Welcome to 2008...

Today marks another sad day for many Embarq/Sprint retirees. Just last year the company took most its retirees' life insurance back, and today many retirees just lost their company sponsored medical plans.

But there is still hope. The class action lawsuits against the companies are underway. This is an ELECTION year and politicians are looking for issues. Competition is eating away at Embarq and its retirees are no longer its community cheerleaders.

Things may change.

eq65 has compiled a new action plan based on your input. Look for it here in a few days.

And be sure to check the news box on the right. Our cause is in the news again. We won't let this company forget its promises.

Hesse to Leave Embarq. Gerke to Lead Company.

BREAKING NEWS...

Dan Hesse is leaving immediately for the CEO post at SprintNEXTEL. Embarq announces Tom Gerke as its Interim CEO and William Owens as Chairman of the Board

For the latest news on this breaking story, click on the news links in the column on the right side of eq65.

Another Sunday Newspaper Feature: Benefit Cuts Stun Embarq Retirees

From the Southern Pines, N.C. Pilot...

When Helen Kaylor received a letter last summer from Embarq, she didn't want to open it. "I got the letter and it read, 'Important Benefits Informa-tion; Open Immediately,'" Kaylor said. When she opened it she learned that Embarq, the parent company of her former employer, which was known as Carolina Telephone and Telegraph when she worked here, was taking away medical benefits for all Medicare-eligible retirees effective Jan. 1, 2008.

"I couldn't believe it," Kaylor said.

Embarq will alsodrop its $500 annual subsidy for Medicare premiums, as well as coverage that pays partial costs when Medicare payments are below 80 percent of treatment expenses. The company also is capping life insurance for retirees at $10,000. According to some sources, the cuts are expected to affect 14,500 retirees and their spouses.

In a letter sent to the affected retirees, the company said: "Recent developments in the Medicare marketplace make it more practical and efficient for Medicare-eligible individuals to purchase medical coverage directly through a national carrier or one of the many companies who specialize in the Medicare market than for EMBARQ to provide this coverage."

A spokesperson for Embarq reiterated that statement in a interview.

"The bottom line is to stay competitive," said Tom Matthews, a regional medical relations manager for Embarq." He didn't elaborate.

Kaylor is one of the many retirees affected by the decision that Embarq representatives say will save the company $30 million.

The Embarq Operating Companies are telephone companies owned by Embarq that serve the regions in 18 states formerly served by Sprint, United Telecommunications, and Centel. The company has about 20,000 current employees.

Read the entire story, here...http://www.thepilot.com/stories/20071216/news/local/20071216benefitcuts.html

Letter to eq65: "...retirees have a tremendous impact in the service area."

From a Sprint Retiree...

It seems that since Embarq announced that they would stop providing medical benefits to their retirees that are Medicare Eligible, and reducing the life insurance for all, that their stock has taken a dive from the 60's dollar range to the 40's. I wonder if they have noticed this.

When I first came to work for the company I was told to keep the customers happy. They were really the ones providing my check. One satisfied customer can bring you 4 or 5 customers, but one dissatisfied customer can cost you 15 - 20 customers. Customer satisfaction was our #1 goal.

Yes, we are retired, but the retirees have a tremendous impact in the service area. We have worked in the area for years and know the people and they know us. We earned the customer's respect and that respect translated into respect for the company. We have boosted the company's image to our customers. Now the customers are hearing a different story from us. Now Embarq has a difficult time understanding that customers see what they are doing to us. It affects the respect and confidence that the customers have for Embarq.

Their money hungry attitude is seen by the customers as not only a untrustworthy attitude towards retirees that were faithful to them for their entire careers, but also a untrustworthy attitude towards the customers. When Embarq tries to draw customers with great promises, the customers look at the promises that they made to their retired employees and wonder, "Can I trust them?" The retirees that are struggling with their cut in benefits certainly are not going to tell anyone to trust Embarq anymore!!!

