Thread regarding AT&T layoffs

I was in the same situation i did the same thing you're doing . I did what I was but at the end I was fired. I just let time take care of does that did me wrong and Karma did me justice . The RSM got covid19, the ASM lost her job and the ARSM is about to get fired. Now that's some sweet justice. Remember What goes around comes around and went I'd does it's a b–ch.

As a pro union employee, it’s not unreasonable for you to be coached on behaviors. You have to do your job which is to sell. Sure, you may not getting your numbers, but you can’t be lazy and not do anything at all. If the manager is being unreasonable, the union will help you. If not, you gotta do what’s asked of you, which is easier the more you do it.

I used to be Retail Store Manager and have experience with poor performers, coaching and accountability. One thing that poor performer needs to understand is that they are being coached and asked to do certain things , those things are documented and expected by management. If you are a poor performer you need to take advice and follow those directions, if you feel they are unrealistic then offer a better solution and find a middle ground that you and your manager can come together on and if it does not work you should listen to your management advice.

You are in SALES JOB. Performance MATTERS. And "targeting" excuse is bull, you are being coached due to your poor performance history, not every rep needs to have same amount of coaching. By the sounds of it you might not be cut out for a sales job, or maybe AT&T is simply not the right fit for you.

It’s time to send out your resume and run out the door. They are coaching and documenting everyday. You won’t be there much longer. Find a new job before they fire you so you can leave with dignity.

What part of sales don't you understand. If I pay you to sell and if you don't I terminate you. If my company is union labor then I have steps of documentation to work through. It would be easier non union. You know termination is coming but you can't sell a hotdog on a stick. Evidently you have never employed people. I can't make money if you don't sell. If you don't like the rules don't hire on. We call it a Teaching Moment. We teach, you learn.

I suggest every conversation that you have with your manager ask for a shop stewart. (Better if there isn't one around) If asked about any question about what steps were followed etc. Thats investitory. Also if your being harrassed then file a complaint. Hr onestop hotline. Any dirt you have on your manager? That helps. Any shady sh– document. Its better to plsy offensive then play defence. Ask for a new manager. Im in the feild so I dont know exactly how sales works but its not all that different. If you have back problems or get light headed. Go to your doctor and get fmla protection. So you can leave anytime you want. If you get fired then claim it was do to a medical condition. Then lawyer up its free but they take a cut. Think of the union as just one layer of protection. You can make your manager job hell 2.

Why don’t you guys just do your job and stop complaining. If you don’t like your job then leave. A sales company requires you to sell, and if you don’t know how to sell, then maybe making fries at McDonald’s is your best bet. 50 million people filed for unemployment thus far and if you actually gave two sh*ts about your job you’d learn. But of course you would complain about your job instead of getting better. Of course your manager wants someone who wants to make more money no matter what the commission looks like. The union is there to protect your benefits, not to protect you when you s— at life

@afh it sounds like your manager is telling your union president before your written up to help him get through to you to fix whatever you’re doing so your manager doesn’t have to write you up. That is exactly how it should be and you should be glad your union gets the heads up before you are written up.

@rtb - that reminds me of my area. My manager and union president have lunch once a week and he even gets the union president to yell at me for messing things up saying they can’t protect me if I don’t do all the dumb things my manager wants. Why do I pay dues just to be warned by the union I am about to get discipline if I don’t tow the line of the gestapo management regime of my store l? They are in bed together and it is such a racket

I don’t know what y’all expect the union to do if the manager does the documentation right and it is just you didn’t follow every single part of an action plan, then there is nothing they can do. Now if the manager messes up and has a major typo or something like that they may be able to push back on a technicality but if your manager is careful and avoids that then you guys are out of luck. The union can’t waive a magic wand and make the company do something except for follow the rules and the bargaining agreement.

My last grievance on a written warning the union president and store manager just joked around most of the time then the union president asked for the discipline to be tossed, the store manager said no and that was it. I was so angry! The
Union guy told me after the manager had everything documented and it was air tight and told me not to miss any steps with any customers. Like jeeze thanks for nothing!

