#employeerelations

according to the past below, 95 ppl in Orlando are being let go today. Prayers w them today. 80 In Greenville, SC on Friday or Monday. Thinking about them as well. Seems awful so close to Christmas.

The thought of severance is the only reason I am still here. Otherwise, I would have left long ago given the uncertainty and constant stress.

Signs that you are being gaslit. Every item below happened to me. Finally left a few years ago because I got sick of the abuse, the bait-and-switch, burn-out, and out right theft of my work. Don’t let this happen to you.

1. Expectations that keep changing
   ↳ Goals get reset halfway
   ↳ Promotions dangled, then vanish
   ↳ Yesterday’s "great job" becomes today's "not enough"

2. Work that feels meaningless
   ↳ Endless decks no one reads
   ↳ Projects with no impact
   ↳ Work hard, feel… empty

3. Leaders who disappear when it matters
   ↳ Present for wins, silent during chaos
   ↳ Emotional distance dressed as "professionalism"
   ↳ Absent in moments that count

4. No space for real conversations
   ↳ Feedback feels like formality
   ↳ Honest talks are risky
   ↳ Everyone smiles. No one speaks truth.

5. Invisible efforts, visible mistakes
   ↳ Wins are "team effort"
   ↳ Mistakes? That’s on you
   ↳ Your hard work becomes someone else's highlight.

6. Leaders who fear strong voices
   ↳ Challenge is mistaken for conflict
   ↳ Assertiveness punished as “tone”
   ↳ Quiet compliance gets rewarded

7. Promises made in hiring... quietly broken later
   ↳ Career growth, autonomy, flexibility
   ↳ Turns out: deadlines, control, and burnout
   ↳ No one explains the switch

8. Recognition becomes transactional
   ↳ One-size-fits-none awards
   ↳ “Thank you” only in slides
   ↳ Praise wrapped in KPIs

9. Wellness preached, burnout rewarded
   ↳ Meditation app, but no boundaries
   ↳ Rest is guilted
   ↳ Stillness is seen as slacking

10. No one asks: ‘What do you need?’
    ↳ Assumptions > curiosity
    ↳ Fix the task, not the tension
    ↳ Support feels like a script

Great people don’t leave because they’re weak.
They leave because they’re wise.
They leave when staying means self-betrayal.

Good luck to everyone at WellMed who’s hoping that the axe doesn’t fall on them this week. Thought I’d raise the Festivis pole for an airing of the grievances or a place to drop the dread we’re all feeling!

I worked in Silicon Valley for years and years. What I found was that most people I worked with, who I thought of as friends, were actually not.

After I left work, I found that the people who I thought were my friends, were actually just people who had lunch with you to keep you as a contact. As soon as you are no longer in the workforce you are no longer worth their time.

Perhaps some of that is my own fault. Perhaps I should have spent more time cultivating friendships with different people... maybe not tech people? Not sure.

I suspect that outside of Silicon Valley things are a bit different. I have relatives that worked in tech and lived in other cities and did not seem to have the obsession with money and the next thing that would bring them more money. They were more focused on family.

The only thing that matters is the family around me. Their safety is pretty much the most important thing. There is nothing else that matters more.

It's very important for me to ensure their safety.

It’s obvious that Uniti has lost their focus. This company is up in the clouds and has no idea how bad they are treating their customers and employees. It’s sad and their needs to be a revolution.

The U.S. Absence Center of Excellence.

Just LOL. No duvet days for those poor chumps.

You have to see this job as just a paycheck, nothing more. Your real purpose needs to be completely outside of this place. It's a losing battle to hope the culture here will ever improve, trust me. Don't let their daily nonsense steal your peace.

The regular drumbeat of cuts has had a damaging impact on morale as staff become accustomed to the ever-present threat of losing their jobs, sources said. Co-workers regularly vanished from Slack without much, if any, explanation, sources said, with staff often only finding out when former colleagues post about being let go on LinkedIn. Shopify did not respond to a request for comment.

https://thelogic.co/news/exclusive/shopify-layoffs-morale/

A coworker who got laid off is one of the best people we had. He always got perfect reviews and everyone respected him. If they can just let someone like that go, then it's clear that none of our jobs are secure. That reality is hard to ignore.

Here's what I've gleaned so far and I'm certainly hoping the new year will shed some.real light on things. Please feel free to add anything I may have forgotten or missed.

So Dan comes in and touts himself many things, including an authority on AI, even so much as smackin coffee lips about it at the white house.

He's uber excited for this "new Verizon" that will be scappy and non-bureaucratic, with inital claims that no other carrier will be able to easily replicate what we're going to do.

To accomplish this mastery of his mind, we obviously must have massive cuts to fund the multi-billion dollar mystery venture.

