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Cutting 'Old Heads' at IBM (propublica.org)
An anonymous reader shares a report: As the world's dominant technology firm, payrolls at International Business Machines swelled to nearly a quarter-million U.S. white-collar workers in the 1980s. Its profits helped underwrite a broad agenda of racial equality, equal pay for women and an unbeatable offer of great wages and something close to lifetime employment, all in return for unswerving loyalty. But when high tech suddenly started shifting and companies went global, IBM faced the changing landscape with a distinction most of its fiercest competitors didn't have: a large number of experienced and aging U.S. employees.
The company reacted with a strategy that, in the words of one confidential planning document, would "correct seniority mix." It slashed IBM's U.S. workforce by as much as three-quarters from its 1980s peak, replacing a substantial share with younger, less-experienced and lower-paid workers and sending many positions overseas. ProPublica estimates that in the past five years alone, IBM has eliminated more than 20,000 American employees ages 40 and over, about 60 percent of its estimated total U.S. job cuts during those years. In making these cuts, IBM has flouted or outflanked U.S. laws and regulations intended to protect later-career workers from age discrimination, according to a ProPublica review of internal company documents, legal filings and public records, as well as information provided via interviews and questionnaires filled out by more than 1,000 former IBM employees.
The company reacted with a strategy that, in the words of one confidential planning document, would "correct seniority mix." It slashed IBM's U.S. workforce by as much as three-quarters from its 1980s peak, replacing a substantial share with younger, less-experienced and lower-paid workers and sending many positions overseas. ProPublica estimates that in the past five years alone, IBM has eliminated more than 20,000 American employees ages 40 and over, about 60 percent of its estimated total U.S. job cuts during those years. In making these cuts, IBM has flouted or outflanked U.S. laws and regulations intended to protect later-career workers from age discrimination, according to a ProPublica review of internal company documents, legal filings and public records, as well as information provided via interviews and questionnaires filled out by more than 1,000 former IBM employees.
who needs them? they should, however, get a compensation package consisting of a handgun and a single round. i'm pretty sure that, statistically, this would improve the country, whatever they decide to do.
"They were pure niggers." – Noam Chomsky
The progressives (a.k.a. liberals) decided to include their agenda couched in the intent that it would improve company PR and boost their profile and rain money down from the sky. But it didn't. And those guys don't really care about people (actually I would go so far given the promotion of eugenics and euthanasia to say they are misanthropic -against people).
Progressive politics did not improve IBM and it did nothing for the political side IBM tied themselves to and the workers lost their jobs. Lose. Lose. Lose.
I feel genuinely bad for all parties here and call people to study and expansively understand the underlying causes involved. IBM is a trainwreck by all measures (the consistent, steep decline in glassdoor ratings is only one metric among a host of others).