So rather than seeing Embarq as a community oriented business, they see it now as a group of money grabbing scoundrels that can not be trusted when they make promises. Not only in their promises to their retirees but as a company that the customers can not trust to keep its promises to them. That is part of the reason that they are loosing customers in such vast numbers.

The decrease in customers is also translating into a decrease in dividends to the stockholders, which Embarq say is part of the reason that they are taking these benefits from Retirees.

Maybe someone in the decision making branch of the company will wake up and smell the coffee.

Union Has a Good Case Against Embarq

From the CWA National Website...

CWA Charges Embarq's Slashing of Retiree Health Care is Illegal
November 8, 2007

CWA this week filed unfair labor practice charges with the NLRB against Embarq, contending the company's announced plan to slash retiree health benefits for future as well as current retirees is a unilateral change that ignores its obligation to bargain with the union.

The company earlier announced that it would drop retiree health benefits entirely for employees hired or rehired after Jan. 1, 2008, and further, that it was cutting health care for current retirees who are Medicare-eligible, as well as capping their life insurance at $10,000. The latter cuts average $2,000 per year for each of the 14,500 retirees and dependents affected, both management and union.

The initial charges were filed in Tennessee and North Carolina and further charges will be filed in 11 other states where CWA represents Embarq workers. The company was created last year as the spinoff of Sprint's local phone operations.

Embarq Trades at 52 Week Low: 49.31

July 26th, 2007 was the day Embarq dropped the bomb that it was breaking its promises to its retirees. EQ stock was trading at $61 per share. Yesterday it hit a new 1 year low: $49.31

Click the chart above to enlarge it.

While Embarq's executives continue trumpeting innovation and a renewed emphasis on service, Wall Street apparently sees things a little differently. The true story of Embarq is continued union unrest, angry retirees, misleading advertising, businesses that refuse to return from competition, and poor morale company-wide.

Workers in KC are stressed beyond belief.

The old Sprint mentality lingers at this company as well.

CEO Dan Hesse, said this to investors during the Q3 call:

"We have been focusing first and foremost on finding ways to decrease what we call bad load; for example, customers who call because they can't understand their bill which requires an EMBARQ service rep to spend time on the phone explaining that bill or customers who call with a service problem which requires us to dispatch a technician to their home or to their business."

What?!

Customers who need service from this company are classified as bad load?

To see what happens when a company puts profits ahead of customers, one need look no further than Sprint. KC brass decided to no longer delight customers, and went for profits above everything else. And today Sprint traded at a 52 week low as well: $14.67 Sprint is the ideal company to study in management schools today. Profits above service = disaster.

Embarq executives need to delight customers, empower employees, and keep promises to retirees. All three groups wield a big influence in the company's dial-tone areas. Until Embarq brings back simple honesty and integrity, profits will continue to slide.

No one wants to do business with robber-barons. And as the telco continues losing market-share like this, investors will continue avoiding EQ.

'A slap in the face': Embarq retirees latest to feel benefits squeeze

Another weekend, and another Sunday feature story on Embarq's need to 'fleece the elderly for profit'.

When these news stories appear in a Sunday edition the readership is greatly increased. Plus, the Sunday paper usually lays around many homes for days at a time. This greatly enhances the story's exposure.

Thank you, Northwest Florida Daily News, for reporting our story.

Printed below are the first several paragraphs of the article. Again, for legal reasons, eq65 cannot reproduce the entire story.

For nearly 15 years, Embarq retiree James Kimbrell has enjoyed a generous retirement package. The medical and life insurance benefits have brought him peace of mind and helped pay for medications, doctor's visits and cancer treatments for his late wife, Ann. Kimbrell never imagined he could lose them, but that's exactly what will happen Jan. 1. Embarq, formerly Sprint, is eliminating medical benefits for all retirees and capping life insurance benefits at $10,000.

"It's a slap in the face," said Kimbrell, who worked for the companies that eventually became Embarq for a total of 39 years. "They were promised to me."

Crestview resident J.R. Clay, who worked 32 years at Centel and Sprint, agrees and has raised the idea of filing a class-action lawsuit. He has organized meetings for local retirees affected by the cuts.