And so far, this has consisted of a mega layoff, a declaration laden in hypocrisy that our culture must shift to starting meetings on time so we are no longer sloppy, and a story about a cancer patient who was allowed to break contract, implying that delighting our customers mean we will now be more giving to all who want/need special cost-related provisions.

I fail to see the connection. In fact, as I typed it out, I felt an overwhelming sense of nausea come over one me. Something doesn't feel right.

So I am one of the people who was home based before and I guess I have to go to the office now until I find something else. Am I going to make more money? Being HBA means I don't have to pay for gas, daycare expenses for two under 5, even food since I can cook at home. Some companies are paying people in the office more money. Is Jones going to do that? I don't get how this benefits me if not. Still having 60% of the office at home but forcing us to come in makes no sense unless there is a financial benefit.

The company needs to leave block schedules for long term associates. We have earned it with all the mess we have done over the years. Long term associates are the back bone and have earned the company a lot of money. Leave it a line we have a life out side of work

Anybody have any idea the percentage of IBMers are retirement eligible per site?

it is very much a fiserv pattern over the years to cycle in leaders for a couple of years. they create havoc, fire loyal employees and then they are gone. you get some stability and then the next one shows up. this more than anything destroyed fiserv

The culture and new management in this company have become so toxic that I cannot stand it anymore, and I am planning my exit. I know some employees have left to non-competitors and they were still put on garden leave, but does that happen to everyone? Have there been situations where the whole notice period needs to be served?

So myself, along with a few others I know were let go earlier this week. We were told it was because we were being ranked “below expectations” even though NONE of us ever had a bad rating in the 10+ years we all worked there and after our Mid-Year reviews, when we were marked trending towards BE,discussions were never had with us on how to bring those ratings up. I know that this has become the trend around BNY the last few years and it’s how they try to justify things. When we were let go(we were in different departments in the bank), we were told that we will remain employees of the bank throughout the end of the year, the we will receive a separation agreement letter from HR about staying as an employee for 60 days, through the end of February. And we will receive pay for the final 60 days. I am not sure if this is what they’re considering severance pay or something else. Not much information was given and any questions asked were left unanswered. Everything was told to me by my manager and I had zero communication with HR to this point. Has anyone else also experienced this recently? If this is severance, I’m not sure how it is calculated. I was always under the impression that severance pay was 2 weeks for every year you worked, up to 20 years, but maybe I’m wrong. Will I have someone from HR reach out to me prior to receiving my letter? I had the mail courier show up at my house yesterday with 2 empty boxes to ship back my laptop and monitor. If anyone else has been dealt with this over the last week or recently and can give further guidance on what to expect, that would be greatly appreciated as we are left in the dark here. A few of us were fully WFH and some of us were Hybrid. Thanks for the info.

Happy Holidays! Hope you like my holiday video. I hope it makes you feel warm and fuzzy. Please don't ask me how many FTE's were sacrificed for my video. Love, RO

Per a friend who works there , the CEO shared this week at an employee all hands that T-Mobile employees can expect a big layoff in Q1. No number given but rumor is that it will be a 30% reduction.

If you are looking for something new, maybe avoid T-Mobile.

According to my manager looks like we get the last 2 weeks of December to work from home. LOB HR.

When I started here, most of my mentors told me this was a great place—pensions, growth potential, the works. Now, everyone who's still left is straight-up telling me to GTFO. The plan seems to be constant reductions. What used to happen every few years is now hitting 2-3 times every 12-18 months."

Oof, that sounds like a classic case of the ship slowly sinking while the band plays on. If the veterans are all yelling "run," it's probably time to listen. Update that resume quietly!

Squad leader here in ET. Good shares (>1000), Bonus (~100%) but zero raise. I was told "Abby mandated no base raise for agile roles in ET" but I'm not buying it.

Any squad leads, scrum masters and chapter leads in ET can attest to the contrary?

Even all agiles roles in ET got no raise, we know it's not the case in other BU. So it's most likely from the bean counter Bill.

The silence in Honeywell is concerning. The more I think about what is coming next and seeing how much staff cuts are happening, a shrinkage is inevitable. There are only two paths that seem possible:

1. HON LT and BoD already have some transformational M&A of some type of a mega merger or mega acquisition in the works to shape the new narrative, or
2. Focus on the Aero split just like GE did and then handover Honeywell to a new CEO to drive the next phase of transformation to a different company.

What do these mean for staff? What else could happen next?

any merit to this? Its a code of conduct violation if true which means immediate termination.

I work as a Coding Analyst I’m going to be quitting. Anyone know if they make work out the two week notice? Debating whether to give a 2 week notice or just quit the last day I would want to work.

Anyone feel that unmarried and childless are ranked lower as compared to stay at home spouse? I’ve always suspected this to be a subconscious bias … “he doesn’t need it as much as him, he’s got a family”. Weirds me out that Career Connect has marital status.

