Thread regarding USAA layoffs

If they’re ready and willing then why don’t they leave and/or retire. You preach about doing the right thing then why do we have to pay people to move on.

For all those complaining, then why are you still here. If the leadership disgusts you so, go!

She wasn't fired. She was out of her league...couldn't slay here. Her BS was called out and overriden. Again, Wayne's fault for this hire. He deserves another 157% pay raise for that. Anyone notice how awkward he looks during the employee meeting? It's as if he knows that we know he has imposter syndrome mixed with the Peter principle. Rather have Bob Davis back.

Can we be brutally honest here for a moment?

I will add the following statement to what has already been written:

If the leadership of a company brings in an immature CHRO and does not stop that individual from destroying moral and the safety of its employees, the entire leadership team (plus their minions) needs to go.

There, I said it.

TOF was brought in to be the "fall person". She was an "easy target".

However, who wants leadership that turns it's back on its employees through what we have gone through in the past year+?

No leadership I care to ever follow.

I think one big reason as to why USAA failed so miserably at what other companies do wrt the handling of layoffs is that they claim to be so high above all other companies, and force the kool-aid down employee's throats. Then, when they fail to not even reach the norm of other companies, the fall is spectacular and the employees are resentful.

I resented sitting in a public meeting and asked the leading questions "isn't USAA just the best company you have ever worked for?"and then treated worse than any other company I have worked for in the past 25+ years. I resented being congratulated for being hired on as 100% remote and then having that status slid away from me.

The average person resents being treated like mindless pawns in a totally messed up game that only the psychotic few care to play.

The second reason I believe USAA is being whipped so badly by their employees is due to their own arrogance. They showed their arrogance in compliance and got whipped with fines and penalties. Even then, they clung to their arrogant ways. And now, when they are directly harming the very individuals that provide the excellence in work and customer satisfaction at USAA, they have the audacity to flaunt Big Bird's absorbent bonuses and ridiculous mansion as some type of badge of honor for beating-up the little guys.

I do not believe USAA will ever live down this era.

@1lad+1q6zbc8u
USAA is notorious for lack of training, guidance and support. This is especially true for new hires. I hope you take the lead and provide your newbies with the best experience possible.

Why can’t there be transparency when everyone knows that layoffs are imminent? As previously suggested in previous post, voluntary separation pay or retirement (though not necessarily eliminate) could’ve saved some people’s jobs and reduced negativity towards insensitive/selfish executives.

@1kcv+1q6zbc8u
While Texas is an “at will” state, USAA has lost wrongful termination suits in Texas.

@skv+1q6zbc8u
Some companies do ask for volunteers to accept a severance package.
I left USAA in April 2022 for Capital One, and last month, Capital One asked for volunteers to take a severance package, which I did.

@1yml+1q6zbc8u
What type of lawsuit are you referencing? Texas is an At Will state, so that seems like a dead end. I am Interested in learning more about your proposal.

Hence the emails asking for consultants who have previously worked for USAA.

I lost count after the 5th request. Oh, and BTW, I immediately threw them in my trash folder.

The bad will that USAA caused will haunt them for some time to come..

They cut too deep in our area which led to exodus of 5 very experienced and valuable team members plus 3 people retiring. Now, we’re stuck training 8 numb nuts who are clueless.

PIPs that come out of the blue are targeted. Read the posts. Many complain that they were performing well in their jobs when USAA issued false PIPs. And many were blocked from accommodating those PIPs, a draconian torture device.

The stress at USAA can be sliced with a kn--e.

Is this possible? How could such a large, once-respected company flip so miserably?

Look at the history of USAA in the execution of compliance. They had their a$$es sued off. And from what I read about those fiascos, they were arrogant in their non-compliance.

So while they may have hired a consulting firm to assist them in their "strategies", in all likelihood, they did not follow the guidance that they paid for (am I surprised? No).

Suspiciously, a lot of the folks complaining about unfair PIPs and firings were senior-level. The more expensive resources.

So nice try. But I don't believe that USAA has a sincere, honest bone in their body. They stormed through their goals like a bull in a China shop. And probably hired he consulting company to place blame when, as usual, they executed the recommendations so horribly!