"Every retiree was told that he would have this health insurance for the rest of his life," Clay said.

Click here for the entire story...
http://www.sprint-embarqretirees.org/News_Release/Northwest_Florida.htm

A New Web Address To Bookmark...

A new web site targeting Embarq/Sprint retirees debuted today.

It's at http://www.sprint-embarqretirees.org/ and promises to keep an entire nation of telco retirees informed and involved.

If retirees from the Bell companies can have retirement sites, then why can't we? So far there is nothing on the internet like it for Embarq retirees. Our telco veterans really need a place to point their browsers for retiree news, reunions, marriages, etc. So this is a promising development.

The site is in its infancy today, but look for it to grow in the coming months.

Welcome to the web, sprint-embarqretirees.org !

And as for this site...

eq65 remains singularly focused on Embarq's theft of retiree benefits. Continue visiting eq65.com for newsclips, opinions, web-links, activism and education.

You deserved better from Embarq's leadership.

And eq65 is doing the best that it legally can to help you during retirement.

Thanks for reading!

Unholy Alliance Fleeces Social Security Recipients

From Laura Rowley's column,

Money & Happiness

(as posted at Yahoo! Finance)

Virginia grandmother Ruby Fauntleroy, 74, knew something was wrong when her rent payment bounced shortly after her Social Security check had been direct-deposited into her bank account.

Fauntleroy went to the bank, where a teller told her that the account was frozen following notice of a court judgment and garnishment order by Capital One. Fauntleroy had been trying to pay off this $4,000 credit card debt for years, but dropped her monthly payment to $100 after her husband died and her income declined. Capital One sued, and won a judgment.

"I was just numb, I couldn't believe this could happen," said Fauntleroy. "I told the bank, 'You know nobody is supposed to take a government check,' but they did. I couldn't sleep at night, I couldn't eat. I thought, why are they doing this to me when I was trying to pay [my debt]?"

Read the rest of the article here...
http://finance.yahoo.com/print/expert/article/moneyhappy/53832

A quick summary of the column...

If you are retired, and having problems keeping up with credit card debt, it may be best to have your Social Security check mailed to a post office box. Otherwise, you may find your money in the hands of someone else. This practice is illegal. But apparently it is a growing problem.

Retiree Meeting Planned In Ocala

Embarq Retirees have scheduled a meeting at the Ocala library on Saturday, November 17 at 10 a.m. in Conference Room C. Discussion will be focused on litigation, insurance planning, and progress so far.

The Sprint / Florida Telephone Company Retirees website is at http://www.sflltdretiree.com/

Are Minorities The Hardest Hit By This Theft?

Earlier today your eq65 editor spoke with a former Embarq central office technician about the way minorities were treated at CT&T before Affirmative Action hiring and promotion practices.

Basically we wondered why a black man always seemed to be assigned to cleaning buildings and lifting heavy things. Suddenly, we both realized that many minority families will be hit especially hard by Embarq's theft of life insurance, removal of medical benefits , and even the removal of the corporate-matching program.

Years of doing the hard work, with much less pay, was to be rewarded these workers at their retirement. The pensions at retirement would be smaller in comparison to other retirees, but the medical and life insurance would make years of cleaning offices worth it.

The man I spoke with today remembered hearing something telling from the janitor. In essence, "My supervisor can't pay me a lot, my raises are small, but at 65 I'll be sitting pretty!"

He never thought of leaving for better pay, I guess.

I know that many African-Americans are executives at Embarq today. But that wasn't always the case. Ask around.

Years of unequal pay makes minority retirees particularly insecure today, because they are less likely to have disposable income to pay for health care. And without meaningful life insurance, they are not afforded a decent funeral. The sad thing is - they held on to those promises through years of assurance - only to see them stolen today - and when they need help the most.

So tonight I'm praying for the minority families affected by Ned Holland's decision. He's a greedy man. And I'm not about to let this go on without writing about it here.

Bucking A Trend; Embarq CEO Invests $1/4 Million in Company

Dan Hesse, the chairman, president and CEO of Embarq bought 5,000 shares of common stock this past Monday. The shares were purchased at $50 a piece. This means that Hesse invested $250,000 into Embarq sans options.

That's the old fashioned way managers and executives invested in their companies prior to the arrival of the 'stock option'.

eq65 salutes Mr. Hesse for adding to - not taking from - Embarq's coffers.

Now if he could only right the wrongs done to the company's retirees!

NC AARP: The AARP Medicare Advantage Plan Is Not Really an AARP Product

According to a story from this week's Raleigh News & Observer, the state office of the AARP warns retirees that the national organization has leased its name to other companies. In turn there is no AARP oversight of the plan or its customer service. Read the story here...
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/v-print/story/769501.html

AP: Changes Ahead For Medicare Drug Program

Associated Press writer Kevin Freking has discovered a large disparity among Medicare Part D drug plans. On the low end, some monthly premiums are as low as $10. Enhanced plans can cost as much as $108.

With Medicare open enrolment starting tomorrow and running through December 31st, it pays to shop around for the best policy.

Read the entire A.P. article here, courtesy of the Raleigh, N.C. News & Observer...
http://www.newsobserver.com/2187/v-print/story/759235.html

Letter to eq65: Options Are Welfare For Executives Paid by Workers

A frequent reader sent this to eq65 today. His point is valid and I really can't think of much to add. Except this: When an officer exercises an option, the money to pay him(her) comes right out of the corporation's cash profits. As the business shrinks, Embarq's board keeps granting these insane stock options to executives while those same executives steal benefits from the company's oldest retirees.

It smacks of executive greed, and lax board oversight.
I don't like it.

Here's the reader's note...

For companies not growing a customer base, I view stock options to officers and management as a form of welfare. These people already make too much in salary and perks; consequently, nothing can be done to lower prices and stop the bleeding or win back former customers. Emphasis is placed on layoffs, worker benefit cuts, and picking on those whose income is fixed so Wall Street can be placated.

Yet since near June, EQ stock has lost $15 per share.

Embarq has many problems that existing officers are not equipped to fix. Yet, go to this link and see all the selling among these 6 officers. Total sales of more than $25 million. And the site does not list sales less than $500,000
http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor/invsub/insider/trans.asp?Symbol=EQ

If the site is unreachable, here is the data...
Date======Name=============Transaction=Shares==Price(s)=Value===
11/05/07.....HOLLAND E J JR.............Sold.............27,408...$53.38....$1.46 Mil
07/30/07 ...CAMPBELL HARRISON...Sold..............34,752...$61.72....$2.14 Mil
05/07/07 ...HOLLAND E J JR.............Sold..............37,307...$62.79...$2.34 Mil
05/07/07 ...MCEVOY THOMAS J........Sold..............23,794...$62.85...$1.50 Mil
05/02/07 ...CHEEK WILLIAM E..........Sold.............61,285....$59.96...$3.67 Mil
05/01/07 ...BETTS GENE M.................Sold..............10,186...$60.00...$611,227
05/01/07 ...GERKE THOMAS A...........Sold............125,477...$59.86...$7.51 Mil
02/28/07 ...BETTS GENE M.................Sold............103,395...$55.80...$5.77 Mil
02/28/07 ...GERKE THOMAS A...........Sold...............22,124...$55.48...$1.23 Mil

Follow-Up: Options Sold As Part of Divorce Settlement

A frequent reader did some research on the previous story posted here at eq65 (see below) concerning Embarq's Senior V.P. of Human Resources and his recent stock sell-off. Here's what he found...

According to the SEC filing, Ned Holland was forced to cash in half of his options due to a divorce settlement. Read the Form 4 filing here...
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1350031/000118143107067274/xslF345/rrd177505.xml

From the notes on the Form 4: "Mr. Holland exercised 50% of his vested in-the-money options and sold the underlying shares pursuant to a property settlement agreement with his former spouse."

Mr. Holland did not include any explanations with his May 2007 exercise, seen here...
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1350031/000118143107030607/xslF345/rrd157635.xml
One can assume that this sale was also a part of the settlement.

