#morale

Funny, T-Mobile just did a hackathon... wonder how employee spirits were

Morale at Meta has seemingly hit rock bottom.

Employees have been roiling from multiple rounds of major layoffs. Last month alone, the Mark Zuckerberg-led company laid off a whopping 8,000 workers, roughly ten percent of its workforce, as part of its chaotic refocusing efforts around AI.

Many of those who remain are now forced to perform the grunt work to train AI models, weekly busywork that's already driving some of them up the wall, as Wired reports.

In an internal memo to employees on Friday, Zuckerberg attempted to lift their spirits in what appears to be a notable failure to read the room. Specifically, the billionaire promised to host a companywide AI hackathon in July — only to get brutally shut down by workers who were in no mood for such a thing.

Meta has regularly hosted hackathons in the past, but given last month's layoff announcement, the reception was extremely chilly.

"I'm literally preoccupied with keeping the lights on for my team," one employee wrote in an internal message quoted by Wired. "I have no incentive to participate, let alone have the time to do so."

"I'm not sure that this company supports a hackathon culture anymore," another employee added, pointing out that "people are being asked to cover more work with less support while their colleagues get laid off."

"I've participated in previous hackathons, but this no longer feels like an option alongside pod sprints in my corner of the company," one worker wrote.

Zuckerberg offered employees access to permanent desks, a symbolic gesture that unintentionally illustrated how expendable many of them had become. Many employees at Meta have been working from "hot desks," a controversial scheme involving multiple workers sharing the same desks.

For all its employees' pain and suffering, Meta has surprisingly little to show. The company continues to trip over its own feet, struggling to release impressive new AI models as its competitors pull ahead further in the ongoing AI race.

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In his memo, Zuckerberg predicted that even more difficult days could be ahead for the company, despite vowing to hold off on any future layoffs for the rest of the year.

"Given the complexity of these changes, we've made mistakes and will almost certainly make more," he admitted.

This is honestly hilarious, Centene can not even fire us correctly...
The website wont give verification codes.
We are in the dark for hours, Cryptic emails.
Every leader is radio flipping silent.

For a company I loved to work for and with, this is ridiculous from the chiefs of the company.

I just do enough in log in the hours and collect a paycheck. The place is the walking dead. Nobody cares. Stankey just doesn't remotely come close to having that It factor that you would get behind and do battle for. Most would give him a giant shove into the line of fire.

I had a dr appt yesterday. He asked who I work for and how it’s going. I said EDJ and that it’s not what it used to be and is getting progressively worse. He said he’s actually heard that from several patients lately.

So, word is getting out in the community! I figured it must be given the FA losses, and nna and auc missing goals by a long shot, but this was interesting anecdotal evidence!

The management and executive leaders at Dell lie, cheat, steal, take credit for other's work, and basically walk on the backs of their employees. It's worse than I've ever seen it. Tell me I'm wrong.

I'm sorry but how can a company brag on how profitable they are and do nothing for their employees but give them headaches with constant restructures and change indirection including incompetent management.
Tom Wilson touts inventors winning $5,000. What does that mean for the other employees? What a joke! This is not motivating. Been with the company over 15 years so sad to see the decline.

I have recently been in my position 20 years. Know what I got for it? A hat? NO A pen? NO A nice email of congratulations? Nope. Nothing, nada, zilch. That's how everyone should know that OT is in such bad financial shape that they cannot properly recognize service. I mean, how broke do we have to be that I can't even get some stupid points to buy some $50 piece of cr-p item? And if it's not being broke but just being total pieces of cr-p unwilling to honor loyal service over the years, that's worse....maybe it's because I came from an acquisition? Oh wait, we all did....

Get rid of all of us you want to. I'm tired of constant threats of layoffs. Let's have one huge round: show the door to every single person who you thinks needs to be out so that those who are left can once again fully focus on their work. This is exhausting.

When RTO was first announced, I thought I’d adjust after a while. That hasn’t really happened, and not just for me. A lot of people seem quieter, more frustrated, and less connected than before.

I’m in my early forties, and I’ve worked in enough places to know when the energy has shifted. This is one of those times. I don’t hate the job itself, but the current setup has made it much harder to stay motivated.

I’ve been browsing remote openings for the past couple of months. I’d rather find something that gives me a little more control over my day and doesn’t make work feel like such a drain.

This spells nothing but doom for employees

Best news this year - Mike is out. Maybe now we have someone who actually understands payments and really cares about people instead of just saying it.

Now let’s get Dhivya out of here and we may have a chance.

Anyone else on here just gave the lowest score for every answer ?? I hope this is confidential if not I’ll be targeted for being honest and what layoffs have done to my morale

Make the decision and bring stability.

I've been here for for over a decade. Our people have knowledge and experience that can't be replaced. But leadership doesn't care. They've gotten rid of good people for stupid reasons.

Small, big, who even cares anymore? Welcome to the joys of being employed at Verizon!

