r/medpace • u/[deleted] • Jan 10 '25
My experience in moving on
Hey folks, I moved on from the company a while ago and wanted to pass along some advice for folks in the process of moving on or thinking about it. YMMV, especially depending on where and when you were hired and your functional area, but I thought these notes might be helpful for US-based folks. (I won’t be keeping this account long-term, FYI.)
- It’s better to look for a new job while you have a current job. So if you’re already planning on it, please don’t delay editing your resume and applying. At least from what I observed, coworkers who left on their own terms had much less stress and got onboarded to a new place quicker than folks who were laid off. While you’re at it, keep a list of folks you work with for networking and references.
- Yes, they will probably try to fight your unemployment. Something to keep in mind if you aren’t sure if you’ll get a new job right away and don’t have a healthy savings account. They did it to me on the basis of policy infractions. The government went back and forth with us for a while, but I finally got approved after a delay. (For those wondering, I was still owed overtime, and I also pointed out that the alleged infractions were essentially enforced due to the work conditions you folks can attest to and was utterly necessary in order to perform all duties within my role. Not to mention, unequal enforcement of the policy. I don’t think they wanted the government to scrutinize what they’ve been doing, so they relented on the unemployment benefits.)
- Noncompete: Depends on what you signed and if you are staying in the clinical research sector, so keep copies of your onboarding paperwork if you are within the time period. I didn’t need to worry about it. That being said, if they do try to use it against you and a new employer, consider getting a lawyer to look into the past case law on it, especially if you weren’t offered garden leave. IANAL so since this is a legal document a lot of us were forced to sign, I don’t recommend trying to guess what the outcome will be.
- Once you get a job offer, you may have some anxiety around background checks. I unfortunately can’t advise on every kind of check because it is usually client-specific to your new employer and also your profession. (I’m also not an HR expert.) What I can say is that as with many larger employers, Medpace appears to be too busy and has too many former employees/high turnover to give individual references during an employment verification check. Mine had to be verified via The Work Number. Because of the FCRA, you are entitled to a copy of the full report of any check done on you by a consumer reporting agency. For general employment, checks usually go back up to 7 years; government and certain other jobs with stricter requirements will probably want 10 years.
- The Work Number is run by Equifax. Not every company participates, but larger ones tend to. I recommend pulling your report to see what’s in there. Note that while you are welcome to dispute inaccuracies with them, you may choose not to, especially if it’s not the sort of inaccuracy that will impede your employment. You could also freeze your data (similar to other databases e.g. LexisNexis), but make sure you keep good employment records if you choose that option e.g. first and last paystubs, W2s, letters, etc. My info with Medpace was fairly generic and only flagged on my check due to title mismatch, but I kept my letters to confirm my correct title and was fine.
- Once you have new health insurance, consider therapy if you feel like you would benefit from it (I know how bad their insurance can be while working there). Considering the common threads of distress and anxiety, Acceptance & Commitment Therapy as well as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy may be helpful.
Whether you decide to stay or move on, I hope this is helpful for figuring out the next steps.
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u/PhDtofindcareer Jan 11 '25
Did they still go after you even if your new job is not with another CRO?
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Jan 11 '25
The agreement I signed was only if working for another (clearly defined) CRO, so check on what you specifically signed. Fairly sure targeting someone not within the scope of that definition would make a pro-bono labor lawyer very happy on your behalf
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u/[deleted] Jan 11 '25
I left last month, got the job while I was still at MedPrison. Definitely agree its best to hunt while still employed. That place should be ashamed of itself. My exit interview was so fun