Thread regarding AT&T layoffs

Lot of talented employees leaving soon

Once again , att executive mismanagement screwed the pooch. They wanted many to retire and get off the books. Well, they got their wish and then some. It’s clear the company wasn’t prepared for the mass exodus that’s occurring as now they are scrambling to fill many positions. Many of these positions are so far remaining unfilled. Seems no one wants to work for att. Worse , Even if filled , you can’t replace the experience that’s walking out the door. You know , the ones that know the legacy equipment that we have and need to maintain ? Its going to get ugly. You reap what you sow att.

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Post ID: @OP+1dtaB8ZI

33 replies (most recent on top)

this site has been warning for years that the policies and strategies being undertaken would have the same affect as they did with Sprint when they sold off their brain trust to Ericsson in exchange for a 5 year covered support period and $$$. We see how that one predictably turned out, and it was timed such that the over bonus short term cost and revenue targets would be met while the predictable collateral damage would arrive after most of the decision makers pulled the golden rip cord and retired out. If the C Suite had been given shares [not options] and a ten to fifteen year lock up, the math would be adjusted to reflect longer term goals with a wholistic growth plan, as opposed to synthetic growth which = nothing more than the bleed out a lot of cash that gets lapped up by the broker/dealers and specialists leaving the Frankenstien of a conglomerate that is enemic and unable to react to market conditions and future greenfield growth opportunities.

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Post ID: @abjn+1dtaB8ZI

"I've got plenty of time in to retire. I'm not going to now though because they will have to force my lazy a$$ out. I'm milking the SOBs for every cent I can since they stole my benefits and vacation. I was a dedicated long term employee but that is dead. The money I'm making over the next years will more than pay for whatever I'm losing in their pitiful stipend. So, Stinky, KMA"

Yeah right! F off troll!

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Post ID: @9vhr+1dtaB8ZI

I've got plenty of time in to retire. I'm not going to now though because they will have to force my lazy a$$ out. I'm milking the SOBs for every cent I can since they stole my benefits and vacation. I was a dedicated long term employee but that is dead. The money I'm making over the next years will more than pay for whatever I'm losing in their pitiful stipend. So, Stinky, KMA

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Post ID: @8tsi+1dtaB8ZI

There could be like a mini-strike at the craft level Feb 1. I don't have the exact numbers but in our area 25% are un-vaccinated and plan to stay that way. The supreme court has recently failed to act on the compulsory vaccination issue.
Now if everyone had a governor like Ron DeSantis then the "strike" may be averted.

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Post ID: @7svk+1dtaB8ZI

What a d-mb response suggesting most leaving do not have H.S. diplomas?....The most highly educated people at AT&T have left or have been outsourced. My old Team consisted of colleagues who graduated from MIT, Carnegie Mellon etc. Had Doctorates or Masters like myself.

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Post ID: @7vak+1dtaB8ZI

Talent employees? Oh please what a joke. Most don't even have a degree higher than hs diploma. So nice to hear these old fa-t quiting which I'm sure they'll submit and take the Vax at the end. Stop crying and get back to work.

Your kid manager

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Post ID: @7kex+1dtaB8ZI

Good maybe i can finally be promoted.

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Post ID: @5lus+1dtaB8ZI

Leadership cannot separate the wheat from the chaffe.

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Post ID: @4hzq+1dtaB8ZI

OP is and others are correct the training is TRASH. They invest money in all these new 'systems' and training was left on the side of the road years ago. There are plenty great employees, but with lack of training this is what we end up with. Sad

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Post ID: @4zec+1dtaB8ZI

When you promote army buddies and family over more qualified people those more qualified people will easily find better opportunities. Common sense really.

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Post ID: @3bvx+1dtaB8ZI

While the company loves to see employees leave the Company, they like to have some control over who and how many.

The reality that is about to take place on Dec 31 and / or Jan 31 ( Loss of Medical Benefits for the former, and potentially vaccine mandates for the latter ) is going to sting quite a bit.

They've been paring groups down to the bone for years and now whole departments are being propped up by the few people who remain. If you lose those foundation folks, the whole house of cards come down because:

  1. There hasn't been any real training for many, MANY years
  2. You won't have enough folks left to handle the workload that gets left behind
  3. You can't outsource this and / or hire fast enough to stop the ship from sinking

The next few months should be amusing to watch unfold.

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Post ID: @3vgt+1dtaB8ZI

op why are you still here then?

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Post ID: @3bjd+1dtaB8ZI

conversely, MANY awful employees are now deciding to pull the plug. They had declined previous offers just to coast along a bit longer and grab more salary/bonus money while doing less and less. I should know, I'm one of them that just pulled the ripcord! 2 weeks out and I'm loving my move to FLO-ridah. LOL

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Post ID: @2rye+1dtaB8ZI

AT&T doesn’t have much of a choice but to find ways to shrink the number of longterm employees. Employees with many years of service are just too expensive to maintain given the massive debt load. I’m fully expecting additional efforts next year. Everyone should be making a plan.

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Post ID: @2bwf+1dtaB8ZI

It’s all about numbers : Get more to leave without early retirement offers. Get vaccinated or leave. Go now while the corporate bond rate is low. Get bigger lump sum. Come end of 1st quarter 2022 the company will be leaner without any costs.

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Post ID: @2flp+1dtaB8ZI

Definitely need to get rid of some legacy guys. Need to look forward, not backwards.

