force earlier this month. Police Chief Bob Torgerson says laying Nitro off saves the department $12,000 a year.

Six-year-old Nitro has helped nab between 35 and 40 suspects since he joined the force in 2005. The dog has been with Timmons since he was laid off.

Tough times...

First African Good Guys!

http://www.elogixgh.com are the latest Good Guys...

They are an Information Solutions provider, focused on interactive, business desktop and internet applications that take advantage of mobility technologies. They view the recession 'as an opportunity.'

So what's their recession plan?

'To make the most out of it and capture a sizable market share.'

What's the biggest challenge Elogixgh faces, and how do they inspire their employees to meet it head on?

'Delayed payment from clients. Our consultants understand the current economic crisis, but we always provide a commission before work commences.'

Elogixgh are currently working on an enterprise application and online counselling service. Stay tuned to their website (www.elogixgh.com) for more info and launch dates. They are also open to any business/organization that requires a customized software product.

Good luck Elogixgh - and well done for surviving the recession!

C...N...N

It was an exciting day - www.wehaventlaidanyoneoff.com made it on to CNN.

http://tinyurl.com/lotcux

Richard Quest was great, and thank you so much for all your wonderful messages of support for the site! Keep em coming. And don't forget, if you haven't laid anyone off in the past year, send me your logo: you'll be on the site within hours.

Now that the site has featured on CNN, your company will be noticed by millions.

Another business that hasn't laid anyone off...

MTA Travel - Mobile Travel Agents - is a progressive travel management and life experience company.

So what do they do? And how are they beating the odds in this recession? Here's Managing Director, Roy Merricks:

We pioneered home working for travel consultants in Australia and after almost 10 years we are in the top 2% of travel agencies in Australia and now have more than 170MTA mobile consultants, comprising former agency managers and international and domestic specialists with exceptional product and destination knowledge.

What is your attitude towards the recession?

The recession is real. To us it represents the economy running at 95% instead of 105%We pay attention to our clients and suppliers and can only be guided by them. We are of course mindful of, but pay less attention to the media when it comes to our take on the effect of the GFC on our business and clients. It has never been a better time to travel, with amazing offers we haven’t seen the like of before.

Do you have a recession plan?

We aren’t really doing a whole lot differently to our usual business plan. We are mindful however of changes in our clients attitudes and travel requirements as a result of tougher financial times, but generally speaking it’s business as usual for us and it is proving to be a sound plan because we are still growing.

How do you keep staff happy/uplifted?

M&M’s. That’s the key!

Seriously though, we are a strong company that can offer security to its employees. We actively reinforce job security to them. They often tell us how fortunate they feel, because in these financially troubled times so many of their friends and relatives tell them how concerned they are for their jobs. MTA Travel was independently [Travel Weekly 2008 survey] voted the ‘happiest agency group’ in Australia. The ‘M&M factor’ symbolizes the fun factor of our office.

What's the biggest challenge you feel your company faces, and how do you inspire your employees to meet it head on?

The expectation of many clients, in particularly new ones, of a discount. In our leisure business we are promoting ‘life experiences’ and once clients have enjoyed one of them they understand what it is all about. We create the sorts of experiences that are remembered for a lifetime. Priceless. Our best advertising is word of mouth.

http://mtatravel.com.au

More Good Guys!

http://mental_floss.com/

mental_floss is a U.S.-based media company that takes the chore out of learning and creates content that blurs the lines between education and entertainment. They cover everything from black holes to the Dead Sea Scrolls.

And they haven't laid anyone off!

Here's a quick interview to see how they did it. (By the way, if you want to be on www.wehaventlaidanyoneoff.com I am more than happy to interview you and spread the word about your business.

What does Mental Floss do?

Whether it’s our magazine, our web site or our books, we teach people the things they should have learned in school, but didn’t. As one reviewer said so well – “Got a cocktail party coming up? Read mental_floss first.”

What is your attitude towards the recession?

We wish it would end today. Surprisingly, despite the very challenging economy our business continues to show significant growth. We continue to work as hard as we can to introduce more people to mental_floss, to manage our costs and grow our business.

Do you have a recession plan?

We’re always trying to improve our business by taking care of the basics: Grow the top revenue line, control expenses and give our customers value for their hard-earned dollars. By making an extra effort to work with our business partners, we’ve been able to significantly reduce our expenses and improve our margins.

How do you keep staff happy/uplifted?

We choose our employees very carefully and feel we have an absolutely first-class team. We also try to create an environment that mirrors the nature of the magazine –freewheeling, creative and flexible.

What's the biggest challenge you feel your company faces, and how do you inspire your employees to meet it head on?

There’s never enough time to do everything we want to do. There are so many great opportunities, the real challenge is focusing on the most important ones. One big challenge at the moment is managing growth as we continue to develop our brand. We share financial information and how we’re doing with our employees and welcome ideas from everyone on staff on how we can do better. We don’t spend a lot of time worrying about organization charts or hierarchy.

Norway? No way!

Norway, take a bow.

Instead of spending your oil riches, you saved, and you are now 'growing' in the midst of a global recession. Top of the class, Norway, and you can go home early.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/14/business/global/14frugal.html?_r=1

The Good Guys

http://www.wehaventlaidanyoneoff.com/ is still in its infancy, but it's worth giving a huge shoutout to those companies who have explored every avenue (and succeeded!) before getting rid of staff. As each company joins, I thought I could highlight them so you know more about The Good Guys!

Stanton Street Technology

Stanton Street, one of the first El Paso, Texas web development companies, opened its doors in 1999. From the start, they have always valued their clients, quality and continued customer care. Their mission is to provide the best internet solutions to better connect you and your company with the world. And they haven't laid anyone off in the worst recession in history!

http://www.stantonstreetgroup.com

You think we've got it tough!

We don't know the half of it. At least when OUR recession is taking place, the dishes wash themselves, the fridge cools the beer, and we have a choice of 10,000 songs in something the size of a cigarette packet. In the 30s, they did it tough - as these pictures show:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/sets/72157618541455384

And I had to show you this - a bricklayer in Bangladesh...top effort my man!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzgaigjKXTE

Mashable does it again

When you've been laid off you need practical advice, but also a laugh. And Mashable have combined the two pretty well in '30 websites you should visit when you've been laid off.'

http://mashable.com/2009/02/19/laid-off-sites/

Recession Depression

Alright, just because it's a recession doesn't mean it needs to be a depression. Here's a few clips to make you laugh. The first clip has some blue language, but I'm sure you can handle it.

Man in the box - Jeremy's laid off

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt17rX0Pwu0

Secondly, the credit crunch spares nobody:

Layoffs at sesame street

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69tFfdNTNg4