While independent experience may differ, I fully agree with all that has been said here. Having worked there for several years as a senior-level engineer, I have learnt a few things, and this information is in consensus with the views of my other engineering colleagues who have left Lockheed Martin and those few that are still at LMC but are always in fear of layoffs. 1) Lockheed Martin Co (LMC) seems to have an unwritten rule about laying-off people, as often as they can, unless you are very connected with the senior management or are part of one, you are very exceptional in what you do, or are retired top military/political brass hired by the company for your contacts etc. 2) There exists a very subtle (unwritten rule) age discrimination, including what school you graduated from, and including your color and race/religion. As mentioned, it is very subtle and well covered legally (so Lockheed doesn't get sued again) yet quite prevalent and definite in its culture. You will see the evidence in the numbers and composition of people laid off in every layoff cycle, as well as, in the composition of middle to senior management at LMC. The company went from about 144000 employees to about 116000 in about 3-4 years time frame. Quite a cut but what is important is to analyze the “composition” of that force reduction. Age discrimination, the school you graduated from or didn’t graduate, and race/religion discrimination is prevalent. It helps to have a close relationship with several senior-level management to keep yourself away from constant rounds of layoffs. 3) The performance appraisal system is ridiculous, based on people judging you who most often have not even worked with you closely, or even remotely. The whole process is very subjective and unfair, and based on company’s bottom-line motivations. Very little respect for employees work where it matters – in the employee retention and job security. The company HR basically works for the managers, and is not an independent entity, as one would think. It does not represent the employees in most issues, nor does it truly assist employees in finding other job assignments when the first one that you are on is ending. In most cases you are given a two-week notice to find another assignment after your current job assignment has ended. You are on a clock from that point onwards. HR claims that they will help but it's a complete smoke screen. Neither HR nor your current manager will help to relocate you nor really cares to, and basically they are waiting for the two week clock to run out so they can show you the door. The 2-week (in small cases- 3 week) time frame is there so Lockheed can save face by "pretending" that it cares for its employees, and wants to retain its employees. Unless you are very exceptional in your skill-sets, don’t expect much from the HR or your current manager for assistance. 4) The employee health benefits is an absolute joke and a farce. It is a public relation ploy by the company – that they provide their employees with good health coverage. Nothing can be furthest from the truth. Like the others have stated – it can help you somewhat in catastrophic conditions only. You can go and buy an independent health insurance outside of the company, and it will be cheaper with far better coverage than what Lockheed provides. The health coverage provided by Lockheed is one of the worst in the industry for a company this size or even much smaller. 5) LMC did away with retirements like many other companies. 6) Constant fear of layoffs causing huge stress to employee and low morale. No job safety at all. Lockheed Martin has a “revolving door policy” (another unwritten rule) - hire new people, while laying off current ones who have been with the company for a few years, and keep the cycle going. Engineers are laid-off at the expense of useless middle management is the norm – layers and layers of useless management. If you do a little research, you will find that Lockheed showing up to Job fairs while it has or is in the process of laying off many current employees. They also list thousands of jobs on their career website, yet most of them are never filled for some strange reason – another smoke screen.
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I was a system administrator, nothing was hidden from us, nor could be. I was a "watcher":
Allow me some metaphors:
What is fair? Lets muse on this - if you hire a roofer, your relationship to that professional is under your jurisdiction.
The evil is when a hardship in people's lives is used to unfair advantage to deprive the situation of a fair "win win". Example: when a hail storm hits Denver - many try to get the new roof for $1000 less and don't care what is being done to circumnavigate laws so that "savings" can be gained - but its not, read on. Often this is the arrangement - one man on the roof is a legal immigrant. The check from the contractor for labor goes to him. He pays his desperate "cousins" who help him cash. The homeowner gets the roof for less. Where is the root of the problem? { now consider the benefits you have }.
Actualization of costs - pay me now or pay me later: The roofer noted above needs at least medical for job related injury. We can actualize that in the per sq foot costs, or we can try and duck those by various means. But if the roofer gets hurt and must go to a hospital - the hospital must provide care. The roofer may not be able to pay it, so the cost is added in some other way, ie taxes and higher medical bills for everyone.
There is no free lunch { though marketing often promises as much }. The problem space is the problem space, the questions are about where the costs will be actualized. Everyone wants the fed government to do it, a side effect of the fed being able to "make up money" out of nothing. People don't care about fed assistance, until they cannot compete against the guy that got federal monies they themselves did not get.
