IBM becomes latest tech giant to jettison employees during pandemic

[Shawn Knight]

The big picture: A North Carolina-based worker that lost his job along with his entire 12-person team said historical employment ratings, age and seniority did not seem to matter when IBM was handing out pink slips. Others familiar with the situation said cuts are also impacting employees in California, Missouri, Pennsylvania and New York.

IBM has become the latest tech giant to part ways with employees amid the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic.

IBM didn’t comment on specific numbers but according to Bloomberg, the cuts appear to be “far-reaching.”

One unnamed employee said the job cuts will mostly affect the company’s North American workforce. Roughly half of the employee’s 70-person department was recently informed that their last day will be June 22.

Ed Barbini, a spokesperson for IBM, told Bloomberg that while they always consider the current environment, IBM’s workforce decisions are in the interest of the long-term health of their business.

Realizing the “unique and difficult situation” this decision may create for some, the company is offering subsidized medical coverage to all affected US employees through June 2021, Barbini added.

IBM isn’t the only tech titan jettisoning employees and taking other cost-cutting measures due to Covid-19. Both Airbnb and Uber have let go thousands of employees. Just yesterday, Hewlett Packard Enterprise said it would be reducing the base salary of several executives and would be realigning its workforce to focus on areas of growth.

Image credit: josefkubes, tuaindeed

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https://www.techspot.com/news/85343-ibm-becomes-latest-tech-giant-jettison-employees-during.html

 

[QuantumPhysics]

The tech sector and customer service industry were already notorious for outsourcing work.

Coronavirus has shown them just exactly who their "essential workers" are and now that they know who can work remotely, there's nothing stopping them from replacing those people with remote workers...or outsourcing their jobs entirely.

For the price of a $100,000 employee, they can hire 10 people willing to work for $10,000.

For any Generation Z kid hearing this comment: do the smart thing and aim for a civil service job with a union and a pension. Regardless those right wing talking points, when it hits the fan, you wanna make sure you're an essential worker and that you don't go without.

The trick with this country's economy is getting specialized in something that "can't be outsourced" and surviving in it long enough to get out and retire before AI and technology figure out a way to lay you off.

All my life, when I was younger, people asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up?

Retired.

 

[Uncle Al]

IBM is only a shadow of it's self from the 1960's when the company openly bragged that a job at IBM was for life. Over the years I've hired many outsourced companies but they don't quite come as cheap as $10K, but you can pick up some very good one's for around $25K in the tech sector ... BUT you have to be very selective. India, for example, hires out people that rarely have acceptable computer skills and their programming abilities are very, very minimal plus they have a real attitude about working for or taking orders from a woman that is their supervisor.

As the pandemic continues, many of these large corporations are going to find themselves hard pressed to find anyone that will work for them. The shortage of skilled labor was already upon them before it started and this will only make it worse.

I have been retired for a few years but still receive 3-5 emails, phone calls, and a few actual letters from recruiters, companies, contractors and the like begging me to consider working for them for an assignment. Only a handful will meet my hourly requirements and only half of those are willing to pay per deim. For a sharp, young person willing to live on the road, there is still a LOT of work out there but you must be flexible, set your minimum standards and stick to your guns. You'll be surprised how many companies will finally come around when they find they need you a lot more than you need them!

 

[OptimumSlinky]

For any Generation Z kid hearing this comment: do the smart thing and aim for a civil service job with a union and a pension. Regardless those right wing talking points, when it hits the fan, you wanna make sure you're an essential worker and that you don't go without.

The trick with this country's economy is getting specialized in something that "can't be outsourced" and surviving in it long enough to get out and retire before AI and technology figure out a way to lay you off.

For once, we agree.

 

[DelJo63]

IBM has always been myopic on managing staff -- one of the reasons I left in the early '80s. Today telecommuting is more palatable but still unloved by senior management. Yes, it was "from the womb to the tomb" prior to the '80s but when the department staff went to a rank order evaluation review, it was plain that business was changing. Glad to have moved into Unix