Thread regarding Verizon Communications Inc. layoffs

Great post! I do not get all the comparisons to executive salaries. It is apples and oranges. Out of corporate revenue Lowell makes like .0002% of that in cash salary and it is less than many of his peers. He got the college degree, graduate degree, and built up the resume of experience to get his job and his income. As did many of the other executives and management at the company. He like many other executives at the company work far more hours than many union workers and without overtime. You can't have a high school degree and then complain that your salary is so far off from the execs salaries. The company offers tuition assistance and opportunities to train and learn other aspects of the business that are not on the decline. I wonder how many union workers have taken advantage of any of that. I remember being on EWA during the last strike and meeting an associate that joined VZ after graduating from high school. She had crossed and told us about how she was completing her undergrad degree through tuition assistance from VZ. She had plans to move on to bigger and better things. That is the kind of mentality that I thin more union members should have. If you know you work in an area of the biz that is on the decline...why not try to improve your education or skills as insurance to protect your job which is what most non-union employees do. To have staying power, you never stop learning or growing or improving on your skills. You can't sit in the same job for 30 yrs anymore and have it be some generational birthright that multiple ancestors before you all worked from high school to retirement with the phone company.

But but but...fairness....equality....Feel the BERN! DERP

@pki -- you say you just want to "keep what you have". What is it you have that you think you are losing?

Free healthcare? Did you know that the rest of the Verizon employees have had their healthcare costs go up too? As well as every other company in America?

Job Security? Are you aware that NO ONE in this country is guaranteed a job? In most companies people's work ethic and results are their job security. None of us are owed a job, and no one has complete job security.

Protection from small offices being closed? Are you aware that other companies also combine real estate when certain offices have small numbers of people? Real Estate is a huge cost, and combining locations happens in every company, sometimes impacting the employees. In those cases employees either move, make the commute, or find a job with a more suitable location.

So when you say "keep what you have" tell us more about it. I'd love to know exactly what you think you're losing and how it's different from any other employee at Verizon or anywhere else.

Don't worry, I don't expect you to answer because you and I both know your answer would sound ridiculous.

Please, the current CEO didn't work for his title, it was handed to him..Now Ivan Seidenberg in the other hand, He worked his way up through the ranks and earned his title as CEO..I have a ton of respect for him over the current CEO regardless of how he handled dealings with the union in the past.

OP, we'll said! Unfortunately, I think it has fallen upon deaf ears.

pki,

"We achieve more when we all come together as one and if you feel better doing things alone,then the best of luck to you."

We aren't the ones who abandoned our jobs, disrupting the lives of those who didn't and our customers. I was going to say that you are wrong about all of us feeling entitled, but upon further thought, you are correct. The big difference is what we feel entitled too. We are entitled too Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, per the Declaration of Independence, but a lot of people leave off "Pursuit". It's sad that you don't even understand the hypocrisy of you passing judgement on those you claim are passing judgement.

When people applied for certain associate positions,they were automatically enrolled into the union. Everyone feels they are entitled to something in some sort of way so get off your high horses. We just want to keep what we have. We want to maintain our middle class status. I don't want to be ceo or run my own business. I want to go to work,earn a living wage and provide for my family just like everyone else. People need to stop with this "us vs them" bullshit. We are all human and we all have families to care for. We achieve more when we all come together as one and if you feel better doing things alone,then the best of luck to you.

Well lets see if you were not to lazy to start you own business then yes you to could become your own CEO. But no it is easier wanting a hand out.

While this makes perfect sense, I'm afraid that the mentality of so many Americans has morphed into the attitude of entitlement. And when that happens, their dream of "fairness" becomes so big that the facts no longer matter. We can't even reason with this mindset as it has been so deeply engrained in their worldview. And regardless of who "wins" the contract negotiations, these same people will continue to covet what they don't have and blame those that do have what they want. The depth of our depravity as people, is truly unknown.

@OP-GREAT post! Unfortunately we are dealing with those who feel entitled to EVERYTHING with very little effort on their part.

In Republicanland everybody can be a CEO if they just work hard. There are no plumbers or waitresses or auto mechanics. What a douchebag you are!