Is it true that Cisco is preparing its LOB even the coveted old accounts for a MASSiVE RIF, especially targeting the Red Badge contractors - not necessarily employees who are Blue Badges?
When?
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CX Red Badges in RTP were terminated yesterday, told positions were moving to Colombia, despite good numbers stated the week before. Projects are pretty new, with new customers being assigned all the time. Only Blue badges are staying on. Same thing happened to LPMs a few months back. Cisco managers unwilling to discuss until after the holiday weekend. Seems like the contract company was blindsided by the news as well.
I want to respond to the guy who made the 5 points. That is mostly correct except point 2. Cisco has moved to a model of taking on people on a red badge basis who should be hired as permanent staff. They will usually tell them its the same as a permanent role and we will get you a blue badge position within a year. The later is simply BS and its bringing people on under false expectations. There are MANY red badges who have been around for years doing the role of a permanent staff member... and on similar/lower packages. Chambers used to talk about 'family', the current ELT makes a big deal about the 'best place to work' and keep people employed during the crisis. This gets very selectively applied. Many loyal long term red badge are currently getting terminated, not renewed, having hours reduced, forced unpaid leave or rates cut. While that's the game of being contract staff, the ELT is providing a lot of false messaging.
Contractors or red badges are slaves. They are not employees. They are second class citizens that can be fired discretionally.
If I had been laid off I wouldn’t need/want to come here anymore!
Can anyone who has been laid off in 2020 chime in?
So some of this isn't accurate as the other poster stated.
1) This is completely accurate. Reds aren't technically Cisco employees.
2) Uh, yes and no. A lot of reds are doing day to day work. Some don't even have specified deliverables or project end dates. They are red badges either for budget reasons or because there are no available blue badge reqs. There are reds who have been red badges for 10+ years.
3) Not always true. I've seen blue badges be cut from a team and the reds were still there. It depends on budget, roles, ect. Generally speaking reds are red badges so they can be cut, but they aren't ALWAYS the first to go.
4) Again some red badge work isn't project based.
5) This is also accurate.
@4wlx+14DrT9zF - I agree 100%. But I want to expand on a some of your points.
It's very true that contractors are not legally Cisco employees. But some teams treat us like we are. When you're made the Subject Matter Expert (SME) for a tool or process, you're the owner of mailers, generic IDs, you're the one who requests SSL/TLS certs, etc., then you are doing the work of an employee even if you're not.
With regards to project work, yes, contractors are usually hired per project or for a series of projects and if your project is ending and there is no new project for you then there is no need to keep you. But many teams outside of product development, i.e. IT, HR, support, etc., contractors are hired to handle the day-to-day workload of "run-the-business" work to allow the blue badges do the higher level project work like process improvements, system upgrades, implementing new features, etc. Then budget cuts come along and they're cut and blue badges have to work extra hard doing the day-to-day stuff which slows down their usual work until budgets improve or the delayed work becomes critical enough to justify replacing the red-badges again.
Any time Cisco needs to cut costs and cutting travel and other discretionary spending doesn't get the numbers even, then red-badges are furloughed for a week or two. Nature of being a contractor and it s—s, but that's how Cisco works, right?
I've watched the teams I've worked on vary their blue-to-red ratios from 40/60 to 70/30 with the preferred ratio usually being 60/40. Currently I'm on a team that is 90/10, so they can't cut many more red if they don't want to be 100/0.
While it's the nature of contracting, it really sux and hurts when you've been on a team for 3-7 yrs and you suddenly get cut. After that long, you grow close to the team as a whole. And, like now, when the cuts come during the COVID-19 crisis while employees are kept especially hurts for those who are statement of work "run-the-business" support folks who've been here a long time. One of my previous teams let a guy go who'd been on their team since mid '13. There was no "project" that ended. The level of support cases have only increased during this time. But, because he's a contractor with a quarterly renewed SOW, he and others on the team are easy targets to cut costs.
Sad thing is, as a SOW worker, your "bill rate" never increases. You're stuck at the same hourly wages, in his case 7 yrs, forever. Other than the difficulty of interviewing and finding new work that you can start remotely during this crisis, he's probably going to be better off once he recovers from the lost wages between 3 weeks ago and finding the next gig. I don't envy him the decision of having to decide between COBRA costs and no income for an unknown period of time or skipping COBRA and risking no health insurance right now. And if he declines COBRA and ends up in a hospital, yours & my taxes, or most likely next year's health premiums, are going to end up going up to pay for his healthcare.
