My company is merging and all I got was this lousy T-shirt

[Brewman_Jax]

I'm in the BellSouth/ATT merger sh...uh, stuff. Life's going to be interesting for a while. :scared: Some of the old timers are saying, "Damn! I didn't think I was gonna work for ATT again!" :eyes:

[MissHoneychurch]

1. But I hope your job is safe

:hug:

[Brewman_Jax]

2. Thanks

but no, my job is not safe. :hug: Being in the research & test lab is a support job, which is not secure. The other company has lab facilities also, but the hope is that they'll keep our lab since we cover the southeast US.

[MissHoneychurch]

4. I cross my fingers and whatever else is necessary

for you to keep your job. When will you know for sure?

:pals:

[Brewman_Jax]

6. Not until the merger is complete

which we're guessing will be 12-14 months. Then the new company will evaluate what they want to keep and what to let go, which will be another 3-6 months. Then those getting company severance have probably another 2-3 months to be released from the company. That's close to 2 years, best case and job cuts.

[MissHoneychurch]

8. Are you going to look for another job

or are you going to hope for the best, that they will keep the lab?

[Brewman_Jax]

11. I will have to be ready

should that happen. If I get cut, the severance should be very nice and provide enough money for a few months, along with insurance. I will be seeing what's out there in the meantime.

[Patiod]

3. Yikes, I hate that

Hope it works out okay for you. The breakup of the Baby Bells is being reversed!

[Brewman_Jax]

5. Who've thought?

but it's a new telecomm world. Wireless, broadband, internet, VoIP, stuff the old ATT never dealt with. Maybe they'll keep us and the lab.

Thanks for the good thought. :hi:

[Atmashine]

7. As my coworkers in the other company say:

They can't run the company with no one!
Here's something I got in my e-mail you'd like:

AT&T TO CUT WORKFORCE 120 PERCENT

NEW YORK, N.Y. — AT&T will reduce its workforce by an unprecedented 120 percent by the end of 2006, believed to be the first time a major corporation has laid off more employees than it actually has.
AT&T stock soared more than 12 points on the news.
The reduction decision, announced Wednesday, came after a year-long internal review of cost-cutting procedures, said AT&T Chairman Ed Whitacre. . The initial report concluded the company would save $1.2 billion by eliminating 20 percent of its 168,000 employees.

From there, said the Chairman, "it didn't take a genius to figure out that if we cut 40 percent of our workforce, we'd save $2.4 billion, and if we cut 100 percent of our workforce, we'd save $6 billion. But then we thought, why stop there? Let's cut another 20 percent and save $7 billion.
"We believe in increasing shareholder value, and we believe that by decreasing expenditures, we enhance our competitive cost position and our bottom line," he added.

AT&T plans to achieve the 100 percent internal reduction through layoffs, attrition and early retirement packages. To achieve the 20 percent in external reductions, the company plans to involuntarily downsize 22,000 non-AT&T employees who presently work for other companies.
"We pretty much picked them out of a hat," said the Chairman.

Among firms AT&T has picked as "External Reduction Targets," or ERTs, are Quaker Oats, AMR Corporation, parent of American Airlines, Callaway Golf, and Charles Schwab & Co. AT&T's plan presents a "win-win" for the company and ERTs, said Whitacre , as any savings by ERTs would be passed on to AT&T, while the ERTs themselves would benefit by the increase in stock price that usually accompanies personnel cutback announcements.

"We're also hoping that since, over the years, we've been really helpful to a lot of companies, they'll do this for us kind of as a favor," said the Chairman.

Legally, pink slips sent out by AT&T would have no standing at ERTs unless those companies agreed. While executives at ERTs declined to comment, employees at those companies said they were not inclined to cooperate.

"This is ridiculous. I don't work for AT&T. They can't fire me," said Kaili Blackburn, a flight attendant with American Airlines.

Reactions like that, replied Whitacre , "are not very sporting."

Inspiration for AT&T's plan came from previous cutback initiatives, said company officials. In January of 1998, for instance, the company announced it would trim 18,000 jobs over two years. However, just a year later, AT&T said it had already reached its quota. "We were quite surprised at the number of employees willing to leave AT&T in such a hurry, and we decided to build on that," the Chairman said.

Analysts credited the Chairman's short-term vision, noting that the announcement had the desired effect of immediately increasing AT&T share value. However, the long-term ramifications could be detrimental, said Bear Stearns analyst Beldon McInty.

"It's a little early to tell, but by eliminating all its employees, AT&T may jeopardize its market position and could, at least theoretically, cease to exist," said McInty.

Whitacre , however, urged patience: "To my knowledge, this hasn't been done before, so let's just wait and see what happens."

[Brewman_Jax]

9. That's good!

:rofl:

I may have to put that on the bulletin board! :D

[Strong Atheist]

10. I worked for AT&T, right before the breakup, as a long distance

telephone operator. Shoulda stayed there ...

[Brewman_Jax]

13. If memory serves correctly

the personnel axe went to work not long after the breakup on the ATT side. I'm sure your job was on the chopping block. You probably made the right call.

[Strong Atheist]

16. Nah, Operators were needed. Besides, I could have made a lateral

move to a local office... should have done that, could have gotten in on the whole tech side with a major company...

[Brewman_Jax]

17. I see your point

n/t

[LynneSin]

12. As someone who has been through two major mergers

I feel your pain. I also know that when they say that 10,000 jobs will be reduced that probably a bulk of those jobs will be through natural retirement, current open positions that won't be refilled and of course people leaving the job. You'd be suprised just how much turnover a major corporation has in just one year. So I'm hoping that your job will be safe in the process.

[Brewman_Jax]

14. That's happening now, even before the merger

I have a support staff job, and that's not very secure. The front-line jobs are secure for the near-future. We hope that they'll keep the lab, since it represents all of the equipment in use in the field in our region.

Thanks for the good thought.

[newportdadde]

15. Have the old timers started saying "who cares I just want a buy out"

As a young worker with young children I love it when my older coworkers crow about their 401ks and how they HOPE they fire us all so they can get a nice severance package.

[Brewman_Jax]

18. That's kinda normal

:rofl:

most are too young to draw on retirement, even if the have the time. One of my colleagues had considered retiring, but after the merger announcement, he's undecided again. :dilemma:

[Skittles]

19. ????

I have never heard anyone says such a thing - that is truly disgusting

[Crazy Dave]

20. You seem like a realist and not too worried or bitter

I think you'll do fine wherever and whatever life throws at you. You probably guessed a long time ago that something like this could and would happen sooner or later. If not AT&T then Verizon or Wal-Mart Telecom.

Good luck! :hi:

[Brewman_Jax]

22. Thanks

no one saw this coming this soon. We were thinking maybe next 3-5 years.

Wal-mart Telecom? That's not impossible. Maybe that's why they made the merger now.

[ThomCat]

21. I feel so bad for you.

Having to become part of AT&T is bad enough. But they're also going to gut Bell South. And Bell South was a much better company. :(

Hold tight. I hope everything works out okay for you.

[Brewman_Jax]

23. It still may work out

they may still keep us. It's very costly to ship equipment to Texas, or move people from Texas and train them. It may be easier to keep us--we hope!

We'll have to get used to the new dress code--cowboy hats and boots and big belt buckles. :rofl: