Newsletter
It’s no secret that in this post-pandemic economy, many companies have resorted to job cuts as a way to save operational costs and stay afloat. Now, just days after revamping its wireless data plans, Verizon is reportedly laying off over 6,000 of its customer service employees as part of its efforts to restructure and streamline its operations.
The company announced this decision in a meeting with all of its employees, and while Verizon has promised to provide further details on May 25th, affected employees will reportedly have two options: accepting a severance package based on their years of service, which offers two weeks of pay per year of tenure, or exploring potential new positions within Verizon that focus on customer experience, loyalty, and technology. However, it’s important to note that the second option does not guarantee a job, and employees will need to wait until June 23rd to learn about their future at Verizon.
Moving the customer service team overseas
After the layoffs, Verizon reportedly plans to outsource its customer service and after-sales assistance operations to foreign companies. The rationale behind this decision is that by outsourcing to countries where labor costs are significantly lower, Verizon can achieve greater cost-effectiveness and operational savings. And this is the reason why the company reduced domestic hiring for customer service positions.
This decision of laying off employees comes shortly after Verizon fell short of Wall Street expectations in its Q1 ’23 earnings, reporting a loss of 127,000 postpaid net new phone subscribers. Additionally, the company’s recent decision to replace premium services like Apple Music and the Disney Bundle with a $10 monthly charge for every service chosen may also impact customer satisfaction as subscribers adjust to paying for previously included services. However, in an effort to expand the reach of 5G technology and attract new users, Verizon has plans to introduce the C-band spectrum in more areas over the next few months.