Thread regarding Verizon Communications Inc. layoffs

Well, the fact that VZ has not told you anything to calm down the nerves of the troops is telling in and of itself. They have no idea where they are headed with the company or how to execute the mismanaged plan they are frantically trying to get a handle on. They just don't know what to tell you. Each month that passes, and every target that gets missed just puts the final punctuation on what has always been their plan. To reduce headcount in areas not cutting the mustard, based on the impossible to meet metrics foisted upon everyone, and give themselves handsome bonuses at your expense. . Any reason for not making the goals is looked on as an excuse. So what if there was a blizzard and a few feet of snow were dumped on you. A hurricane tore up large sections of the network? Keep the work on schedule. You need to have planned for all of that. Stock up on salt, shovels, snow blowers and ice choppers. Make sure you have the resources to keep the projects on track while disaster recovery is in full swing on the "live" network. Don't think that you can get overtime for the extra work to dig out and try to salvage things. It was poor planning on your part.

Ever since the landline leadership took over, their first order of the day was to breach the hull of the once proud ship. You wireless pukes were making the rest of us look bad with your record market wins, your vast depth of technical expertise, and HUGE revenues filling the coffers. So they took it all down and brought everyone to the level they wanted, so no one looked bad. Parity...They forgot that wireless was fueling the whole shebang. T-Mobile, Sprint and ATT were sitting back in the weeds and eating our lunch, rapaciously. Subscribers who really were a lot more savvy then the leadership gave them credit for, voted for PRICE over QUALITY. All they need is an internet connection when they want it, to be able to send and receive their texts messages, and use their social media links to document their lives, all at the least possible outlay of cash as they could find. Revenue streams were diminishing. The cash cow was ailing. They offered the unlimited packages to try to staunch the bleeding, but alas, it was too late. One 1/100 of a percentage point just isn't all that much of a big deal to most people if they could keep an extra $20 a month in their pockets and keep connected to those things they wanted.

Then the work environment became much like the days of the galley ships, with prisoners chained to a wooden bench and pulling on an oar to make the "elite" ship go where they wanted, with management beating on a huge bass drum for the tempo they wanted. Fear reigned, being humiliated publically for their perceived lack of effort became common. The plan was flawed, and doomed to fail from the onset, yet management no longer wanted to hear that. Bottom line?? You are all being set up to fail, and you can't do a thing about it. Well, you can, but cutting the chains and abandoning ship is the only way out, and many can't see a way to make that happen, so they languish and keep pulling on the oar. So until you figure out how to make that call, what you are dealing with will be the norm for a long time to come. Remember MCI? Enron? Lucent? Others? Tombstones to large companies who didn't get it, and fumbled their opportunities away, and are now only footnotes to failures in business history. Road markers VZW managers, who in their arrogance, are choosing not to glance at or to remember them.

Wall street is already chiseling the VZW tombstone... end date after the dash is still TBD. I still have hope someone will wake up and salvage the company before it collapses under the weight of it's self-created mediocrity, but I am not optimistic they will succeed. Maybe the new VZ phrase that pays should be "EXPECT MEDIOCRITY, WE DO". Enjoy the terror ride while it lasts. Or grow a pair and leave before the tsunami washes you out with a lot of others at the same time. Take your life back, you only get one. Good luck to you all.

Signed,

Someone who found out there is still a pretty good life AFTER being at VZW.

With all the millenials buying online, what do employees in the store do with all the downtime besides cry about quotas and not getting 5 weeks of paid vacation? Maybe the Directors and District Managers need to address. If they cant figure it out, Marni will take the reigns.

Join a Union.

The grass is always greener on the other side. This isn't the same Verizon that I worked for all those years ago. I been gone for about 6 months now and I couldn't be happier. I feel like my co workers are my extended family and that never happened at Verizon. I always felt like and was treated like I was just a number.

Look for companies that do not discuss salary considerations until the have an actual offer for you if they are interested in your skills they will pay, all others- don't bother specially the ones that give you salary and compensation ahead of the interview,

That ounds awesome, you made me cry of joy!

Many people RIF'ed have 12 days and then they are gone gone gone. the people left behind will be heavily dumped on with workload, then, after much suffering, this spring we will fire them too after the sale to Equinix and IBM. Sad, they have hope for 2017 but we will chop them into little pieces this spring.

"Hi i am reading precious posters on this thread who say they found jobs with better pay and starting with 5 weeks vacation? What company? All i see are $15/hr jobs regardless of degree or life experience."

AMEN!

Hi i am reading precious posters on this thread who say they found jobs with better pay and starting with 5 weeks vacation? What company? All i see are $15/hr jobs regardless of degree or life experience.