How many people got let go yesterday

I’m hearing some people got moved from exempt to non-exempt (ie hourly pay instead of salary) Is this true? I can’t imagine people being happy about it?

Oh, the irony.....

https://www.crn.com/news/running-your-business/2025/crn-women-of-the-year-2025-the-winners?page=14

But from her perspective, that all pales in comparison to her ability to always put people first, elevate rising leaders, empower countless women and leave every organization stronger than she found it.

I fired a bunch of people, I have no heart, no harmony and zero hunger... I just drove a company right off the cliff, so sure, give me a lifetime award! I even dug out my amazing expensive ugly dress that just screams Fuchsia!! I am hoping to get an invite to the Met Gala next year!

Message to HR from Philippine . We applied the last week of November, and then we were given a start date of December 4th. My colleagues were able to start, while I was put on hold because they said they'd already met their maximum cap for the account that YOU endorsed me for, and I PASSED everything and SUBMITTED all the requirements right away. Then suddenly, you'll email me saying I'll be a buffer for the next wave with a start date of December 12th, even though I'll have to take a new final interview. I passed again, and now I'm just waiting for you to send the NEO info.

And now that everything's set, including my requirements, you're going to email me again saying I'll be a buffer again for the next start date, which is December 19th. And then another new final interview. You guys are useless. Your offer is already lowball, and then you keep pushing back the start date. I just want to continue because, somehow, your benefits are good compared to other companies. You should fix it. Your recruitment and HR employees take about 2 days to reply to a single email. If you don't like your job, don't waste the time of those who are applying because your lazy and stupid

The atmosphere at Verizon is now marked by unprecedented hostility and desperation, reflecting the deep impact of organizational change. The coming months will reveal the true nature of workplace relationships under duress.

To those departing, you were part of Verizon’s most successful years. Be grateful for the skills you acquired and view this transition as a funded escape from what will likely be the company’s darkest period. Leverage this moment to build a new, appreciative career or, preferably, establish your own business, which may offer greater long-term stability.

To those of us remaining, Dan Shulman’s business decisions are necessary to stabilize the company, but the full collateral damage is not yet understood. November was the start of sweeping changes that will test the character of your peers.

Remember this fundamental truth: the workplace is an exchange of time and talent for resources. Morale-boosting efforts are irrelevant against the cold reality of corporate restructuring.

Your mandate is self-focus: Secure your finances, deliver maximum value, and prioritize your personal well-being and family. Get your money. Build your empire.

God speed.

QIPL employees, especially in IT, are doing little to no work and taking credit for work they’re obviously not doing and they’re being promoted! How is that justified? There is no accountability for mistakes from QIPL team members and there seems to be bias/discrimination against non-Indian employees in this AR cycle.

I’m a TDP who’s been with AT&T for two years. I’m proud of the work I do, I enjoy my team, and I came into this program excited to grow here. But after two years of watching wave after wave of TDPs walk away, I’m convinced leadership needs to hear this whether they want to or not.

Here’s the reality from inside the program:

Most TDPs enjoy the work. Most enjoy their teams. And most came in valuing the opportunities AT&T could offer.

But the 5 day RTO mandate is the single biggest deal breaker, by a mile.
Not culture. Not pay. Not opportunities.
RTO. Five days. Every week.

The average commute for TDPs is 30–60+ minutes each way, often longer for those assigned to Dallas or Atlanta rotations. That’s 10–15 hours a week spent commuting just to sit on Teams calls we could’ve taken from home, using the same AT&T network we sell to customers for remote productivity.

And us TDPs see what leadership refuses to acknowledge:
Almost every competing employer offers hybrid or remote flexibility with higher pay. Once people finish the program, they leave. Not because they want to, but because staying means burning out.

Culture is not slogans or emails, you can’t speak it into existence. It’s what people feel every day.
And right now, we feel exhausted, unheard, and disillusioned.

That August CEO email laid out “values” that many of us don’t recognize in the company’s actions. The takeaway among TDPs wasn’t alignment, it was the sinking realization that leadership has no intention of returning to hybrid work. Morale tanked after that message and any remaining hope went with it.

If leadership wants to retain talent, real talent, the next generation of engineers, analysts, PMs, and leaders then you need to fix what’s actually broken.

TDPs aren’t leaving because the work is hard.
They’re leaving because the system is broken.

A rigid 5 day RTO policy in 2026, at a telecommunications company that literally sells the ability to work from anywhere, is not just outdated it’s self inflicted brain drain.

You don’t have a recruiting problem.
You have a retention crisis… one that’s absolutely solvable. And if you decide not to change then eventually you'll have no one under 40 working here.

Return to hybrid.
Respect people’s time.
Align actions with the culture you claim to value.

