If you’re anywhere near my age, then you know what the next line of this famous commercial is…

Oh what a relief it is! 😉

Why am I quoting an ancient Alka Seltzer commercial? Because it perfectly describes how I feel in my new job. 

As most of you know, life through me a huge curveball in Feb 2025 when my federal agency, where I’d been employed for 26 years, offered me an early retirement as a part of the DOGE cuts, or risk being terminated (if you’re new here, welcome, and check out this post for the deets on that whole saga). Since my former boss hated me, and did everything he could to make my life miserable, I knew he’d take an opportunity to fire me (he’d already tried twice). So I took the out. 

Fast forward to December 2025. After applying for literally hundreds of jobs, ranging from Labor Relations Specialist to Employment & Labor Attorney, I accepted a Senior Labor Relations Generalist position with the Regional Transportation District (RTD). RTD is the public transportation system for Metro Denver/Boulder area. In all honesty, I was scared to death to take the job because I had ZERO experience with the transit industry, and it was a significant pay cut. But, it was better than nothing.

Almost 6 months later, I’m here to tell you that I could not have made a better decision. 

I’m not doing any attorney things (which is honestly fine), but I am doing a lot of the same relationship-building things that I got really good with at the feds. My main responsibility now is to hold all Step 2 grievance meetings with the Light Rail and Bus Maintenance departments. I’m acting as a kind of mediator in those meetings- listening to both sides present their “case” on the particular discipline, sometimes hearing from the impacted employee himself, and, if appropriate, working with the Union and management to resolve the issue. These meetings give me the chance to meet the managers, and to develop the relationships that are so important for a successful organization.  

I spend the rest of my time responding to emails/phone calls from supervisors and managers who have questions about how to handle issues with employees, ensuring that they are acting within the bounds of the employee rule book and the collective bargaining agreement with the Union. 

I can hear your wheels turning… why am I calling this new position a relief? 

Because I am out of the rat race. In my fed job, I had at least 25 cases assigned to me once (for a majority of my career, that number was over 40), and those cases had to be completed within either 90 or 120-days of being assigned to me. Reaching that deadline is all any one in my management chain cared about. How many cases I would be able to churn out, month after month. They claimed to care about the quality of work (because let’s be honest, that’s what REALLY should have mattered), but they really didn’t.  A phrase that often comes to mind is “churn and burn.” 

And because my boss hated me, I was always worried what would happen if I didn’t respond to one of his emails within some secret period of time, or if my Teams status showed I wasn’t presently on my work computer. Side story: I actually got a call from him one day about my Teams status. He told me that the General Counsel (his boss) had called him, asking why my status had been set to “do not disturb” for the entire previous day. As nicely as I could (even though I was fuming inside), I reminded him that I was writing a Motion for Summary Judgment that was due to the Judge within days, and I didn’t want to be disturbed. He told me he understood, but that it was inappropriate for me to not make myself available if someone needed me. Are you kidding me??? To this day, I still have PTSD over that damn Teams color.

Fast forward to yesterday- July 1, 2026. First, my co-worker Rochelle brought me an adorable Colorado Avalanche pen holder that she actually had made for me (see the photo below). Of course I paid her for it, but that’s not the point. The point is that she thought of me. That she knew it would make me happy. Second, the Chief People Officer (who is my boss’s boss) popped into my office and asked me how I was doing in the role. I told her how much I enjoyed it, and how much I was learning. She then told me that she’d read some of the emails I’d written to both supervisors and union reps, and she was very impressed with the tone and collaborative nature. She then said she knew that kind of stuff couldn’t be taught-it came with years of experience-and she was grateful to have me on the team. 

Grateful to have me??? What?? I was blown away. 🤯 What I’m about to say is not an exaggeration. In my 26 years with the Feds, NOT ONCE did anyone tell me that they were happy to have me in their office, or did they recognize how much my experience brought to the table. 

I’m confident that I’ve found my “home.”

Does any of this sound familiar? If so, pls drop a comment below and tell me about it. 

Thanks as always for reading,

Paige xo

P.S. Struggling with what seems like a never-ending list of symptoms thanks to perimenopause? Never fear- I got you! Sign up for my private podcast here, where I dive head-first into the insanity.