After 35 years I was out STD for an operation and the first day released back to work was lied to to go in for a meeting about coverage. Walking in to the office I noticed my manager and coworkers talking and went by the office of what I thought was a friend, but now know is just another vz director, he looked down and away and the first time he did't greet me. Well, I then noticed my director in the empty office and I went into the conference room and tried to catch up on emails from being out on STD. My manager came in and asked me to come with him onto the director and closed the door. I was so shocked by him telling me my job had been eliminated and shown a paper with severance and all the HR/EAP info. The statement of "its just a job" comes from those trying to comfort themselves that what they are part of is all normal business and required. The company targeted those top earners and used the younger expendable to prevent the charge of age discrimination. I had another manager want to pick me up on his team and they were told "NO, he is way to expensive" by the director who gave me my walking papers. This director had such a smerk and cocky attitude that it still sticks with me. I have been gone from November 1 and not a single day has gone by without waking up with all this in my mind. I wish I could take the "Its just a job" attitude to heart, however, I fell for the vz management telling us we are a team and a family. Disenchanted is a gross understatement. I subscribe to the idea that Karma will someday even the score, but, this only helps me justify being so targeted and treated worse than I have ever allowed anyone to treat me in my life. The new way of looking at vz should be that they will use you and dispose when they want with no concern or feeling, all the while reminding you that this is just a job and don't take it personal. 35 years building this company and with the sort of a spreadsheet it is all gone. Everyone hang in there and understand that verizon is nothing more than an internet provider and the directors and up will all be hitting the bricks. I am sure they will have some big severance that will amaze the public. Sickening!
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Karma is a wonderful bitch. The jerk that laid me off after 22 years of loyal dedicated service just was told his job has been eliminated!!!!!!! I wish I could have said to him, as he said to me at the end of my you have been laid off call.............."Have a nice day." WTF
I was given nothing and worked for everything over 35 years. I had many career path changes and the only this I did gain by being laid off was many years of life back. You miss the point in my post. For company officials to lie and deceive it's employees in this manner, is completely wrong and immoral. This was at every level AGE DISCRIMINATION. If you were among the young laid off, you balanced the numbers so verizon lawyers could stand up in court and claim the average age was X. The unfortunate truth, is the current management wants blind followers that have no unique thoughts and not workers that worry about getting the job done and take pride in their work. The root metric is yet another joke that the verizon credo should't allow, if vz fails an aspect, they contact and we check then send them back out to test again. The repeat test is then done at night if the speeds are bad so they will be acceptable. Vz service is all just fluff and BS that the management want people to hear. Someday their BS will be called like T-mobile did and they will just do the same thing and brush it under the rug. Verizon has become completely unethical and not the best network except in the upper managements minds and they know the truth but as long as it doesn't show it is all good. So Karma will someday come back around and even things up. It always does.
The company cannot be saved. It's like a piece of left over bread gone bad. Let's forget what is not ours and move on. There must be still some respectable american companies out there...
I am getting out of IT altogether. Constant threat of offshore or h1b. Not to mention the daily pain of listening to broken English and bad grammar
Cannot take it anymore
This is story is one of many reasons why I don't even do the minimum anymore. It doesn't matter here.
It's ALL fear based management. Totally. I don't subscribe to that so therefore it's now just a paycheck. Succeed, fail, I do not care.
vdl, I disagree that there's "no emotional" feelings at work. My boss hates me and just about everybody else on God's earth.
I feel your pain. The one thing we all need to realize as well as to teach our kids entering the work force, it to never think of a company as family, ever! Although we spend more hours with these people than we do our own, they are not family, there is no 'emotional' feeling from them concerning you or anyone, and your job.....it is just a means to making a living. The minute you give a company more than they compensate you for, then you walked straight into a trap. The trap is, the more you give, the more they expect and the less, yes the LESS you are valued because you are taken for granted, The people who GIVE the most are NOT the people who get promoted. They need to keep their "worker bees" where they are. They are much needed, but not valued....there is a BIG difference. Look around you, see for yourself....look at the people who go up the ladder, they are usually not the best, smartest, honest, competent and loyal ones, are they? Never sell your soul to a corporation and never give more than you need to. It is not in your best interest. If it is not reciprocal just don't do it. Do you over work yourself thinking you will get a good review from your boss? Why? Do you know how many people with great reviews get canned? I certainly don't mean to not do the best work you can and are getting paid for, just saying don't kill yourself, especially for VERIZON, they simply do not appreciate it.
I too am disheartened by the smirky and cocky attitude that the director displayed towards you, no one should be treated like that.
But I believe you could and should count yourself lucky, very lucky. 35 years of CONTINOUS employment is truly a gift from the gods. I know in the telco world this length of service is not exceptional, but my goodness you should be forever grateful to have received so, so much. I have hugged and said farewell to so many who lost their jobs being riffed by vz who had just 5 or 10 years with the company. When the recent recession of 2007/2008 came my own familiy's life was crippled as my wife and our children lost their jobs. We are regular working people, without any frivolous expenses, but got deeper and deeper into debt, which, as years went by, our family life began to fail. Few, outside of telco land, have been given such a gift of 35 years, of a secure job that you have enjoyed. I was Laid off twice before. After college I became a computer engineer, rising up to a senior computer engineer, for 15 years. Bam! Laid off as company went bankrupt. 18 months of one $hit job after another before getting a job as an IT supervisor. BAM! Laid off after 10 years as the job was outsourced. Now! with vz for ONLY 15 years, I have again, been let go 12/31/2015.
I read your blog and sat stunned and gob smacked. Do you not see that it is immoral to have been given so much and rather than feeling blessed, you feel hurt that you didn't get to take even more? You say you "subscribe to karma?" Then, respectfully, I suggest you visualize yourself standing in front of your God, explaining how you were done down, and ONLY got 35 years of life's gifts?
Sorry OP. I have heard so many stories like yours. I am glad this forum exists so I can see the true nature of Verizon by allowing impacted employees to share their stories. I am amazed how many subscribers stay with Verizon when I, for the first time in over 20 years went shopping for wireless service and found so many better deals out there. I guess the general public is as brainwashed as I was about the network being so great.
Sorry, I know that feeling, and you expressed my very same thoughts and emotions. I too was riff'd in May 2015, after 28 years of dedication, and service. I never once called out sick, and now feel betrayed by a company that is clearly making a profit. I was fortunate to find another job (albeit) much less salary, and of course, after 28 years, I am now the "newbie"... Don't let them control you life anymore. Search around, I am sure something good will come your way. Good luck to you.
".....This director had such a smerk and cocky attitude that it still sticks with me...."
I know, all puffed up with pride, all arrogant, like somehow they are important and we are not.
Guess what happens when all your subordinates are gone, dickhead?
I can hear the convo. now "..heh heh (all snorty like) lets get rid of John because he's out sickm ok guys? whose with me? heh heh heh ...."
Make sure you communicate with him when you see him out with his wife. ;)