If we aren’t hitting our numbers our lives get terrible! We have to either come in before our shift an hour or stay after our shift an hour once per week doing one on one role plays which is torture. Then we are observed endlessly and it is only documented if we mess up something so it stays under the required 6 per month of documented observations. We have to fill out a customer transaction review form after every transaction going through the whole sales process. We cannot get inventory without telling them all kinds of things about our customer. Then we have to grab a manager for any customer buying a phone without tv, insurance, next, or an elite rate plan. It is madness. Most people quit before being fired if they don’t make their numbers. And all of that and the union just says that they are allowed to do all that and there is nothing they can do.

I work in Mesa, AZ and the supervisors pretty much do whatever they want outside the contract and get away with it because they know how weak the union is! It really is a joke and is powerless against the company...or in bed with them!

Hey wait a second, you get hot dogs a the company christmas party ? We don't even have a christmas party ? Is that in the handbook ?

The “union rules” if managers don’t abide by the contract but in mobility the contract is very weak and if you don’t hit sales numbers they can definitely create elaborate action plans for you and if you fail to meet them, you get written up. Bottom line, if you are in sales you ultimately have to meet your quota.

Hey Op,
It's called Progressive Discipline. If it was a non union job it would be Instant Termination. The Union bought you time to find another job before you found yourself backed into a corner because you couldn't or wouldn't change your behavior. I hope you grieved every step of discipline. That entails actually signing your name on a grievance form. If you violated the contract too bad if not too bad for your manager. It's a cold cruel world out there, Good Luck.

@sqr+166Uwltm
I'm having trouble typing. I can't see through the tears. I hear the Army is hiring. They cook hotdogs every year on the 4th. Seriously, I have noticed the work ethic is missing with a lot of the newer employees. I'm not sure if it was the upbringing or if someone stuck a pacifier in their mouth every time they cried but crying doesn't work in the real world. You can blame the union or you can blame the company but the company is going to make money and the union is going to negotiate wages. If you break the law then your lawyer will try to help but he can't force the judge to side with the client. If the Army isn't your thing the Coast Guard is hiring also.

Not sure where you work but in my city the Union Rules. Managers know what happens when they don't abide by the contract. The members stand together, don't complain, know the rules and are professional. Strength in numbers and we take no prisoners.

@znf+166Uwltm IHX employees are a bunch of liars! Integrity? PLEASE! You all have no integrity! Period!

Bad enough that the union just barely gives a ounce about us craft core members. You think they really care about the retail side? None of them have ever been on that side. You are giving them free money.

If you’re a lousy employee just realize that this isn’t the job for you and resign. It’s pretty simple if you think about it. The end is coming soon for you. Good luck

If you’re being coached out the door; I wouldn’t go without a fight. If your Manager has done anything sketchy, or told you to do something that violated COBC, make an HR Complaint. Nothing will prolly happen, but these are outsourced now, and could make it uncomfortable for them. Keep a daily journal. Every time you are coached, or seem something shady happening; write it down. Whip it out at meetings; it works.

All the company bootlicker scabs are posting here tonight I see!

You know what really s—s is when you get forced into the union by your dumb coworkers and lose all the benefits you had already and your job goes from being amazing to being garbage. Then your lazy coworkers who wanted it end up quitting after they realize they made things worse!

All of you complaining about the union are probably scabs not willing to go without pay and sacrifice as long as it takes to strike when the bargaining agreement comes up. If you aren’t willing to sacrifice then you have no right to complain.

@sqr we traded all those benefits for a worthless job guarantee. People had stores close and all they could do is agreed to be laid off or go into a work from home customer service job with no commission that we can’t afford to pay our bills on. So we ended up losing all around! It really is dumb how those not in the union have so much better benefits, vacation, and don’t get disciplined for being sick.