Let the lawsuits start! Let's figure out the real reason TOF dumped USAA unceremoniously. It is my guess that there's a lot happening with that fiasco.

That seems to be the issue with USAA: they are trying to implement all the things other companies do and get away with, but somehow it's falling completely flat and causing huge reputational damage. Even I as a USAA employee am mystified as to why. I suspect it's because other companies work furiously behind the scenes on temperature-taking and execution, in ways USAA is too lazy and clueless to do. You kind of have to know your audience.

Forgot to add - I reckon McKinsey (or any other consulting firm) would have come up with a good VSP plan for the same price if only someone had asked them.

OP talks about voluntary separation program (VSP). A lot of companies do this instead of layoffs when in need for workforce reduction. Makes more sense as it's less stressful and it's good for the employees' morale in general, and it's also good for the company's reputation, not to mention savings in potential lawsuits costs.
VSP is a financial offer (includes benefits like severance, extended healthcare coverage etc) given to employees to voluntarily resign from their job, in order to reduce workforce numbers without resorting to involuntary layoffs.
Major banks like BoA do this regularly, tech companies like Cisco and IBM too, but apparently it hasn't come to our management's mind yet.

If they’re ready to retire then why don’t they?

@skv+1q6zbc8u Spot on. Layoffs are not targeted at individuals and it's not something you can "volunteer" for. If you were the target for being let go, you would simply be managed out of the company either through a PIP, verbals/writtens, or straight up termination.

USAA hired McKinsey & Co., a well-known management consulting firm, to come in and analyze the departments and roles at USAA to advise which could be eliminated. They essentially "brought in the Bobs" (Office Space) but on a larger scale. When USAA (or any company) reduces or eliminates a role or department, they pay those impacted a severance package (which, credit where credit is due, is quite generous at USAA).

If you're an MSR, an engineer in an important department, an analyst who works on high-value reports, or some other critical role, you can't just "volunteer" to get a severance because the company has determined that your role is valuable enough to keep paying you to perform your job.

The downside of this is, of course, that some really, really good employees were let go because they happened to be in the wrong position at the wrong time. There's a certain director in IT who lived and breathed USAA's mission who was let go a while back because his position at that time was deemed unnecessary. It's a cold, heartless process that doesn't take the individual into account. A good manager/CEO would do better to move a valuable asset to the company to a different area rather than lose them outright, but Wayne and others are not that.

OP's post shows a clear lack of understanding about how this whole process works. It's not a matter of closing your eyes and drawing a name from a hat. It's an analytical process that takes into account USAA's current and future strategy, the revenue (or lack thereof) that an area brings in, the cost savings that a particular area may provide (e.g., security guards preventing threats to the building, IT automating processes to reduce labor hours, etc.) and weighing that against what it costs to keep them on the payroll.

Not a defense of USAA and how they handled this, but we need to operate with facts and not feelings.

A layoff is directed at a position being eliminated, not an individual. If they want an individual gone, then they fire them. You don't get to volunteer for a severance package. If you want to leave, then you resign and that is the end of the relationship.

OP is saying that they are paying severance to those who did not volunteer, but who they are letting go. Re-read that posting. Also, it is a rotten organization that forces folks out to try to avoid unemployment figures and/or severance packages.

I agree. All those responsible are reprehensible.

I pray that the tide turns again in favor of employees, and that they lose all of their senior talent (you know, the ones they filed phoney PIPs against) and cannot attract them again. And don't act snooty and say, "they wouldn't want them back again". I received at least 5 requests to return to USAA, and I wouldn't go back!

I also pray that their talent at all levels dump them. It's a company that is now rotten to the core.

And don't tell me that prayers don't work! TOF is one example of an answered prayer (and I have seen it at other rotten organizations, too). And don't tell me, "you should feel bad for admitting that." She is not suffering like the ones she and her minions lynched.

OP is unhinged and delusional.

Not a fan of USAA, but why would a company offer severance to someone who is retiring or accepted an offer from another company? Severance is not a volunteer opportunity for a money grab.