Because here’s the part leadership should really pay attention to:

If you keep the 5 day mandate, you will lose the majority of your young talent.
Not gradually, but all at once.

And I say this as someone who wants to stay. But I, like many others, will be exploring other options next year if nothing changes.

I know this forum may not be the “official” place to say this, but it is the only place where employees feel safe being honest. So I hope someone high enough up reads this and does something before this program and the talent pipeline it feeds collapses under the weight of decisions that never needed to be this rigid.

There is no business case for 5 day RTO.
There is no cultural case.
There is only the cost, and you’re already paying it.

Pretty wild that employees at a company built by Shoe Dogs, people who literally sold shoes out of car trunks and lived the grind, are now running to an anonymous forum to complain. Nike became the top brand because it was built by people who pushed through the hard stuff, not posted about it. There Is No Finish Line, remember? If you can’t bring that energy, handle your issues privately or find a company that matches your speed...

Oh wait, you’re still at Nike because you secretly love the swoosh, the market won’t pay you more, or your job’s easier than you pretend.

Here I'm watching coworkers-folks who've shared laughs, powered through the toughest shifts, and had each other's backs-getting shown the door in these layoffs. But here it is, an ex- Kearl supervisor out here hawking job postings overseas, begging his "connections" abroad to apply. What a total sell-out! Dumping dedicated Canadians for cheaper foreign hires? This is betrayal at its finest.

After four years of consistently exceeding expectations in my reviews, I was terminated “for cause” despite never having been on any kind of warning, performance plan, or investigation myself.

What triggered it was a situation where one of my direct reports had received a “needs improvement” rating. In full alignment with my manager and after consulting two levels of Employee Relations, I issued an informal performance warning. When no improvement occurred after eight weeks, I followed ER’s direction again and issued a formal warning.

Shortly after, that employee went back to ER claiming I was targeting her. Although I had documentation, approvals, and full ER guidance at each step, I was suddenly terminated “for cause.” My manager was blindsided and told me HR made the decision, not him.

Because the company is at-will, HR refused to document the reason in writing. I asked very specifically for the policy provision that I broke, and they said that it had to do with conduct, but they would not give me the exact provision . There had never been any counseling from my manager, no incidents around anything that would have caused this type of result. The “for cause” designation had devastating consequences — I lost all insurance benefits within three days, leaving both myself and my fully disabled child without coverage. It also meant forfeiting my restricted share rights and other earned benefits.

I’ve since learned from credible insiders that the company has increased “for cause” terminations to avoid severance payouts.

For any manager reading this: even when you follow the handbook, document everything, and align every decision with HR, you can still find yourself on the wrong side of a political or cost-driven decision. Protect yourself — document, back up every file externally, and understand the financial implications before trusting HR’s “guidance.”

I’m pushing back with HR. I’m fine taking on the work of the slackers we kicked to the curb, but you’re gonna pay me!

It means there are no more layoffs. Or there are no more employees to layoff.

Hi team,

As we’ve shared, PowerSchool is entering a new chapter focused on simplifying, streamlining, and strengthening how we work. We’ve been transparent about the need for change to drive sustained growth and unlock the value our customers expect.

As a result, we are moving forward with a restructuring of our organization to streamline our management model; one built for clarity, accountability, and speed. This will help us focus on what matters most: delivering for our customers, strengthening our operations, and setting PowerSchool up for long-term success.

Today, our PX and leadership teams are meeting with these impacted individuals. For some, today will be their last day at PowerSchool, while others are being asked to remain in their current roles for a transition period before departing. Furthermore, as part of these personnel changes intended to streamline our operations, we are moving some employees into new teams. This is the only company-wide workforce action planned based on our projected performance going forward.

I want all our employees to be aware that these actions are taking place now and that the notifications will be completed by close of business local time. After we complete the notification process, I will be hosting a global Town Hall at 8AM PT on December 11 to address open questions and share additional details of what’s changing and what’s ahead.

This is a comprehensive effort across all our company operations to eliminate redundancies and unnecessary costs. We looked at consolidating our technology stack, removing underutilized or unused applications, and simplified processes to reduce costs in other areas of the business.

While this yielded significant savings, we’ve had to make the difficult decision to downsize our workforce to eliminate duplicative work and realign our organizational structure with current priorities and performance. This decision was not made lightly. The individuals impacted have contributed to the success of PowerSchool and in general they have all performed well for the company. We wish them the best in the future.

We are supporting every impacted individual through their transition with as much clarity and care as possible. Employees that are separating from the organization will receive severance and additional compensation based on tenure and local regulations. They will also receive continued support from our PX team as well as outplacement services.

This is a difficult time for impacted employees, so we ask for understanding and kindness towards these colleagues. Please take time to support one another and reach out to your manager or the PX team if you have questions or need any support.

Thank you,
Antonio Pietri, CEO