Top bosses are clawing back control — and AT&T CEO John Stankey is the latest to make that crystal clear.
In a fiery internal memo, Stankey declared the end of cushy perks and leniency for remote workers, telling cosseted employees it’s time to step up — or step aside.
The 62-year-old made it clear he doesn’t want staff who expect rewards simply for being loyal, following the rules, or sticking around.
Instead, he said AT&T is moving toward a ‘market-based culture,’ where pay and job security are based on merit, performance, and impact — not tenure or compliance.
‘We have consciously shifted away from some of these elements and towards a more market-based culture — focused on rewarding capability, contribution, and commitment,’ he wrote, according to Business Insider.
His comments followed a recent internal survey that fell short of expectations. While 73 percent of employees participated, only 79 percent expressed strong commitment to their work — not enough to impress the CEO.
‘If you are of the small minority that shared comments similar to, ‘I’ve heard this nonsense before and I’ll ignore things until this goes away…’ there might be a disconnect between you and your current professional choice,’ he warned
The memo comes seven months after AT&T implemented a five-day in-office policy, one of the toughest return-to-office stances in corporate America.
AT&T’s top boss had a simple message for his workers – come back to the office, or move on to another company
AT&T’s services are undergoing technology innovations, including adding millions of American customers to faster fiber-optic and satellite-driven internet connections.
The company is spending top dollar to get ahead of other internet service providers, such as Elon Musk’s Starlink.
Stankey said staffers need to get on board to be a part of those changes.
‘We run a dynamic, customer-facing business, tackling large-scale, challenging initiatives,’ he told workers.
‘If the requirements dictated by this dynamic do not align to your personal desires, you have every right to find a career opportunity that is suitable to your aspirations and needs.’
Full-time employees — including sales representatives, team leaders, associate directors, and financial analysts — earn a range from $62,000 to $299,000 from the company’s Dallas headquarters.
‘We are letting the email speak for itself,’ an AT&T spokesperson said in response to the Daily Mail’s request for comment.
Stankey joins a growing list of Wall Street executives who have shocked their cocooned employees out of stasis and back into the office.
Multiple CEOs have told employees they must come into the office with greater frequency
In a letter to his employees, AT&T’s top boss said he was disappointed in the recent results of an employee survey
It marks a major shift for workers. In the years following the pandemic, job seekers had considerable leeway as supply chains dusted off the cobwebs.
Now, as AI puts job security on shakier ground and American employers slow hiring, bosses are gaining more power.
Layoffs have risen significantly in the past year, with experts warning that it may soon be harder for jobholders to keep their positions.
And several bosses are using that power swing to get employees back into their headquarters.
In September, the new Starbucks CEO, Brian Niccol, will require all corporate employees to come into the office four days a week.
The coffee chain only requires three days of in-office work from its managerial staff.
TD Bank will marshal its staff back into the office for four days each week, starting in November.
In March, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon mandated workers to return to the company’s Park Avenue headquarters in New York City.
‘If you work in a restaurant, you’ve got to be in. You all may not know this, but 60 percent of Americans worked the whole time,’ Dimon said when asked about his stance on office work.
‘Where did you get your Amazon packages from? Your beef, your meat, your vodka? Where did you get the diapers from?
‘It’s only these people in the middle who complain a lot about it.’
