Thread regarding Highmark Health layoffs

Hybrid workers - mandated on site soon

Just heard from a reliable leadership source that workers designated as 'hybrid' will be required to be on site Tuesday thru Thursday beginning June 24. So if you need to find daycare or after school care or buy an additional vehicle, good luck. Glad to see Highmark has our backs. FUDH

by
| 8534 views | | 31 replies (last July 2) | Reply
Post ID: @OP+1jvsxbba1

31 replies (most recent on top)

@1de Why?

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @648+1jvsxbba1

@246 Perhaps all Highmark teams are not the same. The team I happened to be assigned to is particularly vile. Maybe Highmark is ill advised to be bringing in outsiders to do the actual work, for low pay and almost no benefits, for these entitled "victims" they call regular staff. It's probably not a good idea to be advertising and rubbing people's noses in such a waste of taxpayer dollars and premium dollars that most families can't really afford, on staff silly but expensive petulant demands and entitlements. The issue is not the vacation or where you take your vacation. You all completely miss the point that the issue is allowing a team to waste maybe $100,000 a year on 2 hours a week on what amounts to nothing more than an elementary school-type show and tell to brag about said vacation. Then bring contractors to do the work and pick up the slack for all the lost real productivity due to giving a staff of 15-20, 2 hours a week of unproductive show and tell time, also at taxpayer expense. I think maybe you have all been in your bubble here at Highmark too long to even comprehend how bad this makes you look bad, including to the workers in India you so despise, but who ultimately have to pick up your slack. Maybe everyone at Highmark isn't like this. What I saw was really bad

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @2rx+1jvsxbba1

@1wc As far as taking vacation for [either] "2 weeks" or to a "different area of the world"...(whatever your focus was in your rant)...that's not unusual for some. I was probably considered a "peon" in terms of Highmark or HM Health Solutions (read: not a manager nor very likely never WOULD be considered for management), but I always made sure that I was allowed to take my 2-3 weeks to Korea whenever I could (every two years). Favorite place on earth!!! Your vacation options are what you MAKE them to be. If you wish to take a day here and there ALL YEAR LONG and never save up, that's on you.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @246+1jvsxbba1

@1wc maybe some people saved up for that vacation for a long time and never really took a real vacation before. Don't judge people that you don't know. You don't know what they may have gone through to get where they are today.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @216+1jvsxbba1

Couldn’t follow last post but most of those that were let go didn’t mandate stupid meetings talking about vacations.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @203+1jvsxbba1

@1sq who the he-l is taking 2 weeks vacations to europe bc it sure ain’t us

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @1wc+1jvsxbba1

The team I work here at Highmark made a demand of management for 2 hours a week “team building” time. 18 staff wasting 2 hours a week to “share” stories about their 2 weeks on a European or other expensive vacation and other completely stupid nonsense. 18 staff x 2 hours a week x their salary and benefits cost for 2 hours x 52 weeks a year? Must be over $100,000 and who pays for it? The taxpayer and the people who pay high premiums out of their paychecks and see almost nothing in return. What these same staff NEVER spend any time on is learning to do the job- they sub contract out most of the actual work to various outside companies and then complain like victims that their jobs are going to India and even to US based vendors. Highly skilled vendors who’s staff don’t spend taxpayer dollars taking 2 week European vacations then bragging about it like some sort of elementary school show and tell at taxpayer expense. You all represent the WORST of the American overly entitled workforce and you probably deserve to lose your jobs and maybe get a glimpse of what most of America, who don’t get 2 weeks in Europe and don’t get paid for work place show and tell, has to deal with. You all need a dose of reality.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @1sq+1jvsxbba1

@dd I wonder if that is legal for salaried employees? Someone should find out

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @1pe+1jvsxbba1

@dd “Trust working together”. What a joke.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @1kn+1jvsxbba1

They claim to want more collaboration but won’t back off the decision to employ more Thryve and less onshore.
Collaborating onshore cant happen when coworkers are across the globe. Wish they would stop the lies and be transparent.
Why don’t they build teams based on location. One in Camp Hill one in Pittsburgh and a hundred in India? Then collaboration can happen. We all know the reason they won’t do this.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @1de+1jvsxbba1

