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IT Layoffs At Insurance Firm Are A 'Never-Ending Funeral' (computerworld.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the mass-layoffs dept.

dcblogs quotes a report from Computerworld: The IT layoffs at MassMutual Financial Group will happen over a period of many months, and it's going to be painful for employees. Employees say they are training overseas workers via web conferencing sessions. There are contractors in the office as well, some of whom may be working on temporary H-1B visas. Employees say they notice more foreign workers in the hallways. Approximately 100 employees are affected. The employees are angry but can't show it. A loss of composure, anything other than quiet acquiescence, means risking two weeks of severance pay for each year on the job. But maintaining composure is hard to do. "I know a few people that are probably close to a breakdown," said one IT employee. [A second IT employee described the emotional impact of the layoffs on employees in this way: "It's like a never-ending funeral."] Intel also confirmed major layoffs in April, which will affect some 12,000 employees or 11 percent of its total workforce.

13 of 420 comments (clear)

  1. This sort of thing is why people like Trump by FlyHelicopters · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Now you may or may not think Trump will DO anything about it, that is a separate topic...

    But a whole lot of people are tired of this and Trump keeps saying he'll do something about it.

    At the end of the day, "Acting Presidential" is less important to the average person than not having their job outsourced overseas.

    1. Re:This sort of thing is why people like Trump by FlyHelicopters · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Which is why Trump has his name brand shirts made in Mexico and his other products are made in China.

      Again, you're missing the point...

      People support Trump because he SAYS he'll do something about it. I have no idea if he will, and it may not even matter.

      Bernie is telling everyone, "free everything", and he couldn't do that either, even if he wanted to.

      People are clearly unhappy, and for good reason.

      Profit is nice, but is that what we want our society to be all about? If not, then we need to change the rules.

    2. Re: This sort of thing is why people like Trump by ogdenk · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Yep and the corrupt oligarch who flip-flops on every single issue every time she's handed a big wad of cash is any better.

      I was willing to give Bernie a chance but not Hillary. Not ever. She's insane and completely fake. She's just as bad a narcissistic psychopath as Trump if not worse. Trump is an idiot and will be completely ineffective as a president as well as being stonewalled at every turn. I can deal with 4 years of zero progress and he'll help further the destruction of the GOP allowing a 3rd party to eventually rise. I'm OK with that.

      Clinton OTOH I absolutely KNOW will try to strip me of my rights. Trump will leave me alone and his crazier ideas will never pass. If Trump wins, it's because the Dems and media screwed Bernie over while labeling him as an unelectable commie.

      Me? I'm back to my usual Libertarian vote but I was willing to put up with the Social Democrat who was reasonably honest. Gary Johnson 2016! #FeelTheJohnson

    3. Re: This sort of thing is why people like Trump by NotQuiteReal · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Chose one:
      [ ] Hillary - lying, cheating, corrupt politician who will deliver status quo, leaning left.
      [ ] The Donald - Exaggerating bullshit artist who will deliver status quo (after hiring help), leaning ? (talks right, does left)
      [ ] A Circus - multiple 3rd party candidates all jump in the race and the election is a free-for-all, winner will deliver status quo...


      The biggest issue is who gets to nominate the next few Supreme Court justices... Hillary will be left, but tough to get thru the Senate, so maybe moderate. Trump will be more moderate straight-up, so maybe the results are the same either way.

      Wait, did I just imply the election means nothing? (in results)

      But a Trump victory would at least shake up the "establishment"... (but I wouldn't be surprised by the Circus scenario before November.)

      --
      This issue is a bit more complicated than you think.
  2. The most disgusting part.. by subk · · Score: 5, Interesting

    ..Is that the company's sales are up 15% from 2015, and "represents the 10th consecutive year of record results".

    Greedy bastards, plain and simple.

    --
    Now, if you'll excuse me, I have backups to corrupt.
    1. Re:The most disgusting part.. by DiSKiLLeR · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Pretty much this.

      I'm in favour of making H-1B have am minimum $120-$150k salary.

      So it can only be used for skilled labour.

      --
      You can tell how powerful someone is by the magnitude of the crime they can commit and be able to get away with.
    2. Re:The most disgusting part.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I don't see in law any requirement that companies have social welfare or domestic employment goals in their incorporation requirements.

