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Windstream cutting 30 jobs locally, 170 companywide

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By The Lincoln Journal Star

Thursday, Dec 04, 2008 - 04:47:12 pm CST

Windstream Corp., the dominant wireline telephone company in Lincoln and Southeast Nebraska, said it is eliminating 30 positioins locally and approximately 170 company-wide, as part of a cost-reduction effort.

The jobs lost locally will be in operations, engineering  and customer service, among other divisions, said spokesman Larry White. 

The company will offer a basic severance plan, including outplacement aid, but White said he could disclose no more details.

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Of the 30, 22 jobs will be from the collective bargaining unit of Local 7470 of the Communications Workers of America, said Mike Arnold, president of Local 7470.

“It’s unfortuante that it happens during the holiday season,” Arnold said. “Not a very good way to start the New Year by looking for a job.   But then there’s no good time to have to look for a job.”

Before the reductions, the company had about 415 employees in Nebraska, most of them in Lincoln, White said.  Windstream serves 22 counties in southeast Nebraska.    A year ago in October, the company had about 600 employees in the state and has since closed a broadband support center in Lincoln that employed 100 people.   

Employees who lose their jobs can apply for other open positions within the company, Windstream said.

Among those losing their jobs locally was Windstream’s local spokesman, Chris Hunt, manager of marketing communications, White said.

The jobs are being cut “to adjust to business needs and control expenses in a challenging economy,”  Windstream said.

The company expects to incur a charge of approximately $6 million in the fourth quarter to pay severance benefits.

Windstream provides digital phone, high-speed Internet and high-definition video and entertainment services to residential and business customers in 16 states, where it employs about 7,400 people.

In 1999, when Alltel was seeking approval to take over Aliant Communications as the dominant local telephone company, Aliant employed almost 1,700 people in Nebraska, but that number included wireless employees. 

Alltel became a wireless-only company in 2006, when it spun off its wireline business, which merged with Valor Communications to become Windstream.


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Tony wrote on December 4, 2008 1:47 pm:
" This is sad news! "

 Former DSL Alltel Employee wrote on December 4, 2008 2:26 pm:
" What a shock (NOT) This is just another way for Alltel to show how it feels about the people in Lincoln! "

 Former LTTAliantALLTEL Employee wrote on December 4, 2008 2:46 pm:
" They just talked about cutting retirees benefits now people are gonna loose their jobs, they have been cutting jobs since 2001, when I lost my job. I am really glad that I didn't try to stay on there, when is it gonna stop!!!!!! This company really stinks!!! "

 WHAAAAA wrote on December 4, 2008 2:48 pm:
" How can you cut customer service when it doesn't exist to begin with? This company ought to be creating jobs to improve their service. How sad for more employees. "

 Another former LTTAliantAlltel employee wrote on December 4, 2008 3:09 pm:
" They asked for loyalty from their employees and gave none in return. Eliminating people that were close to retirement forcing them to take substantial cuts in their pensions. Shafting retirees health care benifits. Now another round of cuts. "

 Um wrote on December 4, 2008 3:42 pm:
" They haven't been part of Alltel for a few years now, so direct your anger where it properly belongs.
Maybe a spellcheck and a brushup on punctuation and grammar, too. "

 suprise suprise wrote on December 4, 2008 3:59 pm:
" Well it does not surprise anyone that their would be more cut at Windstream. "

 CS wrote on December 4, 2008 4:04 pm:
" Business is business and being publicly traded means they owe their first allegiance to their stockholders. Costs are what they are and if they need to cut people then that is what they will do. Their loyalty to employees comes at least a distant second, but ultimately as a business what are they supposed to do? You can't always cut operational spending and many of you that comment about job losses seem to think that just cutting everything else except employees is the way to go, when employees are one of the most expensive parts of the company. Thank yourselves-everyone using cell phones is a large part of this. "

 That stinks. wrote on December 4, 2008 4:34 pm:
" The layoffs are terrible, and people losing there jobs is awful. But I love that Windstream stock dividend!!! "

 whatever wrote on December 4, 2008 4:58 pm:
" This is a fairly small layoff considering the layoffs that have occured the last month in Nebraska, both published and unpublished in the Journal Star. At any rate the Japanese are getting ready to idle blast furnaces, ALL automakers are withing 12 to 18 months of bankruptcy, home prices continue to decline and unemployment will be at astounding levels very shortly. It's almost unbelievable but we are facing an economic collapse where virtually every industry will begin to operate and a small fraction of it's former capacity. Brace yourselves this economic meltdown is in complete overdrive and it's clear the American people and most of it's "leaders" are absolutely clueless. "

 mike wrote on December 4, 2008 6:25 pm:
" yes the depression is coming and it will be remembered as the GDII "

 We need a depression wrote on December 4, 2008 7:33 pm:
" We need a depression to fix the economy. Our grandparents lived through one, and know the importance of saving. They did not buy something unless they had the money. The first generation makes it, the second generation saves it, and the third spends it. Well we are the third. P.S. in the future if you want something and cannot afford it, try lay away "

 jjjj wrote on December 4, 2008 7:56 pm:
" Let's face it, Landline telephone business is dying, as the younger set survive on wireless mobile service alone so Windstream and others (ATT's 12,000 job cuts announced today) have to adjust. It is sad that people are losing their jobs, but change happens. "

 JT wrote on December 4, 2008 8:31 pm:
" I realize that the company is no longer based in Nebraska, however, the more business that people give to the Local Windstream Phone stores, the better the chance they will survive. If people just call the 800 number, who knows, perhaps the retail stores will also eventually go away,.... "Buy Local"!! "

 Re we need a depression wrote on December 4, 2008 9:38 pm:
" You're right on target with your comments. Time to clean house and start over with better decision making and people buying things they can afford. Buckle up folks, it's going to be a rough ride. It should make the family tighter and bring your faith back in line. "

 Cynic wrote on December 5, 2008 9:10 am:
" It's so easy to talk about how this is "just business," and how "change happens," when it's somebody else's job that is being cut. Imagine yourself in the former employees' out-of-work shoes and you might look at the situation differently. And whoever suggested that it's "time to start over with better decision making," should realize that the same people will be running the company down the road. And when it comes to taking the heat, it's the little guys that will sacrifice their income, NOT the fat cats in the big offices with their huge pay checks intact. My heart breaks for these poor individuals who had their livelihood destroyed, as well as their lives shattered, in this Holiday Season. So, when local politcal/civic leaders blow hot air talking about drawing new businesses to Lincoln, remember how the former phone company slipped away from us and how many jobs were lost. Then keep remembering that fact come the next election. "

 Whoa wrote on December 5, 2008 11:39 am:
" Those of you commenting about a depression being a positive thing and being "worth it" are nuts! I work with the elderly and I have never even ONCE heard anyone refer to the Great Depression with any kind of endearing or positive terms. People were hungry, homeless and dying and to sit here and say that we need to have another depression because it will teach us a lesson and make families and faith stronger again shows no respect for the people who went through it. Wow, I thought I had seen ignorance but this takes the cake... "

 anon wrote on December 5, 2008 7:29 pm:
" they didn't make any changes to compete with the cell phones and so they lost a lot of customers. I dropped my landline several years ago, it was my best decision as it cut my phone bill in half. I paid over $60 a month and made about 2 hours of instate long disance calls. now I can talk for 3 hours and have unlimited free nights and weekends for $30. If a company doesn't change with the times, they will not survive. "

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