Thousands of AT&T workers hunting for new jobs

Axios has a story about how

AT&T is poised to send thousands into the new year hunting for new jobs after assigning them to train their own foreign replacements, according to conversations with current and former workers and documents obtained by Axios.

Many have worked for the company for over a decade. They aren't being offered severance or early retirement, and may not easily find a comparable job elsewhere with similar pay.

...Blackwell said past contracts she's seen lead her to believe that as many as nine in 10 of those impacted by AT&T's outsourcing may end up training foreign replacements.
It's a common business model that's been used by other U.S. companies, including Disney, Verizon, Bank of America, Toys 'R' Us and Southern California Edison.

...How it works: Workers may be assured their job will not change when they are "rebadged" to work for a contractor. "The sad reality is you’ve just been terminated without your severance," said one worker Axios interviewed. "You’re at the mercy of a company that doesn’t really want you."

Workers described shock and confusion when they were told during a scripted phone call that after a decade or longer at AT&T, they'd have to work for a contractor or resign. Some were told they could not apply for other jobs inside AT&T.
Some were told they were needed for a "knowledge transfer" — then tapped to train people on work visas or overseas who would replace them.

A presentation obtained by Axios outlining the knowledge transfer process for AT&T and Accenture includes a slide on how to interact with Indian workers.
Go deeper: Trump administration denied almost a third of new H-1B visas in Q3

Read more here.