      This isn't true everywhere, and wasn't always true even in America. Certain countries, like Germany, require that board members consider the welfare of certain constituents such as employees and the public. It's a perfectly reasonable requirement, since the corporate charter grants certain benefits to the corporation that it doesn't grant to individuals. For example, incorporation protects its shareholders from liability, special tax rates, etc.

    3. Re:The most disgusting part.. by Harlequin80 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I'm not familiar with the exact rules around h1-b visas but Australia has a visa called the 457 which allows an employer to bring someone into the country in order to perform a role that they were unable to source someone for locally. The process is not an easy one to go through and the documentation that you have to provide to the department of immigration is significant. This was a visa that I utilised to bring people into the country to work for me, so I know how hard those visas are to get.

      The process starts with the company being vetted by Immi (http://www.border.gov.au/) which takes about 6 months, the end of which you are given a maximum allocation of 457s you are allowed to have. I was given 3. Once that is completed you go through the process of submitting the person that you want to employ along with supporting evidence of the searching you have done for a local person, the training and development you have given your staff to show you are trying to develop those skills, and a huge amount of information showing that the person you want to bring in will be paid the same as what Australians working in that role are being paid. In my case I had others working in the same role so I was able to put them forward as direct comparisons along with a cross sample of adverts by others companies looking for the same people with their salaries.

      The assessment process for the applications would take about 4 weeks. Once someone started I had responsibility to cover any medical costs that they would incur and should they decide to return to the country of origin or I let them go I was responsible for full relocating them home. In addition because they already had a 457 visa they could transfer that, relatively easily, to another employer that was pre qualified. So during my time employing people on 457s I did lose one after 2 years to a different company.

      Now for how to control for abuse. In Australia you are audited by IMMI at random intervals where you have to prove that you are maintaining the requirements of the visa. This includes that the person remains being paid at parity to a domestic worker, that you aren't using the "I will send you home unless you work harder" as a stick and a couple of other conditions. If you are found in breach of ANY of those you lose your qualified status and as a result lose ALL your 457s in one go and can't hire any others for 10 years. Leaving out the cost of relocating multiple people in one go you are going to lose multiple critical staff in one go and you will find it very hard to replace them.

      If you follow these rules there is no incentive to use outside 457 labour, in fact you're better off not. So the only reason you will is if you genuinely can't find the person you need. Currently in Australia there are around 85,000 people working on 457 visas (I'm only counting the principals not their dependants who also have a right to work) out of a workforce of 12 million.

    4. Re:The most disgusting part.. by undefinedreference · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Interesting idea that I could get behind... I'd say 2x prevailing wages for the skillset/title and a minimum of 2x average household income would be sufficient to make it unpalatable to use an H-1B for anything short of someone you legitimately cannot find or train. It'd also drive local wages up for anything in demand because they could save money by hiring local vs. hiring someone on a visa. It'd create fierce competition among the best and brightest all over the world to get in on the program because it'd give them instant high salaries, increase local salaries to what the market would actually bear for the skills, draw more people into unskilled work they consider below them (because they could live on the now-increased incomes), etc. It'd also kill a lot of crufty companies that aren't actively profitable in their space to make way for ones that will be. Everyone would win except MBAs trying to goose quarterly statements.

  3. Malicious compliance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Malicious compliance is the solution. The worst thing you can do at a megacorp is doing exactly what your job description requires.

  4. Re:Time for a paradigm shift by robocord · · Score: 4, Interesting

    IT, however bad it is, is a bed of roses compared to driving a truck.

    http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/05/truck-stop/481926/

  5. How often is H-1B used legitimately? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Why not simply stop granting H-1B visas altogether?

  6. One-issue voter (re: Trump) by Tablizer · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I agree the H1B program is a farce per "skill shortage," and glad Mr. Trump has highlighted the issue in his campaign, but I'm not a one-issue voter.

    I believe Mr. Trump will likely be a train-wreck in foreign policy, offending leaders and countries far and wide, perhaps triggering wars.

    USA knows him from TV over the years and we take him with a grain of salt. The rest of the world won't.

    I'd rather be unemployed than an apocalyptic zombie.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.