So if you have been wondering whether Mr. Holland is on his way out the door, then put those thoughts aside. It looks like he will be at Embarq for a while longer - and greedier than ever.

His 'ex' gets half!

Ned Holland Cashes In More Stock Options

E.J. 'Ned' Holland cashed-in a lot of Embarq management stock options this week. The gross sale was $1,463,039 It is hard to figure the exact profit made with the sale, because the options were purchased for amounts between $15.37 and $33.86 per share. He sold 27,408 shares at $53.38

If you do the math on the numbers, he netted somewhere between $1/2 million to $1 million.

So why would a Senior VP at Embarq unload these valuable options now?

Only three reasons come to mind:

• First - He really needs some cash right now. Maybe he has some personal debt that he wants to pay off, like a court settlement. Or maybe he wants to finish making payments on some real estate. He may want a building named after himself at a college, so he could have cashed-in for charity. He may even want to fund a study on Medicare and retirees! But whatever he wants to do with the proceeds, he needs the cash NOW.


• Second - Mr. Holland may want to shift some of his assets to a retirement account or another investment - one that offers a better return than EQ stock.


• Third - He may think that 53.38 is as high as EQ will trade for awhile, so he cashed-in while he could. If that's what he thinks - then Ned Holland is the wrong man for the job of Senior VP of Human Resources.

Please understand that stock options are not 'Free Money'. Any sale directly affects a company's bottom line. For more info, see Employee Stock Option and Insider Trading at Wikipedia...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Employee_stock_option
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insider_trading

He also cashed-in earlier this year. See...http://biz.yahoo.com/t/62/7073.html

The cash going to Mr. Holland this week comes right out of the expense budget at Embarq, just like your stolen benefits would, and decreased life insurance. That means he gets money that was supposed to go to you.

So while Mr. Holland belittles Embarq's retirees, raises premiums on those with jobs, and steals life insurance plans from their families, (all while screaming, "Competition! Competition! Competition!") - Isn't it nice to know that he, Ned Holland, the man that pulled the trigger, took home all that cash this week?

What a nice guy.

Please Visit the Association Of BellTel Retirees

Please visit the Association of BellTel Retirees... http://www.belltelretirees.org/

They run ProtectSeniors.org and have been very helpful to all retired Americans, not just former workers of Ma Bell.


From the site's main page...

When HR1322 becomes law, it will guarantee continuance of your subsidized healthcare and give back money and services previously taken away. Part of our current objective, and it should be yours too, is to educate Congress and the Main Stream Media to the fact that removal of this "earned" benefit from retirees, constitutes a multi-billion dollar theft by corporate America. A theft of not a "promised gift," but an earned benefit no different than your pension! Yes, one which retirees EARNED by working 20, 30 or 40 years or more at less pay and fewer vacation days than we could have earned elsewhere.

Never allow any Radio/TV commentator or other news media person get away with saying something like this: "Corporate retirees are lucky their company still offers this gift." Or "Corporation X can't afford this benevolent "welfare" benefit for retirees anymore."

You, as a retiree, earned your healthcare benefit! It is not a gift! Call or write the offending media source and give them the facts. Tell them, how every year you worked, you were given an update of what your healthcare and other benefits in retirement were worth. During all your years of service you were constantly reminded by upper level management that your retirement benefits package was a real sweet deal. They always pulled this out when you were considering quitting. After all, it was a known fact at all levels of the Corporation, that this company would always take care of their retirees... How things have changed.

Please tell a friend who is retired from any US corporation or about to be retired about ProtectSeniors.Org It is not just for Bell or Verizon folks, it is for all seniors who have healthcare insurance subsidized by their former company. Refer them to the ProtectSeniors.Org website.

A permanent link for the Association of BellTel Retirees has been added to the right-side column here at eq65.

12 Things That All Embarq Retirees Must Do...

Your eq65 editor has been tossing these items around on the hard drive for months. They come from readers and random notes written on scratch paper beside my keyboard.

eq65 is not set up to give orders, recommendations, or warnings. You come here for news, education, and opinion. But today is the day for a change. eq65 is posting the 12 things that Embarq retirees must do as January 1st approaches.

