Thread regarding AT&T layoffs

@1wrx - " Going to lose your house if not payed off. Going to lose your cars. Nobody is going to hire someone the last employer let go. Your kids are going to think you were a bad worker. Your wife will think your not the provider she thought you were. Your friends and family will think you got caught skating by your company. The the bill collectors start calling nonstop. You get bad ulcers. No healthcare to get them checked. Your kids need clothes and say they are hungry. You cannot look yourself in the mirror. You have nothing left and then" You must be a truly pathetic loser of epic proportions. Whether you actually believe all of that c-ap or not. My cars are paid off. I don't have any debt. I have 2 companies waiting to hire me in the event I get surplussed. My kids and wife know that I am likely to be surplussed in the next couple years and totally get it. 26 years has been a good ride for all of us. It will be on to the next thing after that. I feel sorry for you.

@2mgi - - "...and forget about that severance ! Really, not worth it after taxes and all." It's half my salary. After 26 years I make a good salary. I've got kids in college. I can't "forget" about the severance. If I was a single guy, maybe. Not everyone is in the same position.

"So very true : "If you haven't started your contingency plan ( Plan B and maybe C) it's time to do it now."

...and forget about that severance ! Really, not worth it after taxes and all. Get a new job while you still have a job. Leave on your terms. You will make that money many times over on a new job and less stressful. But then again, it all comes down to how cheap (or not ) we are selling ourselves."

This is great advice. Get out while you are still employed. The surplus isn't anything after taxes. You took control of your situation and you left on your terms. To me that is worth more than any surplus checks.

I took training on my own that was relevant to the technology industry and would be worth something outside of the great T. It paid off in spades and I am getting experience on my new job that will give me dividends for the rest of my career. I avoided the training the great T was peddling.

The technology stuff I was working at T was stupid and only applied to T and was basically worthless and a waste of my career.

Tell it like it is

Amen Brother

Right on man

Cmon already. I’ve been reading the same two seperate stories about a ladies husband being surplussed for a year now. I mean you write the same thing every other day. This is the stuff the original poster was talking about. And keep the other feel good stories. Let’s face it. It s---s. Going to lose your house if not payed off. Going to lose your cars. Nobody is going to hire someone the last employer let go. Your kids are going to think you were a bad worker. Your wife will think your not the provider she thought you were. Your friends and family will think you got caught skating by your company. The the bill collectors start calling nonstop. You get bad ulcers. No healthcare to get them checked. Your kids need clothes and say they are hungry. You cannot look yourself in the mirror. You have nothing left and then

It’s rough. Be ready for all the temp jobs you are going to work, chronic instability, chronic changes, stress, depression and anxiety. No paid time off, no holiday pay, no vesting, no career options. It is not pretty.

Don't despair! There is life after a surplus. My husband was surplussed not once but thrice. The first one, we took it the hardest because we didnt know what to do as single income family but little did we realized that it will kickstart our financial portfolio. We had 0 - 20k savings ( from severance pay) we reevaluate our finances and cut down expenses. 3mos after he found a temporary job that pays morw but was shortlived. We just save as much as we can. We were more prepared. Then he found another full time but office had to be closed in our area . He opted for surplus instead of relocation and we got more savings again then agter 4 mos he fohnd another again and stayed for 5 yrs til AT&T surplussed his team. The series of misfortune happens to be our good luck. At 45 we are so confident he xan now take it slow. We saved enough for retirement, college fund and emergency our only debt is our mortgage which is very minimal. We live by the saying that it's not how much your earn but how much you spend. Hope this helps.

Very sad state of affairs at AT&T---this train wreck (or should I say 'like turning the Titanic' as our leadership does !). They are crushing lives with their horrible leadership decisions (cough cough-Direct TV-T-Mobile)…..YET Randall is making 25+ million or so a year ?...You gotta be kidding me !..Our leadership is more worried about their millions and could care less about the people that built this company !

I'm in the same boat as you----midlife crisis coming up ! It has motivated me into start writing again and my first book is about a guy who snaps....LOL

Good luck to you and your family.

So very true : "If you haven't started your contingency plan ( Plan B and maybe C) it's time to do it now."

...and forget about that severance ! Really, not worth it after taxes and all. Get a new job while you still have a job. Leave on your terms. You will make that money many times over on a new job and less stressful. But then again, it all comes down to how cheap (or not ) we are selling ourselves.

If you are too young to retire you are not too old to start over. You seem a bit overwhelmed with all this....you can use employee assistance for no charge until you are off the payroll (maybe talk this all through) You let no one down.....I am in the same boat so I feel your pain. You will figure it out but don't beat yourself up over something you can't contol. Best wishes to you.

There is life outside of AT&T. Go for it.

I know so many in that category that have gone on to great things. I’m 50 this year, with 25 years of service, and. I am still here but I know I could be next. I’ll choose to view it as an opportunity when it happens.

Got RIF'd at age 51 right as the 2008 Depression started. Know how many companies wanted a 51 year old Telecom guy - ZERO! Ended up doing stupid contract I&R work like I had done in my 20's just to get some money in the door. Eventually got hired in full time when they realized that at least at 51, I wasn't going to call out sick every Monday and Friday and our older customers liked having an "experienced" Tech working on their system. Did it s---k going backwards - absolutely. Does it still s---k today - positively. Do I still deposit my 80 grand a year into the bank - GD RIGHT I DO.

I hear ya. Feel like a failure peoples eyes. Just can’t drift left at 70

Don't feel down . You can bounce back. Just stay focus and network

You did NOT let them down. Stankey, Randall, (David Christopher + Boyer + other DTV leaders) did, period.

If you haven't started your contingency plan ( Plan B and maybe C) it's time to do it now.

Reduce debt and liabilities. Update your resume. Update your Linkedin profile. Reach out to people who have already left. Take your skills somewhere that they will be appreciated.

Don't let the b--tards get you down! This could be an opportunity, if you allow it to be.

Good Luck.