It’s all true thank God I just escaped and my heart breaks for my old coworkers.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @1b0+1jvsxbba1

love that they don’t even announce these types of things in townhalls because they can’t take the heat of people asking questions or pointing out their dissatisfaction with the hypocrisy

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @18n+1jvsxbba1

One thing I will say is that good leaders do not ask things of their people if they aren't willing to commit to the same or higher standards. So if executives are somehow not having to meet this requirement, that's not right. Highmark does not have good leaders, and not just because of this.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @153+1jvsxbba1

The CISO in ISRM lives in Alabama. Either move to Pittsburgh or get a new job Caleb!!!! And other managers are not required to go to the offices. senior leadership should all live in Pittsburgh!!! Get a new job or move to Pittsburgh. Worst company ever.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @14t+1jvsxbba1

@dv you aren't in a position to tell anyone what to do. Just be in the office on Tuesday, June 24th. PERIOD!

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @12m+1jvsxbba1

The top 3 levels of our department were all hired out of state. I wonder if they'll be required to move to Pittsburgh? Or will the company continue to spend thousands for them to travel and hotel here, then complain about operating costs being so high. Can't wait for the Core Behavior survey scores to plummet then we'll all be blamed for upper mgmt's bad decisions and be given more work to "improve" our workplace.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @jy+1jvsxbba1

I mean this what a downturn looks like. It su-ks but keep your head down and just try to keep your job because you are not going to find another one quickly right now.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @jn+1jvsxbba1

Micromanaging at its finest. Pay attention to the small details instead of working on improving the quality of the product. If you focus on quality instead of nit picking everything would fall into place. This company the top who get paid bank doesn't know what the bottom half does only reports and he said she said. What a way to run a company.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @jm+1jvsxbba1

@dq management at manger and director level will be forced to review reports and “enforce”, which means less time doing actual work ( as if there was much time for that as it is w endless meetings).

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @jg+1jvsxbba1

So Leadership blames WFH as the cause of “poor” productivity, when the lower productivity is due to all the American staff reductions, offshoring of jobs to India and terrible morale.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @jb+1jvsxbba1

All contractors should be required also.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @j7+1jvsxbba1

MM is a fanboy of Elon Musk, he is copying Elon’s management playbook

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @hz+1jvsxbba1

Manager and above that live within 50mi are already hybrid.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @fx+1jvsxbba1

What needs to come up are those that work more than 50 miles from an office building. I realize they were hired to be remote, but to be fair the option can’t be taken away just because where I’ve chosen to live. Especially those that are managers and above. If you’re a vp you better be required to be in the office.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @dv+1jvsxbba1

If you didn’t work with primarily people across the ocean, it might make sense. I don’t know how they can justify asking for in office collaboration when the majority are in India.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @dt+1jvsxbba1

If management has time to review employees badge swipes, then they have too much time on their hands and maybe some of their positions should be cut. Absolutely ridiculous.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @dq+1jvsxbba1

This is true. Had the meeting with my VP today. They’re also installing additional badge readers. Employees will be required to swipe in when entering the building, and swipe out when leaving to make sure you’re putting a full 8 in the office. Reports will be run on badge swipes and sent to upper mgmt. They should just make everyone hourly and clock in/out since there’s no trust in working together.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @dd+1jvsxbba1

So they care about the state of downtown Pittsburgh but not the state of the company over all to bring all the jobs back to the United States. Got it.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @bn+1jvsxbba1

Are people in India and the Philippians required to go into the office to work as well? Or is this as always one sided.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @aw+1jvsxbba1

They do want people to leave, but regardless of motive, the company is going to go back to 5 days in person at some point. So just prepare yourself for that when it eventually happens. Financial and political pressures with the state of downtown Pittsburgh are simply too much at this point, and combine that with an impossible job market, they have workers over a barrel and they know this is the window to start making these return to office demands.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @af+1jvsxbba1

They want people to leave.

by
| | Reply
Post ID: @a3+1jvsxbba1

Post a reply

: