--- In ibmunion@yahoogroups.com, sby_willie <no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> Any constructive talk about the paltry raises IBM has been giving
out
> this month? Or is everyone numb in shock?

Not only has there been no constructive talk about the paltry raises
this year. There has been no talk at all. No one has even responded
to your question. What has happened to the IBM employees that they
will not even offer a wimper about what IBM has done to us?

> I for one asked HR why the raise announcements were being delayed
and
> I got a response that signalled me in early June that the raises
> would have to be poor since the response I got was not believable. I
> told them it was unacceptable to delay the announcement and also
> delay the raises upwards to two weeks even with a retroactive
action.
> (who got to play with the 2 weeks' raise money buckets and
interest?).
>
> It also showed that IBM wanted to close and dust 2nd QTR first
before
> announcing gloomy raise news to the resources. But gloomy news
should
> have been foreseen already once the I/T Specialists and System
Admins
> in 06A got clobbered with a -15% base pay cut. One could only
> conclude that the raises would stink since the same IBM comment on
> it "..we (IBM) have to do this pay remix to remain competitive.."
> also actually applies to these recent raises as well.
>
> IBM says they pay based on performance but how come some PBC "1"
> performers got no raise? How come PBC "2+" in skilled areas got
> little or also no raise? And how come no MBA's for skill groups that
> have many well below their market base reference midpoint pay for
> PBC "2+" appraisals for many, many, consecutive years?
>
> 2007 was supposedly a banner year for profits and revenues in IBM.
> The executives did well and judging from their insider trades are
> still doing quite well for themselves.

This is the part that makes me so mad. With record revenues and
profits there should at least be some reward for the employees that
have worked so hard the last year.

> So all those profits went to stock buybacks for the executives to
> enjoy and none was put into the raise buckets for employees. So even
> if IBM has a bad QTR going forward the rainy day for the executive
is
> but a drizzle and not a drencher like it will be for the IBM
resource
> (we used to be called an employee).
>
> So what is next in 2009? Either no raises at all, less bonus pay if
> any at all, or more folks being added to the 7600 pay cut folks?
>
> I say we do our best now to work toward getting IBM to the table
with
> a collective bargaining agreement since we have to hold them to a
> written contract since they don't make any positive promises to us
> anymore and whatever ones they made in the past they seem free to
> break. If IBM had a great 2007 then our raises should reflect it
with
> at least an average raise at the rate of inflation!!! If 2008 is
> also stellar then we should also see better raises as well.

I agree. If more would just be willing to spend $10 a month to join
and show support to the Alliance we could have a chance of forcing
IBM to reward us for our hard work. Every week I talk to people at
my site and try to get them to join. Most of them say they would
rather not rock the boat and result in losing their job. Sometimes
it gets discouraging but I am not giving up. Who else is with me?