Email the site if you want to add an item, or if you disagree with one.

Here are the 12 items...

1)Get Involved Locally
Networking with other retirees is the best way to learn about potential legal action and alternative benefit plans. If no local retiree group meets near you, considering forming a new group with others nearby. The local meetings are what started the fight for action, and they continue to be the best source for accurate information.

2)Contact Elderly Retirees
The way that Embarq presented its benefit theft in the mail was classic PR double-talk.

The staff that designed the mailings and retiree web page should go to work for the Internal Revenue Service. Can you imagine the audit notices that they would send? It would say, "Congratulations! You have been randomly selected for our free accounting service! We at the IRS are ready to help. Please call the number below today so that we can set up your free session!"

The point here is simple. A lot of older retirees think that this is a wonderful thing that is about to occur on January 1st. "The letter said so!" They have been discarding the Aetna mailings because they don't want to change away from what they have right now. They just do not understand that their benefits are going away. Please find these elderly people and inform them about what Embarq is really doing.

3)Watch Out For Swindlers
Insurance agencies (good ones and bad ones) are starting to advertise in many newspapers with ads targeted directly to Embarq retirees. Most of these ads do not have the insurance company's name included. You may think that the upcoming meeting publicized in the paper is a retiree function. But it may be an insurance pitch, retirement scam, or pyramid scheme. Don't be taken by the crooks. They know that Embarq retirees are now in a pinch - and they smell money. Please be careful!

4)Write Your Local Newspaper
Letters to the editor are a great way to get the story out. Editors sometimes choose to follow-up these letters with their own stories or editorials.

5)Contact Your State and Federal Legislators
Postcards are really inexpensive. Emails are free. Let everyone in power know your story. When contacting your U.S. House Member, be sure to tell them to support House Bill HR1322.

6)Join The Legal Fight
Don't worry about potential cost at this point. Just fill out the interest form and be heard. Write out your hardships. If money becomes an issue later in the legal fight, it appears that financial help may be available.

7)Tell Your Story To Everyone
Word-of-mouth is powerful. Tell your beautician, pastor, doctor, mechanic, brothers, sisters, and grandchildren. This is a theft of your earned benefits by a corporation that rakes in over a billion dollars every three months. Let everyone share your anger. Embarq is NOT a communications company that honors its commitments.

8)Don't Change Your Story Due To Coercion
You paid a price to build Embarq. You gave away your youth for a promise of financial and medical assistance when you were older. Don't let anyone tell you anything differently. The phrase "I was lead to believe, that when I retired..." is what Embarq's legal machine wants you to say. Don't EVER say that. Instead, tell it like it is! Say, "I was told, that when I retired...". See the difference? A jury will.

9)Maintain Your Integrity
Words that you say, or type, should be honest and heartfelt. Anger and sarcasm is O.K. at times. But by all means - never lie. Honor your fellow retirees. Don't make up stories or spread rumour. Be bigger than Embarq's PR people - have integrity.

10)Stay Informed
Don't become so discouraged with Embarq that you ignore the coming change. Go to meetings. Read all of your Embarq mailings. Check Google or Yahoo News for 'Embarq'. Visit protectseniors.com, union sites, and eq65.com

11)Don't Buy Into Rumour
Embarq's executives would love for you to think that your pension will vanish if your benefits are restored. Or that the company is so close to bankruptcy right now, that any legal action would result in worthless stock and pensions. Don't be taken in by rumours. Embarq is healthy. And they want most of your earned benefits back to grow the company - and executive pay.

12)Plan For The Worst
Finally, look for good insurance/medicare plans. They are available, but not free. Your local lunch club is a great place to discuss the options.

KC Star: Embarq to cut about 1,000 jobs by end of year

Embarq's executives say they are continuing to benchmark the company against its competitors in the cable and wireless business. They are also studying companies similar to Embarq, such as Windstream and CenturyTel. This apparently is leading to another round of layoffs.

