AT&T

It is hard to be fired unless you do something really bad.

AT&T does not pay its employees similar wages to other industry leaders such as Verizon.

A happy workforce provides better service to customers and is more productive than a workforce that has to worry about its finances and knows that it is being paid less at AT&T than at the company's primary rival.

I have a unique vantage point of some of Verizon's compensation measures. On average, they pay anywhere from 8-12% more for similar jobs at AT&T.

It is no wonder that they consistently rate better in employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and service satisfaction.

They offer better health benefits, such as Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Somehow, it seems like they live up more to the old telephone company creed of: "Our people are our greatest asset".

AT&T no longer seems to believe in that, based upon employee wages, company morale, or rewarding employees for good work.

If you continue to pay inferior wages, you will get more and more inferior employees.

It is my belief that AT&T strives to understand employee and customer behavior and trends, but that they just don't care about the results they find. It's like the kid who wants to know what the right thing is but, once known, is unwilling to abide by it. AT&T is a great company in terms of financial stature and overall growth. There are many internal issues, which are probably common within a company its size. Superior talent will not want to work for AT&T in the future under the current way things are. AT&T should want to attract superior talent even after the current labor market improves. It's easy to "cherry pick" when many are desperate for a job. What about when AT&T will actually have to compete for talent? AT&T must find a way to not only gather information on employee trends but also evolve to a 21st-century company that pays managers and salespeople alike for goals exceeded and achieved. Goals cannot be measured unless they are quantifiable, attainable, and known. Every employee should have specific goals given to them by their supervisor. They should be measurable, and then actual data should be gathered at the end of each year, and the employee should be compensated based upon their metrics. Subjectivity would be removed with this, and people would be incentivized to produce more. The goals need to be aligned with company goals. More employee productivity results in more company productivity. I hope that these comments are considered and in some way used to implement some type of change in employee compensation. I hope for an increase in the bottom line for both myself and the company at large. In any great company, good employees must be seen as assets, not liabilities that can be gotten rid of whenever it suits upper management. I am a grad school-educated employee who believes that we, as a company, can be greater. In the search for continuous improvement, we can continue to lead the country in telecommunications excellence.