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Post ID: @2vcp+1dtaB8ZI

Tenured doesn’t mean good or talented. A lot of the retired folks needed to leave long time ago. All I’ve ever noticed from the majority of tenured people is a sense of entitlement, laziness and nothing but complaining all the time.

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Post ID: @2psa+1dtaB8ZI

In terms of the workload, there will be little to no longterm impact at all. If systems and programs can’t function temporarily in the absence of those retiring, were they really good employees if their work was never documented and they didn’t ensure cross training? Most of those leaving are much older employees at the company, the last wave of those who will likely retire with 30+ years. They were often already gone for a couple months each year with vacation, so systems and processes found a way to run for many weeks at a time. The impact will be minimal.

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Post ID: @2etj+1dtaB8ZI

I have heard in this past week many just deciding to retire at the last minute and the majority have the knowledgebase so it will be difficult without these subject matter experts. The folks they have been back filling with recently are not on par with those leaving in any way shape or form.

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Post ID: @2wky+1dtaB8ZI

No offense, but most of the talented ones left a long time ago. You're left with the people who didn't have any other options and the people who are just waiting around to start their pensions.

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Post ID: @2gvi+1dtaB8ZI

"...how in the heck is so and so still here after all of these years...?"

In terms of management titles, the difference between "good" people and "dead wood" is usually that "good" people are better at looking busy and enthusiastic about doing irrelevant, pointless things. When you see "good" people going in a layoff and "dead wood" escaping the axe, that's a sure sign most of what the whole organization does doesn't really matter, so it doesn't matter who stays and who goes. Yeah, there are positions that do real work and have significance, but most management jobs in AT&T are pretty meaningless. Of course if you're working in compliance or marketing or someplace like that, you're absolutely convinced that you're a vital cog in the big machine. But the truth is you could disappear right now and in a week no one would miss whatever it is you're doing. So a lot of "good" people and a lot of "dead wood" will be leaving before year end, and they could replace them all with crash dummies, and in most cases you wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

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Post ID: @1tpe+1dtaB8ZI

"Lots of dead weight leaving too"

That was me. I didn't say that to be a wise a$$ or be provocative. Just stating fact. Yes, there are some really good, experienced folks leaving...and that will have a short term impact. There are also some folks leaving that are highly paid dead weight. I am thinking of a couple people that I know to be leaving in particular as I state this. If you have been here 20 years or more, I am sure you know of the type. Maybe you worked with them in a prior role, and when you think of them you're just like, "...how in the heck is so and so still here after all of these years...?" Especially when you contrast them with some of the good ones you've seen caught up in surplus over the last 10 years. Yup, THOSE folks. To act as if every long term employee leaving is going to have some kind of devastating impact on the business is folly.

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Post ID: @1iqv+1dtaB8ZI

On the leadership question, or lack of it, - I remember the dark days of T before SBC bought T.

Leadership would bring in some hatchet man/woman. He/She would do the mass layoffs. I also remembering these A S S W I P E S grinning ear to ear when they would announce it in person. They enjoyed stinking in the kn--e and watching people squirm while they twisted it. Then some months later they would get their golden parachutes and leave to ruin another company.

But now we have the Megalomaniac Stink and he enjoys doing it himself!

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Post ID: @1oew+1dtaB8ZI

OP - I am interested in seeing the numbers that triggered you to comment.

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Post ID: @1gkk+1dtaB8ZI

Just like planning work load, retaining talent is way too hard for pseudo leader class. But, they are great at layoff and booting people out. I had a SVP literary grinding ear to ear when announcing surplus, because it can be done successfully with a big check mark. Growing the business; retaining talent; way way too hard.

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Post ID: @1hkx+1dtaB8ZI

No worries about T finding warm bodies to replace all the experienced MR75 folks that Stink S C R E W E D over. On a recent Town Hall, the HR representative answered a questions posted about this very topic. The HR person on there stated there were no problems getting enough Green Cards for all the people from India to fill all posted job ads. Plane loads arrive daily.

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Post ID: @1xmr+1dtaB8ZI

Some of you are children. I hope you are not the way you act on this board in real life.

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Post ID: @1wni+1dtaB8ZI

Lots of dead weight leaving too.

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Post ID: @1dco+1dtaB8ZI

@1jds+1dtaB8ZI - you hit the nail on the head. don't forget about having them available as a bargaining chip against the union so they can work as scabs if the union strikes.

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Post ID: @1mbm+1dtaB8ZI

a lot of talent has left the last ten years because att keeps screwing the pooch. and guess what senior management doesn't care because they will just sc--w the customer - why do you think they dropped to third place in mobile providers.

att does not care but enriching senior management and giving computer science masters degrees from Georgia tech to the chosen ones and the tell themselves how smart and great they all are and pat themselves on their back.

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Post ID: @1vqf+1dtaB8ZI

A lot of ATT management jobs are complete bu-----t and serve no purpose other than to serve as headcount to justify VP and up jobs (think marketing, PR, external affairs, etc.). They could be filled with homeless people and it wouldn't make any difference.

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Post ID: @1jds+1dtaB8ZI

There ain't no talent at American Take & Terminate! Delusional, self indulgent, self righteous puppets.
Gotta do wut Masser say. Yaz, Masser! No Masser!

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Post ID: @1yof+1dtaB8ZI

One of the biggest flaws a person can have is to think he or she is irreplaceable at work. Will there be some minor, short-term issues? Absolutely. But operations will continue in very short order with little to no impact. If legacy systems and applications aren’t documented, this was a failure by the previous employees and managers who allowed this to happen.

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Post ID: @1bbb+1dtaB8ZI

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