With news of continued firings, labor unrest, and retiree theft, it appears that Embarq's leadership no longer wants the company to be an industry leader. Nor do they want to be a community leader. (Except for in KC where the brass gets their hair done.) Touted innovation appears to be cheap tricks with recurring monthly billing of $7 or more.

Instead, when you think of the nightmare that is your local cable company - you can begin to lump Embarq right in there with them. It's easy to imagine the new shrunken Embarq with the same awful level of commitment to customers, retirees, and workers. And of course, your bills will be higher every year.

Are they also benchmarking executive salaries, golden parachutes, and lawsuits? Let's get on that right away!

eq65 will have a follow-up story on this next week. Sources are being verified.

From this morning's Kansas City Star...

Embarq Corp. is cutting about 1,000 jobs as it relies on streamlining and more aggressive marketing to counter a soft economy and cutthroat competition.

The Overland Park-based company, which employs about 19,000 workers overall and 4,500 in the region, did not break out where it would reduce the positions of employees and contractors by the end of the year.

The news comes as Embarq, which was spun off from Sprint Nextel Corp. in 2006, issued a third-quarter financial report that showed continued pressure on profits and further erosion of the 6.5 million phone lines it serves across portions of 18 states.

“We can streamline our operations considerably,” said Dan Hesse, Embarq’s chairman and chief executive officer.

Read the entire article here...

http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/343488.html

KC Star: Former Sprint and Embarq Workers Speak Out

Workspace is a weblog, or blog, from the Kansas City Star's Diane Stafford. She has compiled quite a few comments from Sprint and Embarq retirees that wrote to the paper after Gary Forsee took his golden parachute. Click here to see the blog post... http://workspacekc.typepad.com/workspace_by_diane_staffo/2007/10/former-sprint-a.html

Law Firm To Represent ALL Affected Embarq Retirees

The Sandals Law Firm is interested in working with all Embarq retirees nationwide, except those from the CT&T group. Due to some complications with CT&T's VEBA, another group has elected to handle CT&T retirees separately.

There is a form on the Sprint Florida Retiree site...
http://www.sflltdretiree.com/Client_Form/embarqclientForm.doc

This form is not a financial commitment, but a show of interest.
Anyone who signs and returns it will have an opportunity to bow out later.

Fill out the form and email/fax/mail it to...
Alan M Sandals
SANDALS & ASSOCIATES, P.C.
One South Broad St.
Suite 1850
Philadelphia, PA 19107
ph 215-825-4005
Fax 215-825-4001
email: asandals@sandalslaw.com

From the Florida site...
Mr. Sandals has interest in representing us but feels and is encouraging us to reach out to everyone across the country and get them involved. If anyone knows of anyone in other areas they should spread the word.

Anyone wanting to review the credentials for this firm can go to their website at http://www.sandalslaw.com/.

EEOC Vs. AARP Ruling: Another blow to retirees' subsidized healthcare

Reprinted Article from Aging News Report via ProtectSeniors.org

A new ruling continues allowing healthy corporations to break written promises of benefits to Medicare-eligible retirees.

Life insurance changes are not addressed in this order.

The 3rd U.S. Circuit of Appeals in Philadelphia gives the go-ahead to the Equal Employment OpportunityCommission (EEOC) to finalize its proposed rule to permit employers to reduce health benefits when employees or retirees become eligible for Medicare or a state health plan.

AARP, which sued to block the rule in 2005, will ask the Supreme Court to overturn the June 4 ruling by the 3rd Circuit in favor of the EEOC. AARP asked the 3rd Circuit to keep an injunction barring implementation of the ruling in effect until the Supreme Court acts, but the request was denied Sept. 13 and the EEOC sent the proposed final rule to the Office of Management & Budget for review five days later. AARP also asked Supreme Court Justice David Souter, who has jurisdiction over the 3rd Circuit, to restore the injunction but AARP is notified Sept. 19 its request was denied.

