Now Probably Isn’t A Good Time To Switch Jobs

Mondays have a way of getting under our skin. The meetings that could have been emails. The problems that could have been avoided. The threats to your job security that are unnecessary. By midday, you’re pulling at your hair and thinking about updating your resume. Again. But looking around at the condition the US is in at the moment, if you have a job, no matter how trying it is, you may want to consider keeping it, at least for a while.

No one likes a job that leaves them with a headache or worse, at the end of the day. We all want to feel that our effort is vital and appreciated. We need encouragement to get through the rough patches, but rarely do we find a boss who is able to discern when we need that pep talk. All the job sites seem to have listings for things that are more enticing than what you’re doing now. So, why not make a jump?

We can think of several reasons to stay put, and most of them are related to current events in one form or another. While it’s easy to look at everything going on in government circles and think, “That doesn’t affect me,” what we may not realize is the point at which those changes in government can affect your employer. While most companies try to adjust without having to take any dramatic action, there comes a point where layoffs become a necessity, and those with the least amount of tenure are likely the first to go.

Among the biggest concerns at the moment is not knowing what the President has planned in terms of tariffs for everyone. He’s scheduled to announce the new set of tariffs on Wednesday, April 2, but already the markets are retracting, sending stock prices lower in anticipation that these new tariffs will, at best, require tightening margins in order to stay competitive. Tightening margins rarely means adding new employees, and when margins are tight, everyone tends to be stressed about meeting them.

Company stability is a big issue to consider. Not everyone has margins that can be tightened. The company that is looking to hire 50 new people today may come to find out on Wednesday that not only can they not afford the 50 new people, but they need to jetison several more in order to adjust to the changes imposed by the tariffs.

There’s also the reality that no one knows how long the tariffs might stay in place or how they might be adjusted in the following days. Speculation is running high that the President will initially call for higher tariffs so that other countries are more likely to give in to new trade deals that overwhelmingly give the US an edge in the industry. This could result in numbers going up and down, here today, gone tomorrow, making future planning almost impossible and keeping company executives on the edge of their seats. Even CEOs can lose their jobs during times such as these.

Think about what you have going for you at your current job. How long have you been there? Seniority has its advantages and things such as accumulated paid time off, healthcare, bonuses, and your reputation cannot necessarily be replicated if you take a new position. Instead, you would be at the bottom of the ladder, pushing harder to make yourself valuable to the team, and under a great deal more stress as a result.

One also has to consider that moving to a new employer almost always involves a ‘probation’ period of 60-90 days. Under more normal circumstances, that wouldn’t be a significant concern. You can do this job, and the company doesn’t want to have to go through the hiring process all over again. More often than not, the probationary period is just there to weed out the lazy good-for-nothings that managed to fake the interview.

What the past two months have shown us, however, is the extent to which things can change within such a short period. No CEO in the US can promise their shareholders that the year is going to end with positive dividends. Corporations are looking at a long-term roller coaster ride with the fear that the car could jump the rails at any moment. No one is in a position to make any genuine guarantees about employment, not even their own.

Also, keep in mind what is going on within your own family. Do you have big vacation plans for the summer? Is a child heading off to college? Are you considering buying a new home? All of those and more are good reasons for sitting tight in the job you have right now. You need the financial stability of knowing that, at least for now, you still have a paycheck coming.

We are living in a moment where the President “couldn’t care less” if prices suddenly skyrocket because of his actions. He’s playing a power game, and we’re all pawns getting swept up in the chaos. We don’t have to like it, but it’s the current reality.

At the same time, if you’re being made the victim of any kind of abuse, if your boss is bullying you into doing things you’re not comfortable doing, or if the task you’re assigned looks as though it might be illegal, then by all means get the hell out of there now! If you’re being abused in any way, don’t even bother with two weeks’ notice. Pack your bags and walk out. Your life holds more value than your paycheck.

Everyone else, keep working. We’ll get through this together.