Thread regarding AT&T Inc. layoffs

You do know all of the dinosaurs died, so just keep in mind your days are limited, people with families are trying to stay afloat while you are just waiting until you can collect social security all the while you know you're only going to work another year or two, so just leave now, enjoy some of your life and R E T I R E

I took mine in Feb. and haven't looked back.

Good Luck too all!

Nothing can change the shape of things to come!

So true, if they didn't F@ck us out of the original pension many older workers would be long gone. No choice but to sit around and collect the big bucks.

What a ma-roon. You think technology has suddenly become some alien information feed that only social media babies and video game afficianados can pick up on? It's trite I know but I have forgotten more sh-- than you have even encountered so far. Most of us are quite capable of learning whatever is necessary to perform most technology-based jobs. There is a deliberate sub rosa campaign to eliminate top wage earners, particularly in protected (union) positions, the evidence is obvious even if unprovable. I have a family to support, obligations outside of AT if they want to give me something meaningful and productive to do, it would be much more satisfying personally and professionally. But since they won't, I will continue to collect the paychecks. Believe me, I have earned them, my labor produced literally (in the literal sense of the word!) millions of dollars for AT&T and its predecessors.

This thread is ridiculous. You think since you are young you have all these wonderful ideas that will help the company grow and things just be dandy?? Companies were started, developed and run by the "older dudes" because they worked their a-- off to get there AND maintained it well enough to give your sorry over educated (wow, you went to college...wow) entitled little b--ches employment...right? Weird, if it weren't for the old people running businesses you wouldn't have a job dumb--ses.

I love those that are younger thinking you have all the answers to save the world....love it.

Good luck to ya! I'm sure you will go far with the attitudes, at least in your mind.

And NO, I don't work for corporate, I'm not a big wig this is just a really stupid thread.

YES, there are people who are in positions that they shouldn't be in, deal with it - it will be there where ever you work. dumb--ses.

Very easy for someone to say this until they're there themselves. There are lazy and hard working millennials, Gen Xers and baby boomers. Many skills that older workers have are time tested and it's not like many of these changes are inter-dimensional changes that completely redefine human existence. Changes have always occurred and you are not that special in your place in time over anyone else. Gen Xers got the biggest shaft because many had to wait their time for baby boomers to move on and now millennials get fast tracked past them because the company thinks young person = genius. Some millennials and Gen Xers are also naive and distracted enough not to notice when the rug is being pulled out from under them. It's good to have older workers because they can inform you of the benefits you had before and compare them with where the company is moving. The upper leadership is older and they like you to not know how things worked before or that they are pulling an old trick out of a new hat. Those who don't know their history are condemned to repeat it.

**** AT&T non-bargained breakdown

---- Supervisory types:

(1) Leaders 8% (team leaders)

Senior Management 2%

(2) Survivors 70%

(3) Don't care 20%

---- Individual contributor types

(1) Doers 15%

(2) brown noses 20%

(3) a--kissers / Watchers within teams 40%

(4) Inhibitors / detractors 25%

**** AT&T non-bargained breakdown

---- Supervisory types:

(1) Leaders 20%,,,,

(2) Survivors 80%,,,,

---- Individual contributor types

(1) Doers 20%,,,

(2) Watchers 40%,,,,

(3) Inhibitors 40%,,,,

These types are in all generations

Let's put some perspective to some of these posts, Ideally, we’d all earn what we deserve and our employers would give us raises according to our skill level, experience, and professional value, in today's market there has been a shift, like many other millennials , AT&T has taken advantage of the recession to offer Lower wages, They have so many applying for the job, they seem to want to take the younger ones that will do it for less or not knowledgeable enought to know what the job should pay & not question it... Who cares if they leave in time, since the projections estimated 40k employees to be out of the job "before" the DTV merger.

It doesn't seem to be now, where you stay at a job for longer than 2-3 years. They can save on the money, and we millennials understand that workers at AT&T are not valued as a human resources, therefore I believe that we are not ready to spend a lifetime with a company, unlike our counterparts the "Older workers", which have no control over their professional careers, many in dying technologies.

ironically, this generation of digital natives intuitively understand disruptive technology, making them better positioned than any before it in human history to contribute to businesses of substance, that is the reason AT&T is NOT building on your strengths but weaknesses, as previously reported, seems obvious to me, what will be next.....

