Hearing noise that 20+ year employees are being let go with just a couple of weeks of severance. Mainly targeting employees over 60. Pretty savage environment these days.
30 replies (most recent on top)
@3d8
It's becoming like a sect. Used to be old boys network, now it's the new boys network. You're either in the inner circle or you're OUT. If that makes sense, it's how I view thungs currently ...
Me and my friends out, all the baka laka chaka's cousin brothers in.
@303 in my recent experience, when the business partner from HR (what other company has these?) stopped replying or they kicked the can, because they only want to hire and fire and nothing else; going straight to AB moves the needle.
You may also consider someone from ethics and compliance. Someone should care about protecting Pearson and obeying the actual law.
Someone sue these losers already
Pearson's separation agreements include a "General Release of All Claims" which explicitly covers alleged violations of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA).
Because of this, per the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA), Pearson must provide (if requested) a list of all job titles and exact ages of all employees in the decisional unit who were selected for the layoff, as well as the job titles and exact ages of all employees in the same unit who were not selected (retained).
If you're over 40 and two or more employees were part of the layoff in the same group, then I am shocked (SHOCKED!) that Pearson told you that they "do not provide this information." Think through the end-game you might be wanting to pursue - but an employment lawyer would have a literal field day with this.
@1cc Pearson did not supply me with job titles and ages of all people being let go during the restructure I was a part of, in January. I was told flat out by HR that they do not provide this information. When I pressed a second time, my question was ignored.
@2qe Have you taken your severance letter to an attorney? If you live in the U.S., it's a wise move. Pearson has been a pathetic experience, post layoff. My AMEX still has a balance, they have not sent a link so that I can return my laptop, and I had to go to AB to get anyone in HR to do their job.
I was looking forward to a clean break but this has been going on since the last week of May.
@2pg
"Certain folks thought they were immune over the years but we've seen they are not."
Personally, I was not thinking I was immune (and I am pretty confident others are not naive either). If I was thinking I was immune I would not have worked my a-s off and acted all entitled. I still got laid off to make space for interns and pals of SVP running our group. I am not really pi---d with me getting laid off but salty about how unfairly I was overlooked and so easily written off that disrupted my life for making 2 square meals a day and innovating in my field of work. The irony is that new VPs, managers were getting recruited and existing staff were getting laid off. In the call I was told its not my performance at all. What do you make of it?
@fs There's a shill for the company that always down votes employee issues that are valid and truisms regarding layoffs. When their time comes, they will learn. Certain folks thought they were immune over the years but we've seen they are not.
@1jy Not true. I obtained three different AI-related certifications between January of 2026 and my layoff in May, and was told multiple times by my direct supervisor that I would be getting involved in some AI-related projects later this year. I was older, more expensive, and one of a handful of team members (also older) not located in India. All of us were let go as our work moved to India. My 20 years with the company meant nothing.
@1jy Not really. I was one of the foremost proponents of AI with some of the experiments that I did were far advanced and providing insights into the future. I was laid of conveniently. My hypocrite manager and his leadership friends preferred to keep their own jobs and unskilled interns because they were young and cheap. They got rid of many old people both managerial and hard-core technical colleagues, basically who they did not like or felt threatened.
@OP don't see age related at all. I see skill and mindset being targeted. Get on the AI circus or get out sort of thing.
@127 PVS had different contracts so HRs AB just couldn’t fu-k you over without telling you.
FYI In the US there is a federal law called the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA) is a U.S. federal law that can provide additional protections for workers aged 40 and over in group redundancies.
You can request to know the job titles and ages of all people being let go in your restructure, and the job titles and ages of those that were not.
Disgusting to hear that the company so many of us committed so much effort to is targeting workers the same age as our underachieving CEO.
24 years, 8 weeks severance. This while upper management getting sweet exit packages and spending $$$ at Davos. If only I'd been laid off three years ago when they didn't cast experienced employees out to sea.
Still better than being one of the unfortunate people left there to pick up the pieces and go through yet another poorly implmented reorg.
Wow, it's crazy how things have changed. I was part of a reorg under PVS in the Andy Bird days. They were giving 2 months severance for every year you were with the company. So a coworker of mine being let go and had been there 6 years and got 1 year severance.
@vj 3 months max
@ph ELS is a joke of a business unit
@vj what reason did they give for denying your request for a layoff?
Came here to see what severance was actually being paid out. I'm an employee of 15 years and tried to volunteer for the layoffs but was denied. I noticed last year that the severance policy is no longer a straightforward policy and realized this wasn't the type of company I wanted to work for much longer. Since this week's round of layoffs, I've been applying for jobs whenever I get a chance.
@ph Nevertheless, there is no consequences for their ineptness. The fake continue being employed, promoted, given bonuses, budget to spend etc. only because they are outgoing and busy building relationship with the decision makers while the actual talented introverts who keep Pearson's rusted engine chugging silently are fired / laid off and come here to venting out their anger, unfairness and frustration.
In my experience at Pearson no one understands employment law. Time and time again I had conversations with the very inept HR business partners and pointed out that certain elements were violating employment law. JP in ELS "used Copilot to look it up" and thought that settled anything.
When they aren't complicating oxygen, they spend too much time on internal meetings and not enough time with customers. Ask some ELS partners, they'll tell you what they actually think of VG and MW.
Remember this: when they changed the decades-long severance policy, they made no internal announcement to let people know about the change. One day they just quietly updated that page on NEO or wherever. Tells you everything you need to know about Pearson in a nutshell imo.
Which loser is downvoting these comments from people that were actually let go. Honestly you’re a LOSER
I was laid off in May at the age of 58 with 20 years of service. My severance was 8 weeks of pay, no healthcare, take it or leave it. Absolutely not how I saw my career ending, but the company changed drastically since Omar Abbash took over and started poisoning the culture.
I got laid off in Jan this year and was looking forward to my 10 year work anniversary. It was mostly colleagues who were 50+ who go laid off and the others were mostly on work visa who were let go and were under 50. OA and his team like DT from Accenture, destroyed Pearson culture. Let them rot in he-l!
Wow I’m sorry. This had been brutal.
its not mandated by law, its up to the company to give it.
Yeah, the crooks changed the severance policy a few years ago. I'm leaving on my own terms and couldn't be happier.
This is true.I was given two months severance for over 15 years at Pearson. Not sure if it's true that only employees over 60 are targeted. Plenty of people under 60 lost their jobs.