It’s the end of Q3 the numbers are down and there is still a lot of red.
If you don’t like wearing a bull’s eye just vote with your feet. Cisco is protecting its bottom line and each person should do the same. It’s called a resume. Use this knowledge to get hired while the market is still hiring.
Let's understand a few things here before we get spun up.
- Contractors are not legally Cisco employees. Your paycheck does not come from Cisco therefore when Chuck says no LR's he means Blue Badges or Cisco Employees.
- Contractors are usually hired per project of for a series of projects. If your project is ending and there is no new project for you then there is no need to keep you.
- Contractors have always been the first to be let go. Part of the nature of being a contractor. It s—s but that's the job.
- Numbers are down, customers have shut off projects (yes I am in a position to see that) that means less projects and a need to reduce costs. Again, s—s but that's how Cisco works.
- If you have been at Cisco long enough you know this is cyclical. Sometimes ELT wants more contractors and sometimes less. Much of this depends on the current laws (healthcare/Immigrations Etc.) Current leadership has been cutting and converting to reduce the contractor footprint even before Covid-19.
target is 30% reduction in red-badges.
We are getting notified now that we are not being renewed and some are gone already. It’s a purge.
Red badge in CX here, I think it depends on where the red badges are at and what their functions are. No red badges are being let go where I'm at, if anything we're being pulled into more projects. That being said, I'm still keeping my resume up to date. There's really no way to tell either way.
I don't think it would be feasible for ALL red badges to be let go. They do so much work that Cisco would probably have an issue keeping up with day to day operations if they cut everyone at once. That being said, they probably will cut/non-renew reds they don't think are necessary for "business critical operations"
we state we are not letting anyone go? yet cut red badges.. this is the issue with Cisco, can not explain itself.. and somehow portray to cnbc and Forbes they are the kind of love and care.. might as well become IBM/GAP like and state the way it is : we have no $ and we have to cut..at least you have guts to acknowledge
- and meant to add that we were also told this is a worldwide CX initiative from MM. Reduce any un-utilized red badges ASAP.
Our group in CX is 22 Red Badges and 4 Blue badges. All the red badges were called onto a Webex about 3 weeks back and told the groups numbers are down 60%. If on conclusion of your current project there is no new project to start, you have to either leave, Or If you do stay on you will only be paid for any billable work going forward. I have since heard of cases in CX where other red badge staff, were told their contract rate was being cut in half, even though they were still engaged on ongoing billable projects.
The UK contractor’ I was working with one on a large SP project who left today.
I’m also hearing Q3 numbers are pretty good, but the guidance For Q4 is in the lap of the Gods of finance. And from what I hear, they are panicking. There is a lot of FY21 planning going on right now and it looks pretty shoddy and inept. So, I’m not sure they are going to get that right, because they look to be factoring in large miscalculations.
The best advice is get your resume ready and be ready for little or no notice. If your work can be done cheaper then you are the opportunity and you should use your own best judgment.
The group I was contracting for in RTP was wiped out. Last summer, twenty red-badges. Lots of folks getting converted. Now - no red badges left. Just the name of the game. Hang in there folks. Wait until COVID stabilizes and they start LR'ing again. Not dissing the company. Just business. Tough times. Might be worth putting your feelers out there and lining up a plan B.
How many red badges have been shifted to non-renewal? Cisco must be hurting really badly to immediately drop thousands of red badges in one stroke.
@pud+14DrT9zF That's is because we have not been laid off, you just get a notice that your contract is not being renewed..... Red badge from RTP that was assured conversion at the end of 18 months notified last month no longer being converted and no contract renewal.
Cisco stock is dropping and it always responds with layoffs to covers its tracks.
I heard confidential rumors that all red badges will be LR'ed by the end of May. The 2 weeks notification will be given during the Q3 earnings release. Thereafter, Cisco will go after blue badges if the covid19 pandemics continues to impact business.
I have not heard of any of my red badges being let go. Manager RTP
I was a red badge in the US. Was let go back in the end of January. They were shipping out Red Badges just as the corona virus pandemic started. I am surprised there are any still around.
UKI ending all RED BADGE staff on 10 days notice from yesterday