Thread regarding AT&T layoffs

50/50 change of being employed next year? That's generous. I'd say 20% at best, more likely closer to 10%. Those who are invited to stick around beyond the initial twelve-month contract are likely to be kept only if the apps they support or develop need longer to transition.

I plan on leaving voluntarily before my year is up, 'lest I find myself involuntarily unemployed without any severance to fall back on.

Just how dedicated do you expect the folks who were outsourced to be? Trust me we have lived through this many many times over with IBM, Amdocs etc, outsourcings....The support and quality of work has never been the same......You think it's bad now dealing with our IT vendors just wait and see what is ahead of us.....but then again who can blame them especially the folks who lost their benefits etc...and knowing they have a 50-50 chance of having a job in a year......

How many did Verizon outsource when they sold half their territory to Frontier? Whatever the reason their last severance was light years better than ours but they have to this point been far more aggressive in cutting back their work force.

T's severance plan isn't a legal binding contract. It is a company policy they honor under certain conditions described in the plan. They are entering some grey areas now that might not be addressed in the plan and may be open to interpretation.

@1yza. Don’t show your hand too much or they will change or take down the surplus information you posted. I had twenty years and left. Now I am taking the buyout for the pension and t will be out of life soon bill wise and they will not be getting a cent from me in the future. I have talked to people everyday who I don’t say I worked at att and they bad mouth company so bad. Feels so much better in my life not to work for such a sleazy company. T will have a customer issue in the future imo.

This tactic appears to be very similar to the one for those in ATO falling into "Phase 2" of MK's "Project Collaboration". These folks are located more than 50 miles (most many more) from the work location they are to start reporting to next year. Leadership WILL NOT ANSWER the question of how these employees will be dealt with next year, when they inform the company they are unable to report to their new location. Specifically, will they be eligible for severance under the terms of the management severance plan? Crickets. I personally know that multiple people that have submitted this question to every L3 on up Town Hall, every forum where questions are solicited. And it just does not get addressed. To those saying you're not entitled to severance, etc...that is not exactly true. And there is a contract, it is called the Management Severance Plan, and it is on HR One Stop for everyone to review. The language therein addresses eligibility under different circumstances, including what they refer to as "involuntary termination" as a direct result of "operational/organizational and/or structural changes"...under which the management employee IS entitled to severance under the terms of the plan. I think it will be extremely difficult for the Company to argue that a massive change in the organizations work locations is not an "operational/ organizational and/or structural change". The face that they won't answer the question leads me to believe they don't intend on doing the right thing though. And it's just sleazy, just ignoring the question the way they are. Man up, tell those folks affected you don't intend on paying out the severance if that is your plan. Even with the taxes withheld, for a 20-30 year management employee you're talking about a good chunk of change, and whether or not you're going to be getting it is a large consideration with regard to whether to stay and/ or planning your exit strategy.

6 months tAxed at 50 percent... don’t you mean tax withheld as you get taxed at your calculated amount at tax time.

Actually consider it 12 months of worked for severance taxed at income rates instead of 6 months taxed at nearly 50%. You are getting a year to find a new job while you have one. Looks better on your resume. If you allow yourself to succumb to bitterness you’ll find it hard to find a new job. Good luck.

"Verizon outsourced about 20,000 positions to Infosys at the end of last year, it happens.... BUT, those people were given a choice to accept the position, or receive 3 weeks severance for every year of service, up to 2 years of severance. That is Ethical - AT&T's 'solution' should be criminal."

Wow that speaks volumes about the company's morals and ethics. Take that along with all the outsourcing they have been doing to brno and everywhere else just oozes slime balls.
To me they are done. I don't care if they pay the debt down tomorrow. you still have to have customers.

Severance isn't legally required unless it's in a contract. If that's not the case, it's not yours and can't be stolen from you.
Representatives couldn't care less about some disgruntled employees missing out on a handsome severance. Most of the public won't care either.
If you are offered a way to continue to collect your income for a time without unreasonable demands such as moving or commuting over 50 miles you don't have much to complain about. The income from working will be more than your severance but you will have to work for it.
Remember, many others have lost their source of income and received way less.

Yeah it's pretty clear to everyone with a brain that is it just a loophole to get rid of people without having to pay any severance. And since it's a bell known strategy that was used for years, I assume it's perfectly legal, so if no laws are violated, what will the lawmakers do? I know you will probably think they can rewrite or write a new law, but they get millions from lobbying, so whose side do we think they're going to be on?

Correction to this statement:

Verizon outsourced about 20,000 positions to Infosys at the end of last year, it happens.... BUT, those people were given a choice to accept the position, or receive 3 weeks severance for every year of service, up to 2 years of severance.

Verizon outsourced 2,500 positions to Infosys. And the people who declined (about 500) had to FIGHT to get severance. The only reason the company caved was because they did this at the same time they offered a voluntary package to 44,000 other employees. They feared a lawsuit. A few years ago when they outsourced functions to IBM, there was no severance paid if you did not go. Don't make Vz out to be some benevolent entity, because they are not. They just screwed up.