IBM US job cuts continue as company gears up for 100th anniversary
union 30 May 2011 10:42:02
As IBM prepares a massive public relations campaign around the founding of IBM 100 years ago, more job cuts are being reported. It seems to most US employees that the “churn and burn” in IBM just never stops, and it doesn't. For those employees targeted for the recent resource action and for the over 15,000 who lost their jobs the past few years, a celebration of IBM’s founding will ring a little hollow.
As the celebration gears up, the media and the country are seeing IBM presented through the eyes of the corporate executives, not the rank and file IBMer. A recent article in Fortune magazine painted a very rosy picture of Sam Palmisano as head of IBM. The article lauded Sam for his leading IBM into the 21st century.
Comments from IBM employees that were posted to the article were not very flattering and took Palmisano to task for IBM’s poor treatment of employees, the decline in working conditions, the decline in salaries and pensions, and the constant job cuts that have devastated the US workforce as work is off-shored. And it wasn't just US IBM employees who were taking Sam to task. Many comments came from IBMer’s around the world.
Typical comments posted to the article:
“As a UK IBM employee, and soon to be ex-employee (I'm getting out now), my main reason for leaving is lack of respect and lack of reward; no pay rise since 2007; a stunning performance by IBM. My team and personally was very poorly rewarded. I have key skills in a growing technical area and would have personally brought in £250K revenue in just normal work let alone additional new business. Did anyone at the high-levels bother about this. Nope. Not one bit. The modern IBM does not care about employees; just costs and profit.”
“As a retired 30-year IBM veteran, I have worked with some wonderful people during my career and can honestly say that IBM has some awesomely talented people in their technical ranks and that they have arguably the best workforce in the world right here in the U.S.A. On the other hand, IBM Management 'led' by Sam Palmisellout is totally clandestine and self-serving and are completely out of touch with the general IBM Employee Population. Employee morale at IBM is at 'rock-bottom' since they are generally overworked, underpaid, are totally disrespected by Management, are no longer provided with any sense of job security, and have seen many of their talented fellow IBM employees fired and their jobs moved to offshore locations (Brazil, India, China, etc.) simply for cheaper labor and definitely not for technical advantage. Their Raises and Promotions are rare and realistic career paths are non-existent for non-executive personnel. Many IBM'ers I know totally despise those pompous and greedy ARMONK-EY Executives and would hardly call them 'leaders' since they don't have a clue how to grow revenue and rely on perpetual cost cutting (offshoring, layoffs, salary rebanding, benefit reductions, etc.) as the primary means of profitability. The Technical folks are the major reason why IBM is a successful Corporation and they deserve the utmost respect from those IBM Corporate Executives.”
So how did Fortune magazine react to the 200 plus critical comments? Did the editors commission a story on what IBM workers are going through working at the new IBM? No. They simply deleted all the comments. To many this was simply a whitewash. Can’t upset the celebration with a little truth.
IBM employees around the world are proud of the work they do for the company. IBM employees are also civic minded, giving back to the communities where they work and live.
IBM employees are simply saying to the CEO and the world--give us some respect, not empty words and public relations campaigns. Treat us as assets not liabilities. Call us people not “resources”. Reward loyalty with concern for employees well being. Let us have a true voice in the workplace. Let us join our unions and the global union alliance free from intimidation. Do all that and more and there will be cause to celebrate.
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