Hitting Rock Bottom

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At the beginning of this year I helped someone out with a job and paid their salary for a couple of months before the business took over the salary payments. We did not need someone at the time, but his role actually was a role we required even though we did not know it at the time and things were working out quite well for everyone.

The hope or aim I had for this new employee was to get him back on his feet and give him a second chance in life as with his age being 50 and being white finding employment in this country was non existent. This lifeline I had extended to him was like entering the last saloon and he had to make it work.

Two weeks ago he phoned in sick saying he had hurt his back and now apparently it is his leg, but there was no further communication from his side and silence is never a good sign. I had tried to make contact, but getting hold of this guy was impossible and this included contacting his wife with nothing.

I reached out to someone who knew him as my handy man is his cousin and he had no luck either until this morning. It turns out he is broke and cannot afford to even get to work since they have moved further away from where they used to stay. His wife's work has taken the transport away from her as they had loaned her a car temporarily so now they have no method of getting to and from work.

One has to realise you can help someone so much as they also need to help themselves and it cannot be a one way relationship. My business is done with him now as we cannot provide the transport as well and this is something they should have considered when they moved.

Maybe they moved closer to the wives work as she is the main bread winner in the family and that part I can understand, but he should have discussed this with us first explaining their situation. He would have still kept his job as a solution could always be found if everyone puts their heads together. What he has done by keeping quiet is burned any hope of keeping his job and it is a sad reality he now has to face. Some people are just beyond help through the decisions they make and his working career is over.

I had heard via the grapevine that they had been renting a house that was rather expensive and flash instead of looking for something more conservative affording them to be able to save each month and getting back on their feet. I can recall someone saying that one should be spending roughly 33% of your monthly income on accommodation and even if that went up to 50% they could get by, but from the sounds of it they were way over that percentage.

They had 6 months so a small window to make that time count as they must have known the transport being offered to the wife was temporary and at some point would end. We will know be looking for a replacement to fill the role as we need someone up to speed in that position before the Christmas season kicks in being August/September. The problem is the opportunity was there and they have tossed it away and opportunities are so limited in this economic climate.

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