@uqu.....Dont Retire voluntarily...wait for this year's RIF and leave with more money... There is a target on your back for being over 50 yrs old anyway .

@OP, I am sure your parents repeatedly told you to "save for a rainy day", "tommorrow is never promised" or Life is not fair, life is just life".

• Review and reduce your expenses, get your resume ready , use vacation days to go on job interviews.

• ALWAYS Be prepared for When / Not If you get RIF'd

• Verizon does not owe you anything but a paycheck for hours worked.

Take control of your professional life. NOW !

@2gta

You're a grown man who whines like a 2-year old. You're not thankful to have a job at Verizon or to live in the greatest country in the world. Your work probably reflects that, and you should be happy to get RIF'd so you'll have one less thing to complain about. Verizon has its fair share of issues, and one of them is employees with bad attitudes.

BTW if you don't like America, there are plenty of people who would be glad to take your place. So don't let the door hit you on the way out.

@2vot - Your saying VZW has a 20% to 30% RIF coming in April?

Without revealing who you are of course, is your source good? What parts of VZW are supposed to be impacted? Thanks.

Well said!

Nothing is guaranteed, folks....So what I see here in this forum is a lot of employees that need a reality check. I don't think they realize how fortunate they really are to have a job with a top 10 fortune 500 company that pays exceptionally well salary and top of the industry benefits.

Why don't you today make a gratitude list first, and be brutally honest with it? Do you own a home? is it warm tonight? are your kids hungry? are they in school getting an education? do you own and drive a car? Do you go on vacations? are your medical bills paid? do you worry about your health as pertaining to money? do you have income? Do you purchase nice things for yourself, kids and family? the list can go on.

You are very fortunate that you have a well-paying job that you are going to tomorrow that provides you with answers to that list......So many do not. There is a lot of people out there today that would love to be in your situation.

If we put it into perspective....We are very lucky

Here's the deal... Big layoffs coming in April. They were delayed from March due to XO and how much they want to cut there (~60%) and how much they plan to cut in VZW (20-30%). VZT will get hit too. This is just first wave. Another RIF planned for November. Like other post said, train and get new skills... economy is good. Take the package and be ready for better career elsewhere.

to 1yq: am reasonably sure 1tpk was not trying to be smart-*ss or insensitive. 1tpk is just simply right on point and on focus, and we (or I, at least) simply have to embrace that, or suffer more or longer, eventually, for not doing so.

And what if people are busy caring for children or elderly/disabled and cannot take advantage of free tuition while working because they have no extra time?

I guess they are not as excellent as you?

You never thought of this and yet you consider yourself intelligent?

If you are concerned about being rif'd then maybe you should start looking elsewhere for a job. You cannot change the outcome so why stress yourself about it? Yes we all need employment but if you are so concerned with it then it is time to move on. We are all just HR numbers so if our number gets pulled from the magic hat then there is nothing to stop it. Take advantage of the free tuition and clean your resume and do your best at your job. Those who excel at what they do, do not worry about the rif axe.

Life after Verizon is so much better! Got riffed and got a much better job with better pay and better benefits and a great workplace culture! Life is better.....

Left a year ago, and I am very much appreciated by my new employer, even without any negotiation they offered a higher salary, 5 weeks vacation, pension, 401K, benefits, and I can work remotely if I want,boost f all, I am soooo Happy, good luck to you in your quest!!!, the possibilities are limitless

It's a great job market get out of the ship before it sinks....

I ended up with a great job with the government. I have work life balance now which as you know you have no life when you work the $hit schedule at retail.

I am retiring in a few days. I have given 30 years to Bell Atlantic/ Verizon . A miserable existence over the last decade. An office with three other people in it and 10 years ago there was 20. Gutless manager looking out for himself only. Rifs after rifs and the poor ba$tards that were left absorbing the work load. I miss the good people I worked with over the years never to hear from them again . This outfit s---s the life out of you and kicks you out. Now it's my turn . A phone call and I am gone ! Good luck to all of you fine people .

I agree F! vzw. I have 2 IT degrees .... applied to over 50 internal jobs and received 0 interviews.. and was fired/RIFed on my 6 year anniversary.

Now I found another gig and it's so laid back , no sales pressure ,no micro managment, positive atmosphere lots of OT.

Moral of story. There is a better life out side of vzw.

Yeah I think I deserve better... I guess you were better off in the long run. When I started they went on and on about how I could climb the ladder within the company... what type of job did you end up with after they scr---d you ?

8 years of college and 12 years at Verizon and I was kicked to the curb.

As long as you work for them, you will always have that RIF monkey on your back. Just quit and find a better job, company and culture.

You must feel you were meant for something better than trying to get s---ers to pay too much for cell phones, tablets and accessories right?