From this logic. We need to clean out all senior management also. They are all old dinosaurs and replace with a 25 year old millennial with some vision. At ahould also clear out anyone over 40. Give full immediate pensions and put them out to pasture The new kids can generate more than enough revenue to support the old folks.

Most of us would be in trouble if they paid us for what we actually do. Good thing they did away with the paper checks I would have to walk in backwards to accept my check. I would probably owe them some months. With that being said let the Millennials vs. Dinosaurs battle continue. By the time this discussion is over I may put my papers in.

I agree pay shouldn't be determined by the number of years you've been an employee but how much value you bring to the company. There are tons of older employees who make a lot and it doesn't correspond to the value they bring the company. I've seen many of my peers who are younger get told they've been the best [insert job title here] by the teams they support but they're doing the same job someone who's been with the company longer and are older but the younger employee is getting paid a small percentage of their pay.

So you got your bachelors degree in 1973 eh? Yeah that'll totally help you with understanding today's technology.

If they add Walkers and Depends to the Service Anniversary Catalog, then we have a problem. The big question is what if these Dinosaurs died in place, "Who would even know?"

Wow , The company is hiring idiots. If you fools looks back at the history ( that's before your first sh--) you will see the company made big changes in 1998. first to dump retirement , then push for all 401k.

The older employees both union and management have fought for better working conditions. the new employees wait for mommy to give them stuff.

If you don't like what ATT is doing get the union to do something besides sitting on their big salary's.

Look around, do you see anyone getting stirred up? NO. See anyone questioning upper management, NO

Anyone going to legislature to demand why ATT is outsourcing to India, NO

HP is moving to 70% non American employees. Take a guess where ATT is heading.

Keep blaming the older employee and HP keep moving in the direction they intended all along.

How many millennials have a clue how this company works....ZERO

HR is dividing people hoping the majority will ignore what is really going on. ITS WORKING

OP you made one mistake-the elderly don't like getting things taken from them even if it's well past their time. For example, my grandfather thinks he can still drive yet almost killed someone the other day when he nearly missed a turn only because he cut over three lanes at one time. These employees that you speak of and who reply won't retire, instead they'll continue to not contribute in any meaningful way and s--- the company dry while giving one last dying middle finger to the millenials they think are incapable of good work ethic. See how vicious they get when they're told to retire?

New benefit will include burial services

Funny this millennial generation has the worst work ethic I've ever seen. If something thing is hard or you have to make sacrifices to move up they cry and won't do it! They want the same pay as someone with 30yrs of hard earned knowledge and skills,etc They live with mommy because everything has been handed to them and never worked hard for anything! This is the pu--y generation.....The old timers EARNED the right to stay as long as they want.

Old people talk no doubt, insteaf traveling, enjoying life , etc, they work to the end of their life quality

It appears that the OP is worried about being declared surplus and blames it on all of the "old timers" for not leaving. Hard as it is to believe, many people love what they do and have no desire to retire. As long as the company has a need for my knowledge I will not retire. The day that I stop learning new things, is the day that I die. Do not assume that everyone with 30+ years is ready for the rocking chair on the front porch. Many of us started at 18-20 years old and 40 years of service is something to be proud of. Good luck to you with your opportunities in the future.

This post is stupid and short sighted and I'm relatively young and not anywhere near retirement. It's that us against them bullshyt that distracts from the real cultural ills. Leadership loves this ADD sort of drivel. It takes them all off the hook.

I work with 30 year olds who are just as bad as the so called 60 year olds who don't want to pivot. The 40 year olds can't they've come of age in the same sickness that the "dinasours" did. T is no google/sales force/apple and very little new and innovative is going on because of the old school ideologies.

Clearly you already know everything, so how are the people that have paved the way and fought the battles to gain everything that you like about the company holding you back?

If you're so smart and knowledgeable, you'll get any job that your wanting since seniority is the tie-breaker when skill and knowledge are equal.

May you get all you deserve with your career.

Yes, TDM is going by the way side, but in my ghetto Central Office we are installing Adtran LPU shelves and Genband media gateways. The Genband is so that Voip customers can talk to PTSN customers, and the Adtran will run EoCU out many miles. I guess copper is dead............OK.

As far as a skills pivot, it is a joke. I took advantage of AT&T's tuition program to get a degree in telecommunications and I can tell you the T university program is just to weed out those that T can claim didn't want to keep up with the supposed skills pivot.