What I don’t get is what is the point of the union at AT&T anyway? They can’t do anything about discipline if a manager documents it right, our benefits are less than non bargained employees, we don’t get 8 weeks of paid parental leave, we get less tuition reimbursement, our health care costs more, we don’t get paid sick days for like 10 years or something, we get fewer vacation days, and our schedule has zero flexibility ever. If you are union and 15 minutes late, bam! You get pointed and possibly disciplined. Like what exactly does the union ever do for us except give us hot dogs at the union Christmas party?

All of you complaining about the union, remember all we can do is fight to enforce the bargaining agreement. You guys still have to do your jobs! We can’t change company policies or make managers not coach you. What we can do is make sure your managers follow the rules. If they do follow the rules then our hands are tied. Try being nice to your manager, ask for help, and ask the union to help mediate. Sometimes we can work things out to reduce discipline times through negotiations but they have to believe you are really trying to sell. Best wishes!!

trying to sell att products man talk about mission impossible. good luck

The union is worthless!!!!!! My uncle died earlier this year and I tried to get off and aunts and uncles aren’t part of the bereavement policy. So I asked my manager for pto but he can’t change the schedule because of the bargained attendance policy so I got attendance points, a discipline for being out, and I was unpaid for those days!!! And the union said that is the way the rules work and there is nothing they can do!!!!

A store manager here and that is exactly what we are supposed to do. We help you (coach you) all day every day until your sales go up and yes we are looking for you to mess up because if your sales aren’t up we have to move you out or we are the ones who get moved out!

What s—s is that this is all during covid but that is the c-appy side of being held to behaviors that managers give the excuse you missed some little thing and numbers aren’t what it is about but really it is.

I feel for you because we have all had bad months. I almost wish we didn’t have a union and just held to a number though because managers are always looking for is to mess up and it is because of how the union is. At Verizon when I worked there all that mattered was get your numbers. Also with the union make it where management can’t do anything to help you with the schedule or anything.

You can file a grievance but what is BS is that it is the manager and area manager that decide on the grievance. It is bull! Then the union always backs down smh!! The union is just a waste of dues money every week!!!

Sounds like your manager knows what they are doing. Nothing the useless union can do if they document everything. They will find something you mess up on at some point and then you’re fired. Either sell or work on your resume lol sorry

The union can’t do anything. The only thing that will save you is to make your numbers! Otherwise they will keep coaching you until you mess up and then you are gone!!! Seen it happen many times!!!!

The union can’t do anything if you miss the behaviors. And yes they will make elaborate action plans for you that they hold you to that will make you miserable if you don’t get the numbers and then discipline you for missing some obscure minor detail. It is how the game is played. Some managers are good at playing it while others aren’t. Unfortunately for you it seems you have a manager who knows how to play. Just do the behaviors the best you can but above all else SELL because that is the only way out of this.

Like others said they will coach you in retail like that endlessly if your sales aren’t there and that is how it is. The union can’t stop them from doing that believe me I tried. You just got to get your self in gear and get those sales. That is the only way to make the coachings stop without being fired. Just because it is unionized doesn’t mean it isn’t still a sales job.

That is why I left retail and went to IHX and I love it. In retail because it is union they coach you endlessly to nitpick and always find something you did wrong so they can hold you accountable. I never worried about it too much because I sold a lot but the atmosphere is much more micromanaging. In IHX it is numbers based so if you get the sales they leave you alone and you can get the numbers however you want as long as it is with integrity. The only ones who get coached there at all are those who are low and even then it is more about helping you because they really don’t have to do that even. Plus the benefits are way better too. That said if you can’t sell in retail you definitely won’t make it in IHX it is hard but the pay is amazing if you can sell good!

Here’s the secret. Get your sales numbers and they will back off. If you don’t that is their job is to coach you until you do or until you’re out the door. If they document everything there is nothing the union can do. In retail it is an illusion that you’re held accountable to behaviors not numbers — the numbers drive the action plans and coaching. Just sell stuff and if you can’t find a non sales position. Good luck!