Thread regarding Optum layoffs

Hired in as telecommute - live in rural area

I was hired in as full telecommute and have never worked in an office with this company. I live in a very rural area. How would I “return to an office”?? I looked and there is no optum or UHG buildings even in the biggest city near me. How would that even work?

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| 3261 views | | 15 replies (last June 24) | Reply
Post ID: @OP+1jy9vgvmm

15 replies (most recent on top)

@pn Only those with Hybrid status are impacted (so far). If you live in bumblefark five hours from civilization for now you're low on the target list because your market-driven pay grade is the lowest 1-2 out of 5.

Job postings show the direction of hiring off-shore or location specific near offices is clear. Attrition of rural staff will probably be filled in India.

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Post ID: @px+1jy9vgvmm

I live 5 hours from the nearest office. No worries. The last RTO was based on mileage, if you 17miles or closer you had to go it. I know a lot of people who did "swipes". drive in swipe walk in and walk out the other side and go home.

BTW ... there is no RTO mandate anyone who says there is making it up

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Post ID: @pn+1jy9vgvmm

@eh Hemsley, as board chair, was Witty's boss. All he's got is layoffs and RTO is a cheap way. Some management think we can do 10-15% growth, and the rest know the emperor has no clothes.

You can't hide from international markets because you only know one thing and rely on MA (and Mcare, ACA, commercial) to continue to grow. When you're as big as UHG, it's really hard to grow the top line even if the number of boomers hitting 65 rises each year til 2030.

Any AI savings will be heavily scrutinized as easy pickings as the Feds seek to cut costs and social programs broadly.

In his heart of hearts, Hemsley knows (like most of us, if we're honest) that the only way to materially cut costs is to move to a gov't run single payer system based on capitation. One pool of lives (all USA citizens/residents), one set of executives and rank and file to make it work. You cut out the 1,000+ different sets of Payer executives. Same for PBMs.

Oh, but "death panels!" we need the free market! Ahem, many of us already work in, support, or sell them!

Hemsley and friends might claim they can do 10-15% but the MARKET is waking up to the reality of the business model and how likely that is. The stock is flat, even with layoffs.

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Post ID: @er+1jy9vgvmm

@e2

Only HYBRID employees are being told to RTO.

For now, yes. For now.

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Post ID: @ej+1jy9vgvmm
We CANNOT layoff/off-shore our way back to 10-15% growth

Management believes we can with the help of AI.

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Post ID: @eh+1jy9vgvmm

@aw Those hired as telecommuters/ full time work from home are not going to g back into offices.

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Post ID: @e4+1jy9vgvmm

The lack of awareness on this site is wild. Only HYBRID employees are being told to RTO. If you are a TELECOMMUTER based off of GSS- you’re good. You know if you’re designated as HYBRID or not. More than likely if you were in the office pre COVID, you’re hybrid.

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Post ID: @e2+1jy9vgvmm

I had to get an exception to remain a telecommuter under Doddy. I posted out instead

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Post ID: @dd+1jy9vgvmm

I've worked remotely for almost 13 years, never an office for this company and have heard nothing about making people go back to an office. Maybe it depends on what you do? I'm a medical coder

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Post ID: @bc+1jy9vgvmm

There isn't an RTO. UHG knows, depending on the role, employees often work more from home vs. in an office. They won't push jobs offshore either, imagine the scrutiny right now if a healthcare company moved all their American jobs overseas just to boost margins. Relax, Hemsley is a seasoned and steady CEO he's not Jack Welch looking to cut everything for a temporary stock/shareholder return.

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Post ID: @ax+1jy9vgvmm

Hemsley is absolutely ruthless and completely out of touch. We CANNOT layoff/off-shore our way back to 10-15% growth.

Folks were given LESS THAN THREE WEEKS' notice for essentially full time RTO (4 days) in the middle of summer. Families with kids will scramble to figure out with school out. This impacts the heart of the long term employees and loyalists - while many recent hires and acquisition adds are outside of MN - tens of thousands of long term employees the true believers are around the Twin Cities are impacted.

Next step will be anyone within X-mi radius of an office.

Following that will be "time to relocate" hopefully with more than 2-3 weeks. Other orgs do a 30 day decision period (agree to move or quit) and then 60 days to relocate.

"But folks in rural areas are cheaper, they won't fire us!" Not as cheap as India and not as productive as Ireland.

Count on it. It's coming.

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Post ID: @aw+1jy9vgvmm

Don't worry about all these RTO post. They have no idea what they are talking about. The lawsuits from making people change their work locations is never worth the imaginary benefits an organization gains. They aint doing it. Amazon and Walmart are different animals.

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Post ID: @at+1jy9vgvmm

Yes. It would be the Amazon / Walmart method. Do not think uhg would do that but effectively you would be laid off. It wouldn't be worth relocating and then likely they lay you off anyways.

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Post ID: @ac+1jy9vgvmm

Since you are asking the question it would work like this “Relocate to an area with an office or we will fire you.”

No one has posted like anything like this is in the works so don’t get too worked up about it.

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Post ID: @aa+1jy9vgvmm

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