TDM is being replaced in favor of VoIP and wireless. None of the big telecom players want to be responsible for the upkeep of wired networks and will continue filling the coffers of elected officials to be unbound from archaic regulations. It won't be an overnight shift but it will accelerate as the older generations who still hold a death grip on their outdated technology die. Once telecom companies shed their fixed wireline services they can invest more heavily in improving wirelessly delivered products.

Old Dogs do TDM. Did you hear the new 2020 is now 2030. Good Luck with your Pivot Training :)

Thanks for your reply @IIm9TNl-1dpr I don't despise our older colleagues I'm just posting based on what is the truth. The term "you can't teach old dogs new tricks" is true in most cases. The older you are the more "stuck" you are in your old ways. I work in Network Operations and it's impossible for the older employees to "pivot" to even using new terminology. How does one expect they'll pivot to the fast changing new technology? Very few.

Op is right 7 out 11 in my unit are in the mid 60's, pretty hard to learn new concepts, can't do code, can't do VBA, fluster easily, don't wait to check them all out, and retire

I dont know who the original poster was on this but if I did k n own their name I would nominate them for the dumb--s OF THE DECADE AWARD. only an idiot would make the original post like the person did.

Thanks for your input.. I made kick a-- financial decisions. Just saying we have a dinosaur situation where we got totally f@cked with the pension and aren't leaving. So deal with it...Dinosaurs live on!!!

OP you're not going to get many positive replies to your post. This website is a majority of the people you mention who they themselves can't let go! I made smart financial decisions and retired from T two years ago. The dinasaurs you see roaming the halls have remortgaged houses and expensive cars they have to pay for!

Wow you younger workers have it all figured out. Did anyone mention to you how they f@cked us out of our original pension. Of course not, you jump on this forum and spew your clueless nonsense. I have over 30+ years service and the people I work with actually have more. You don't think we would all like to leave tomorrow. They switched over to a cash balance pension that totally f@cked all of us. So when you see the dinosaurs hanging around think again. Good luck with the company if has sunk to nothing short of a major mockery. With that being said this Dinosaurs will hang out and milk every last penny.

Wow. Can't believe the original post! Guess the forgot that many of these "older workers" in fact fought for many of the benefits and packages that the poster is crowing about. If it wasn't for the older workforce the poster would probably be making a barely livable wage with the company since they forget that the company would take you to the cleaners on a heartbeat and discard you without hesitation. Remember that what you have now with the company is because of those before you!

So, it's clearly evident from the original post that you entered the workforce knowing everything and no one ever had to offer you any help or support. Bully for you. Enjoy being young now, but I would think twice about denigrating those that came before you. No one stays young forever. And my PhD work is in adult education and the Millennial workforce isn't checked out and disengaged because the work isn't worthwhile. What a load of crap. They simply grew up in a world where they were never required to do anything they didn't want to. I believe that is the very definition of spoiled. Now, that said, it's never a good idea to paint entire groups of people with a broad brush. It goes both ways.

Great post. 40 +years should get a life

I seriously cannot believe you wrote this post. BUT again why should I be surprised you are from the young generation today that feel they are ENTITLED and want their ATT career handed over to them on a silver platter.

I respected all employees over my 20 years of service. Especially all that I worked with that had tenures of 30-40 years.

This post was nothing but tasteless and disrespectful. I would not want to be one of your colleagues and Dear Lord I do hope you are not a manager.

Poster I full heartedly agree with you. I retired last year. I've had a good career with the company and it was ready to leave. I tried going through the 2020 training and I was lost and confused i knew if I stayed with the company I'd likely not be able to contribute what they needed to be successful so I left. So many of the older people I worked with are still there.

@IIm9TNl-arl everyone is eligible for retirement at 62. Full benefits don't kick in until you reach a certain age pre-determined by your birth year.

And that is a typo not a lapse in memory. If you started at 20 you could have 45 years service by the time you are retirement age of 65.

@IIm9TNl-shd

Wow. OP you do realize that retirement age is 65 so someone that started working at 20 could have 49 years service. Instead of booting people out you may want to gain some of their knowledge. Especially about work ethic and loyalty. The people you are talking about made this company and the ones that merged what it is today.

Someday you will be the person you are talking about. Have a little respect instead of resentment.