Benefits and compensation are set by folks with "eyes on" the numbers that win the contract. They know that certain low numbers will not win work. { there are exceptions }. But the desired return on investment is set at the direction of the board of directors who represent the shareholders and appoint executive managers. Consider - if your retirement is in company stock, and the company shave margins a bit to award larger compensation packages - the shareholders, Wall Street, could massacure your retirement via desiring LM less as "the other company" has a greater ROI. Where is the root of the problem? Sometimes LM has seemingly been very dishonest about "the numbers", taking work they could not possibly do for the agreed price { SBIRS is an infamous example }. This is bad for the customer, but it's good for Wall Street in the end, and good for you - you still have a job and the other poor slob does not. What is the root of the problem? When they ran out of work in the US they even sold some "stuff" to china - you reader may have been a benefactor. Muse on how the slogan "We never forget who we are working for" came into being. After they got slapped for selling "stuff" to China they ought not. It was almost a kind of extortion - "Congress - give us work or we will find it". You reader were a benefactor if you were able to keep a paycheck during the hard times.
These ideas noted....
When I was young the mantra that was pushed into education was "team work", movies like "Rollerball" were used to marshall ethos in society.
These days the Mantra is more like Survivor Island. You have no friends - it is Owellean and they are trying to create social conditions in society that will accept it. The idea of everyone winning a bigger harvest, a bigger pie, year after year, with a bigger slice for everyone is only sustainable in a free and competitive society. Because of how it deals with "the root of the problem". History has shown pure capitalism and pure socialism as disasters. Because of the "root of the problem".
Pragmatically - I can say this as a Sysadmin -
"dirt" is kept on everyone, and used as justification should you seek to not take their direction, you are their "roofer". Time card discrepancies, tardiness, web browsing that is not for official work. Going to dating sites while married, can "ding" a security clearance.
Never bite the hand that feeds. Solve your dogs problems, including the social engineering ones, and he will, out of self interest - take care of you. "Watching" - this is what is seen, most think the job is there for them vs. them there for the job. That advice is worth millions, teach it to your children.
The psychology of firing people is tough and not for everyone, at times it has to be done, I've been the axe man, and I've been on the sharp end of the axe. Someone with sociopathic tendencies is usually brought in to be the Axe man. The psychology of the person who has to let a man or women "go" must develop some way to do that and remain "sane" - "ego protection". Good bosses are usually bad "terminators". The signature that matters, the one that could be sued - is the one that should be on a document but is not.
All defense contractors higher from out of the "customer community".
If you need a roof, will you higher a "risk", an "unknown" - or someone who has proven themselves to you? There is no evil in that.
Everyone with deep pockets is wise to guard the vault. Work, invest wisely, save - you will probably be a person with deep pockets when you are older.
And you will guard your vault too.
Scaring the c-ap out of the Earth's population to keep the nations "at each other" - that is evil. What is the root of the problem?
Say hello to Ambrose for me (WM)
Have to agree with everything said in the original post. It's not what you know it's who you know that counts here. I don't want to repeat everything he said but LM seems to have the worst benefits in industry, small or large company. For medical it is high deductible, pays only 85%, high premium cost to employee, and provide limited benefits. One major medical facility that many people were going to refused to accept LM insurance, so people had to go elsewhere despite having gone to the medical facility for years. My manager was not even in the state that I was in so didn't have the foggiest what I was doing so he just threw all the SSL folks on the streets, despite me being the only GNC expert on the program. Of course I was senior level and although there is federal law against age discrimination there is no law against pay discrimination and high pay normally goes with age and experience and bottom line is what these folks care about. I did have to train a new grad to take my place. They do have to lay off token younger workers once in a while so it doesn't appear that they are discriminating against age. Since there is no law against pay discrimination, usually the highest paid is highest on the list to throw out.
Life gets better. The kid next door just got shafted by LM, and I was curious to see how bad it was. I was there in the early 80s, and witnessed every sleazy, despicable management practice imaginable. I got out, and tho things were rough periodically, no one else I worked for during the next 30 years was even close to as bad as LM.
I'm glad I left the Goodyear plant (many years ago). My alcoholic supervisor with mental issues was the final straw... but he was in management, so he gets a pass that allows him to drink on the job. Will LM buy him a new liver?
Yep, have seen most of what this article states while I at LocMar. Behind the name recognition of this company,the inside reality is far different. This company will see many tough years ahead if it doesn't get its act together which will take a huge efforts at all levels of this company. And I am not holding my breath!
It's corporate America, what do you expect, you got to fight for yourself, nobody will take care of you - go open your own business and be nice to your employees
The only thing I would add based on 10+ years with Lock-Mart is that the company seems to feel that if you have been here five years or longer and haven't been made a manager or given some lead role, there must be something wrong with you. They'll keep you around til the next layoff so you can keep filling out your time card. On the other hand, once you have completed at least one management assignment (preferably two), you are "tenured" and despite any further contributions (or not) you enjoy some level of security-- after all, you must be good, somebody made you a manager.
It is unfortunate that a company with a reputation and legacy of LMC is treating its employees in such a way. The defense industry is going through its pains with defense cuts etc., but I have to say that what is posted here is very similar to what I have heard from other friends of mine who were employed by LMC in similar capacity. Again in all fairness every large company the size of LMC has management issues.
I agree with almost all of what has been said here. You have covered all the things that I personally experienced while working at the company for about 8 years as an engineer.