Is it ideal? No. Is it better than a lot of places right now? Yes. If you've taken half an hour of your day to brows available jobs, you'd know how cr-ppy the job market is right now. Having a relatively safe job with a decent pay at this moment is more than many others have. As I said, this place is far from perfect, but let's get some perspective.

I was looking at our competitors' pages just to see if everywhere is as bad, and this made me laugh:

"This place makes Xerox look like an upgrade in employment."

That was posted on Konica Minolta's page. Which barely has any posts. And our board is one of the busiest and bursting with hate. I don't think that person has a realistic picture of Xerox. Still, made me laugh.

Does anyone actually enjoy working here anymore? I used to like my job but now it's not worth it. The pay is not keeping up and management is even worse. Don't even get me started on all the cuts.

No sense sticking around if that bad.

The company’s stock has been extremely volatile recently. Will the already low morale take an additional toll on the share price? Within my team, even with AI assistance, I haven’t seen more code being delivered. In fact, performance in terms of code output has unfortunately declined.

Looking at the 146 jobs open today, only 18% are US based and 5 of those US based jobs are mariners and a pilot. We all know the reality, but seeing the actual numbers is pretty sad for a company that once prided itself on its US legacy/heritage.

Why is that?

My group in FI has had about ELEVEN tenured client facing associates leave the past 2 or 3 months. We are so “lean” that you can’t get PTO days approved. People crying in the office and screaming in little glass offices. Punching their desks. Is this upper management’s goal?!? And they’re threatening “mandatory overtime”! We merged with Fid Wealth and have no idea how that will play out. Associates openly complaining about depression, anxiety and how their health doesn’t matter - it’s so depressing and disappointing.

This lonely Phillips 66 station! Not a single car at the pumps or customers inside. Located across the street from a competing station with 4 times the amount of traffic.

https://imgur.com/a/8w7MaHx

Moral of this story, the P66 brand su-ks.

I'm sorry to say it, but Dell leadership is some of the worst in the industry. They're ignorant, they're incompetent, they're untrustworthy, and they're unqualified. Pure shiit leadership at Dell.

I need to check in with other managers here because I'm hitting a wall and getting seriously worried.
​It feels like so many tech teams across the board - UHC Tech, ETIPS, CDO, CE, OG, OI etx are completely stepping on each other's toes. We’re all scrambling to find unique problems to solve, but the truth is, someone else has usually already done it. Everyone is just trying to look busy. It's becoming a toxic rat race wrapped as evolution and exciting advancement.
​AI has made this so much worse, so fast. What used to take us months of architecture and building now gets wrapped up in days. Because of that sudden speed, I haven't had any real, substantive work for my team of six for several months now. Just minor fixes and changes here and there.
​Now, our funding is being questioned. At this rate, looking ahead to 2027, I don't see how we survive the next budget cycle. I am genuinely terrified for my team and their jobs.
​How long can a company sustain this kind of overlap? Are any other managers seeing this cliff approaching, and how are you keeping your people safe?

I used to secretly come to this website to get the tea on the company. Who knew I'd be the one giving it this time

Recent graduates, do NOT become a contractor for this place UNLESS you know for sure that you're getting a full time position within 5 months-1 year. I was a recent college graduate when I got the offer to work here but as a contractor. I was told that through hard work and due time, if they liked me, that I'd get a full time position.... that was 3 years, multiple layoffs, 1 managerial and 1 CEO change later when now, they've cut my contract after getting a $4 raise this year as well as new hires to help our team become more efficient. I must've joined at a sc--wed up time, how unlucky am i. I worked 35-40 hr weeks, was a positive employee and got along with all my co-workers, cafe staff, and people outside of my department. I was good at my job and even had plans to excel and show my skills to open up more opportunities and possibilities, you know the thing that my higher up wanted from me at the time. During my time there, I've dealt with so many unnecessary and unhelpful barriers being placed, low morale, empty promises, fatigue on every level, career doubts, being overlooked while being the most overworked, crying tears at my desk because I was in fear of the one thing that ended up happening to me- losing a job I genuinely loved being at. All those things happened at 24-25. Mind you, it was year 3 and people were still confused as to why I'm a contractor, why I don't have access to an employee portal, why I don't get fossil discounts, why I don't get fossil emails, why I don't get opportunities because of my contract....isn't that saying something???

After this, I'll make peace with It and move on through life. This is a stepping stone and I should treat it as such. I'm CERTAIN that other people may leave too, willingly or not depending on the AI progression. Oh and one more thing, don't scurry off out the building after giving some devastating news WITHOUT WARNING AND OUT OF NOWHERE. have some dignity and finish out the rest of the day like I did.

I’ve worked at a lot of places, and I’ve never seen so many highly educated, talented people counting down the years until they can leave.

Spring Campus looks amazing from the outside. Free coffee, modern buildings, walking trails, cafeterias, gyms, collaboration spaces. On paper it feels like a dream workplace.

