Great Places To Work

You are joking aren’t you? You need to get a job there, that is if you aren’t laid off without notice, or is you don’t mind people spying on you constantly, or timing you for going to the bathroom, or being forced to sell services at all costs to the customer, even if caller asks to disconnect service because of death. It’s a really great place to work if you like being abused constantly. Do you actually investigate what you’re reporting on? Try interviewing employees 600 Horizon Drive in Hamilton, or at Madison, or any other location that is meant to help customers, not Ivan Seidenberg or any of his management team, then you’ll know better.

Posted by: Michael C. Travali, None | Sep 14, 2009 16:40:28 PM |

Oh, I forgot you say:

"From generous benefits to an emphasis on the “phun” factor, these Garden State companies put a high priority on a happy, healthy workforce."

Those "generous benefits" you speak so highly of, they were all hard fought by the CWA and IBEW. And what could you possibly mean by "phun" factor? How bizarre. People who work for Verizon are stressed to the max.

Wake up.

Posted by: Michael C. Travali, None | Sep 14, 2009 16:43:53 PM |

First of all, I’d like to know if Mr. Bone was talking about managers or bargaining unit employees. My guess is that he was talking about management because members of the Union cannot work from home.
Second, Mr. Bone neglected to tell you that benefits such as tuition assistance are bargained-for benefits.
Third, I can tell you from first-hand knowledge that Verizon is NOT flexible with its associate employees. Workers are being fired on a daily basis because they were sick or a loved one was ill and the company refused to excuse them from work.
Last but not least (and I could go on forevevr) the company just layed off employees without notice. The managers took them in a room, told them they were being layed off today and sent them home.
A prompt reply would be greatly appreciated.

Posted by: Kathryn Sheehan, None | Sep 14, 2009 17:19:08 PM |

After spending years in customer service at Verizon, I was finally "paroled" to another department. Part of our job here was to answer correspondence from customers seeking credit or other help which was not available through the customer service department. Many customers have more than one land line in their homes, and if a customer had an international plan on one line only, and made a call on the wrong line without the plan, the cost can and does run into hundreds of dollars. We encountered this scenario over and over in correspondence, "VERIZON" customers looking for someone to help. Well, we were instructed by our management that we are not allowed to issue these credits, basically take no action and move on to the next letter until all the correspondence was cleared and management looked like they had done a wonderful job clearing the backlog of letters. Interestingly though, a few months later, I learned about international plans with Verizon customers. If a customer subscribes to an international plan, the rep is supposed to add the plan to every line on this account at no extra cost to the customer. But if they forget or neglect to do so, too bad mr or mrs customer. There should be a safeguard in place to make sure this is can not happen. But of course, there is not because every manager at Verizon is too concerned with showing their next level manager the figures they need to see to keep their job secure for the minute. These customers are overcharged because of Verizon inept safeguards and policies in place. To Verizon senior management, take your heads out of wherever they are and open your eyes. For the people who know what I am talking about, feel free to add your comments.

Posted by: Seymour, None | Sep 18, 2009 16:04:42 PM |

i can tell you without question that Verizon used to be a great place to work. although the job is difficult, the work environment was friendly, we received regular training and management actually valued customer service. We were and still are well paid and receive good medical benefits, but the place has turned into a hellhole.

bathroom breaks must be requested, you cant drink anything other then water at your desk. your may have 5 different work schedules in a week. the computers dont work. we are expected to soothe angry irate customer (whbo have every right to feel that way since our billing systems are so fouled up) and somehow sell them every single service we offer, but if we take more then 560 seconds on a call we are subject to abuse and monitoring for taking too long. Never mind that management is never there to assist us and that the computer systems we use to get information are ridiculously un-user friendly (if they even work). Forget that processes change on a weekly basis and promotions change every quarter. When veteran employees feel like they don’t know how to do their job, there is a major problem.

In short I would never ever recommend that someone apply for a job at Verizon. The work is too hard the management too uncaring and inffectual and the customers are too angry (and I don’t blame them, our customer service sucks because management hasnt a clue how to run the company). Whoever wrote this article should spend one day in the sales and service dept. I don’t think they’d write such a glowing piece after that.

Posted by: mr white, None | Sep 19, 2009 12:33:23 PM |

I have worked for Verizon for 12 years and it ttuly amazes me how this is a copy of the same story that has been carried over using exactly the same verberage. The flextime is only 30 minutes in case of an emergency prior to the start of you tour. We asked about these other schedule compressed work weeks, telecommuting and job sharing these things are only availble for Management not associates who could actually benefit from it. As far as the benefits these were not freely given they were hard fought for by the CWA and IBEW and at every contract renewal they are trying to take back evrything we have fought for. When was the last time Dennis Bone been to 540 Broad Street and walked on the sales floor?

