Woman Loses Job At Diwali Office Party As Founder Announces Company Is Closing: "I Feel Hopeless"

What was supposed to be a Diwali celebration turned into a nightmare for one employee. She had gone to her office party expecting sweets, laughter, and festive photos with her colleagues. Instead, the company's founder took the stage and announced the business was shutting down – effective immediately. Just three days before Diwali, she had lost her job. The woman, who had recently switched jobs to prioritise her health, shared the shocking experience in a Reddit post. She spoke about the challenges she had faced in her previous workplace, her recovery from serious health problems and how she had hoped for a fresh start at her new company. However, the sudden announcement left her worried about her future.

According to her post, she had spent around two-and-a-half years at what she described as her dream company. During this period, she worked long hours, earned a promotion and built a reputation for herself. However, the demanding work schedule and severe air pollution in Gurugram took a toll on her health. She said she developed asthma, bronchitis and recurring bouts of fever, cold and cough. Her irregular eating habits and hectic schedule further worsened her condition. In December last year, she was hospitalised, following which her parents took her to AIIMS Delhi and PGI Lucknow for medical consultations.

She said doctors advised her to make significant lifestyle changes to prevent her condition from worsening. With a family history of lung cancer, she became increasingly concerned about her health and eventually decided to leave her job.

She subsequently joined a boutique production house as a brand strategist. The role offered remote working, apart from occasional travel for client meetings and overseeing shoots. She began treatment, focused on improving her diet and gradually returned to running after recovering. According to her, her medical reports had started showing improvement over the past two months.

"I started my treatment, was in hospital for three days, got water removed from my lungs, started a good diet and running post recovery and last two months, my report finally started getting better. After years, I felt like I am finally in a good place with work and my health. I had nothing to do with sales or BD but still I got three clients through my network and didnt take commission on it as well because I felt grateful just for the role and knew the company has slight crunch so my salary was enough," she wrote. 

However, things took another unexpected turn just before Diwali.

The woman said the company's founder organised a small Diwali celebration and distributed festive hampers among employees. He then spoke to them individually and informed them that the business was shutting down because of financial difficulties. He also reportedly told employees that the company would not be able to pay their November salaries.

"My world collapsed. I haven't told my parents yet because I am afraid they will get me married if I move back home. I feel angry and hopeless and tired of one battle after another," she added. 

Check the post here:

The founder invited us to DIwali party 3 days before Diwali and said the company is shutting down and now I am jobless
by u/workablecog in IndianWorkplace

Describing herself as exhausted after dealing with one setback after another, she turned to Reddit for advice on finding another job. She revealed that she had 3.8 years of full-time experience across strategy, growth, data analysis, product development, user behaviour analysis, operations management, campaign planning and execution, and community management. She also had two years of internship experience in sales, marketing, customer relationship management and customer service.

She sought suggestions on finding opportunities beyond conventional job portals such as LinkedIn and Naukri. She also asked users how to approach professionals for referrals and improve her chances of getting responses.

The post received several responses from Reddit users, who offered career advice and encouraged her not to lose hope. One user pointed out that her diverse work experience could help her secure another position and suggested exploring job opportunities in cities such as Hyderabad and Bengaluru.