But sometimes it feels like a white-collar day prison.

You badge in, sit through meetings, update trackers, attend alignment calls, respond to emails, complete training modules, worry about rankings, worry about reorganizations, worry about whether your work will even matter next year, then badge out and repeat the process tomorrow.

The compensation is good, but many people seem exhausted rather than motivated.

The irony is that the campus was built to attract and retain talent, yet some of the most common conversations I hear are:

• “How many years until retirement?”
• “I’m looking externally.”
• “I’m just trying to survive another ranking cycle.”
• “I used to enjoy this job.”

Maybe it’s not just Exxon. Maybe it’s the reality of large corporate America in 2026.

Curious if others feel the same:
Has the modern corporate office become a place where people build careers, or a place where people quietly wait for the next paycheck and eventually their exit?

This place isn't worth my health or my peace of mind. What happens, happens. I've gotten out of bad situations before, I can do it again. I refuse to look back later and regret losing sleep and energy over a job that doesn't deserve it.

I’ve never seen a CEO so completely disconnected and miss the message employees were trying to send.

Thousands of employees were saying the same thing- morale is declining, flexibility matters, talent is leaving, and five-day RTO is making a bad situation worse.

His response? Employees were told they’re wrong, he’s not, and there “might be a disconnect between you and your current professional choice.”

What really stood out was the characterization of the feedback as “more outliers than we’d like.” … Outliers?

When it’s most employees saying the same thing, it isn’t outliers at all. It’s the majority. The same concerns were being raised across all organizations, teams, and locations. That’s not an “outlier” problem. That’s a leadership problem.

The email read like someone who was genuinely shocked by the feedback…. But maybe that’s the real issue. When you’re surrounded by direct reports blowing smoke up your a$$ telling you everything is working, everyone is aligned, and the policy is a grand success, eventually you start believing it.

Then one day reality shows up in a survey and your mind is blown.

What made the email so damaging wasn’t just the double down on policy. It was the authoritarian mindset behind it.

Instead of asking why most employees felt the same way, he seemed determined to explain why employees were wrong instead of him. Instead of adapting, he doubled down. Instead of listening, he lectured. Instead of taking responsibility, he shifted the blame back onto employees.

That’s not leadership.

Leadership is about recognizing when a decision isn’t producing the intended results and having the humility to change course. What we’ve seen instead is a stubborn refusal to acknowledge reality and accept responsibility, no matter how much evidence piles up.

Since Stankey became CEO, the stock has delivered a negative (-25%) price return. Morale has deteriorated to all time lows. Talent continues to leave. Outside rankings of culture, morale, talent, future readiness place AT&T at the bottom of its peer group and near the broader field bottom as well.

Yet somehow employees are still treated as the problem.

At some point, the board has to ask a simple question- if the strategy is working, where are the results?

Employees are paying the price for decisions they didn’t make- longer commutes, less flexibility, less take home pay, lower morale, increased uncertainty, and the departure of talented peers.

The company doesn’t need more presence reports, more mandates, or another angry manifesto explaining why employees are wrong and to blame for the company’s failures. It needs a leader who listens, adapts, and can admit when something isn’t working.

The most dangerous thing a CEO can do is become so convinced of his own correctness that he stops hearing what everyone else is telling him, and that’s where we are. That’s the disconnect employees have been talking about all along.

It is very depressing as there are some very good people going because they asked to. Why can’t the organization organize themselves to get rid of dead wood instaesd of not creating an environment where talent and good people feel comfortable.

We were one of the most respected American companies. Now we're nothing but a joke. What a sad reality.

I'm not happy here. But I also know my friends at other companies have it worse. So I'm staying for now. But I'm curious about people who are ready to leave. What would it take? What would be the final straw that makes you quit?

I hate what's being done to it. I used to be proud working here. Not anymore.

Say what you want about this place, but for me, it's still one of the best jobs I've had. Pay is fine. Work is interesting. Coworkers are great. That's why I'm scared of getting laid off. I don't want to go.

I was a Team Lead over the years. My biggest difficulty was non-support from my manager, directors, and VPs. We were stuck using tools that didn't work, and there was no funding to fix them or get better ones. Processes were stupidly designed, and nobody wanted to improve them. Great ideas are all shot down. Even cheap ideas are shot down. But we can cut thousands of jobs, fund a Mclaren race team, get g2 a $200k watch, etc.

Bumped from @mr+1kt16ne3e.

Good luck guys

Thanks to this board, I no longer need a therapist — just my keyboard, complaint, and forty other disgruntlement employees shouting ‘SAME’ back. It’s good to know I’m not alone in this journey. Stay blessed:) Have a good weekend ya’ll

One day I think we've got what it takes to climb back up. We've still got plenty of smart people and good products. But then I look at how far we've fallen and I wonder if we'll ever get that back. So I'm asking all of you. Do you think we'll find our way up again, or are those days behind us for good?