I hope you guys dont mind but I just wanted to get this off my chest, I posted a bit about it on another site but wanted to share it with anyone here who was interested.
I went out last Friday night for a drink with a number of ntl guys who were seeing off some of the latest people who were made redundant, there were probably around 15+ people who met in a pub in Cardiff to have a farewell drink with them, most of them were employees but also there were a small number of ex-employees like myself. One guy got a train from Swansea and another from Bridgend, the one guy leaving had worked for ntl around 5 years or so and his manager was able to make it for a few hours which I think was really appreciated. I certainly thought the guy went out of his way considering he lives a fair distance away and he had another commitment later that evening.
Anyway, the bit that really shocked me was the lack of any managers from the department of the other guy who was leaving. This guy had 45 years service with the company, Yes Forty Five years no typing error on my part. After all this time his managers couldn't even be bothered to turn up to wish him farewell and at least one of them lives in Cardiffvery close to thye centre. I know the managers of these guys are not held in very high esteem and are actually regarded as the lowest of the low by many, but it's not every week you get a guy leaving who has been with the company for that length of service.
I think it just shows how much good employees are appreciated, and make no mistake this guy was an asset to ntl that will be sorely missed. I have worked occassionally alongside him when I joined the company in 1987 and thought he deserved at least one of the field operation managers to turn up, I know they are probably scared about having a drink and getting all loose tongued and admitting what they actually think of ntl or taking some abuse from the employees that despise them but I still think its dispicable.
The guy with all this years service had about 4 years to go until retirement, but decided the time was right as he had been happy with his job until the start of this year when they really started treating people like s**t. He said he would of been happy to carry on if the treatment had not been so bad, and not many of the guys working for the "Telly Tubbies" as they are called in Cardiff are happy. This guy was also affected by the old common ntl wage problem when I worked alongside him, I was getting about £4-5K a year more than he was for doing the same job at one point. This situation went on for around 4 years so he lost in the region of £18k through this poor treatment. I was told of another who is ready to get up and walk any day now, and any further offers of voluntary redundancy in that department should not be short of takers with the current mood.
I heard many funny stories about new equipment for the network being sent back to stores because of the lack of cash, the stories about how few amplifiers they actually have as spares to cover the network and how they have got their soldering irons out changing boards between equipment to try and make one good amplifier out of two or three.
(bear this in mind when you see employees posting info about promised upgrades etc)
I think the company is in a very big shambles and I cannot see anyway forward for them, I have worked in a company with fairly large cable TV networks previously (like many others) and the company had no cash to buy equipment and had to repair/make do. Fortunately that company appreciated the need for good engineering people because when theres no cash to throw at problems you need good skilled people to get you out of the mucky stuff. In the old company that I worked for, I had to design and build equipment because cash was so short, and I was repairing equipment that was 30+ years old, and that equipment is not very different to the current HFC network gear.
Unfortunately the managers running ntl do not appreciate any engineering functions, we may of been from different departments, backgrounds and have different views on our Friday night out, but one thing we all agreed was that ntl are as someone put it "A callcentre company"
I guess that comment will not be appreciated by the CS people but what would tescos achieve if they got rid of all the people who stack the shelves? how long would the accountants, customer relations and checkout operators be in a job?
ntl have to change their attitude to maintain an end product for the customer if they are at all interested in the long term, which I believe they are not!
I know many have the opinion that the customer is the most important part of the product, but without good committed employees with the right skills the company has nowhere to go.
What do you guys think of the situation where not a single manager turned up for a guys leaving drink after 45 years?
ntl managers in Cardiff
Join CF
You are here: 
