Industry is biopharma. Was at my first job out of uni for 9 years, until I was made redundant in November 2025. Managed to get a new job that I started in January at an absolute shitshow of a startup, that made me redundant 3 months later in April. I had been applying to jobs since my first week there because I could see how god awful it was.
I had an in person interview the very day before I was told I was being made redundant. The new company wanted to hire me, however they are 1h 45 min commute each way (including £650 a month train fare), and due to the nature of the job I’d need to be in the lab in person 5 days a week. I tried to negotiate them for a higher salary, especially because they were employing me as a fully independent contractor (though their employment requirements were as if I was a PAYE employee - so within IR35, I believe?) - so inconvenient and risky for me, especially because I wanted to buy a house soon with my husband. They couldn’t give me the extra I wanted.
My amazing husband who very fortunately has a stable job said he would support us both in the meantime, and that he didn’t like the idea of me spending 3.5 hours every day just getting to work.
So I declined the job offer. But now given the state of my industry, the area I live in in comparison to where the jobs are, and the state of the job situation in the UK in general, I can’t help but feel it was the wrong decision. Even though I know 3.5 hours every day is frankly fucking miserable.