Verizon is personally trying to eliminate so many jobs in NJ through massive layoffs. Verizon were given tax breaks for bringing and keeping jobs in NJ when is someone going to make them accountable.

Posted by: Confused Employee, None | Sep 24, 2009 12:16:24 PM |

Work at Verizon if you want to be harassed daily, where you customer service calls are listened to everyday!, where the management listening are not even in the state!, where the management listening have not ever taken a customer service call EVER!, where the bathroom breaks are timed, where you can not receive emergency phone calls from family members!, where Verizon wants to take away our pension and wants to make employees pay for healthcare!, where Verizon layoffs union members while CEO’s are making millions!

Thank God For My CWA Union, if not I would be out of a job.

Posted by: GLENN FERNANDEZ, None | Sep 29, 2009 14:50:52 PM |

The people responsible for writing this garbage about Verizon surely must not be talking about their workers because if they were, the article would not tell the same story. I know people who have worked there and people who are still there. The benefits are the only thing that do keep them there. How else would they be able to afford the anti-depression or anxiety meds that they need to take in order to cope with the stress that Verizon has placed on them. When a work place emphasizes more on revenue than quality of service, and in order to get these revenues, disciplines the people that do not shove services on customers that do not want or need them, it clearly is not a place that anyone would want to work for other than the benefits. Is it worth all that? I surely think not.

Posted by: Edwin Parra, None | Oct 01, 2009 03:18:37 AM |

From reading the article I understand how Verizon is considered to be one of the better compaines to work for, however, I also believe that if the interview were given to the work force it would have a totally different and more honest outlook of the company. I am an employee of Verizon and to be totally honest I work there for the benefits, they are tremendous (THANK YOU CWA/IBEW). Verizon, like every other coporate giant, looks to cut corners or like Mr. Boone said "tighten our belt" but the reason given is not correct.

If you were to Look up (instead of looking down) the coporate ladder you will find managers with no managerial skills what-so-ever, confusion as to who is accountable for what, and sadly put people who are ruining what was once a great company.

To work in a place that is infested with little flying bugs, mice, and God knows what other little critters are crawling all over my desk as I write this from my home, I cant help but just be in awe of what I just read in this article and I can not believe that New Jersey Monthly would even consider Verizon to be a great place to work. Read the comments left by others and you will see why Mr. Boone does not walk the floors in the building he is located in.

I work in one of the Newark locations and I am timed on my bathroom breaks, listened to with out prior consent or advisement, told how to dress, and many oher things I care not to write about. If you want to see how much of a great place Verizon is to work for come by un announced and you will see garbage piled up next to the EMPTY desks of the employees that were layed off, you will see for yourself how this multi-billion company runs its business and most of all you will see the truth. That Verizon is not such a great place to work for but the benefits are great.

I do what I have to do to survive in this economic crisis just like every other working class employee and yes I chose to work at Verizon because of the benefits and I can keep on writing how bad it is but I wont. I will just end it with what another co-worker of mine once told me.... "We get paid big bucks to do what we do and get great benefits just shut up and deal with it"

I do not add my name for fear of retaliation from the company, as cowardly as it may seem, I do need to be employeed.Given Verizon’s trend of lay offs, do you blame me?

Posted by: an indifferent employee, None | Oct 01, 2009 03:45:56 AM |

I am gonna send another resume to this place, its about the 10th time over 10years I have tried and others I think too....i heard they work with an agency.....at times.....

Posted by: daisy, None | Oct 06, 2009 23:58:53 PM |

Are you kidding me Verizon a great place to work for. I do not think so I have been a consultant for 9yrs and there has not been any instance where the company works with the members at all. Who have they questioned? Not member who work at the Newark office. However, it does have its perks good benefits, but there is a price you pay for those benefits long hours, getting harassed everyday by management. If you have an emergency company does not work with you if you leave you will be disciplined for it. Therefore, Verizon a great place to work maybe for management not consultant.

Posted by: un-name, None | Oct 13, 2009 23:15:37 PM |

Verizon was once a good place to work for before its great merger with "THE UNION BUSTING GTE",now there just a company full of robotic management worring more about there possiblities of being laid off rather than our customer base...They would rather spend millions of dollars to track there employees instead of working with them on any problem they may have...THIS COMPANY IS ON A WITCH HUNT,and now there adding insult to injury with more layoffs....ITS NOT LIKE THEY MADE ANY MONEY LAST YEAR OR THE YEAR BEFORE...keep lining your pockets MR. CEO...

Posted by: jose, None | Mar 03, 2010 14:41:15 PM |