Verizon institutes job-cutting policies

Communications giant Verizon, a company worth over $100 billion, is offering buyouts to about 1,400 union represented workers, including clerical and call center workers and technicians.

This latest move comes shortly after Verizon announced its cross-marketing cable deal, and its decision that it would stop selling stand-alone DSL. Both of those will likely lead to job cuts, as well as diminished consumer choice.

Verizon is the nation's 16th largest corporation and paid its top executives $350 million over the past five years. The Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers are negotiating with Verizon and Verizon Wireless for new contracts covering 45,000 workers. Verizon wants to eliminate pensions, force workers to pay thousands of dollars more for health care, slash sick time and eliminate job security.

Company profile (New York Times website)

Verizon to stop selling 'dry loop' DSL to consumers (FierceTelecom, Apr. 9, 2012)

Broken Connections: An Alternative Annual Report for Verizon (CWA report)