Implementation of the regulation will remove senior citizens from the protection of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) with regard to age-based reductions or terminations of their health insurance, says Laurie McCann, senior attorney for AARP. “These individuals are at significant risk of being saddled with an often enormous financial burden that employer-provided health insurance previously deflected,” she tells ANA. “This will happen at a point in their lives when they are not in a position to commence saving strategies to help meet those costs or seek employment to secure alternative coverage.”

EEOC says the exemptions will make it possible for employers to continue to offer some health coverage to retirees because of the lower costs from making Medicare-eligible employees depend on it for some of their care. McCann says current law does not require employers to duplicate what Medicare provides. McCann asserts the regulation will permit employers to provide benefits to pre-65 employees and nothing to post-65 employees.

The EEOC regulation, which was initially proposed July 14, 2003, would exempt employers from the age discrimination provisions of the ADEA for reducing healthcare coverage for some seniors (those over 65). Initially, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ruled in favor of AARP in March 2005. But that court reversed itself later that year in the wake of a Supreme Court decision that strengthened federal agencies’ authority to interpret statutes.

Unlike pension benefits, health benefits do not vest (become guaranteed) and some employers have reduced or eliminated them. Courts have looked to the specific contracts to determine whether the employers’ action were lawful.

ProtectSeniors.org Note: This gives corporations right to remove your healthcare subsidy if over 65. The only recourse is to pass HR1322 which would guarantee these benefits as a contractual obligation of Corporations that can not be taken away. See if your member of Congress supports HR1322. Click here to go to the page of Cosponsors If he or she is not there go to top of page and enter your zip code into block under "WRITE TO CONGRESS" and you will be taken to our alerts page where you will find a sample letter.

eq65 Note: ProtectSeniors.org always has a link on the right side of the page. Please be sure to visit their webpage. Unlike eq65, ProtectSeniors is an organization with the framework to fight for your benefits in Washington. The group was formed by a group of telephone retirees that were taken to the cleaners after retirement, just like Embarq retirees are facing today. Consider giving to ProtectSeniors if you are able. They are a frugal organization that uses your donations wisely.

EMail: "Bad public relations..."

An anonymous email to eq65...

Cutting medical coverage for retirees hurt the company more than it has helped in my opinion.

The bad public relations from cutting health care for medicare eligible employees had to hurt them in lost customers. I'm sure the people who lost their coverage are not recommending them for phone service. And that is about 14000 retirees.

They should concentrate more on providing better service to their customers.

Analysis: Embarq CEO Has Read the Riot Act

A frequent contributor to eq65 has passed along this article about Embarq's future as a total communications company.

So far, Embarq hasn't really brought any real innovation to the market. Its combined home/wireless voicemail platform has been around since 1991. Follow-Me Forwarding has been a part of its digital offices since the days of Sprint's Advanced Business Connection (Centrex).

Other than bringing DSL to rural markets and fiber-to-the-home in certain targeted areas, there hasn't really been any innovation at Embarq. (Taking retiree benefits is not considered innovation, just unethical theft.)

The analysis also briefly mentions a couple of items that gives ulcers to investors, employees, and retirees alike. Embarq's headquarters is located far from the real meat of the company: Nevada, Florida, and the NC/TN/VA area. And Sprint basically used its local division as a cash cow for the past 10 or so years, without investing any cash to keep the division competitive.

Here's a brief excerpt...

CEO, Dan Hesse, has put Embarq’s second level management’s feet to the fire.

Hesse, who was brought in from the outside to make the company competitive, has made it clear recently that the service provider is at a crossroads – either it maintains the status quo and lives with the consequences or it truly looks to grow and move ahead. While the delivered message seems a little bit extreme, and perhaps even childish, it needed to be said in order to open the eyes of a good number of the staff.

Hesse also expects every employee to be an Embarq sales representative. The only problem is one of practicality – the corporate headquarters is not in the telco’s territory.

The data folks at Embarq who have never been exposed to a regulated telephony environment, believe they can run all over the place and make major alterations right away despite the fact that the ILEC was on hold so long as part of Sprint. The transport capacity is usually not in place to meet their expectations.

For the entire analysis, written by Sam Greenholtz of Telecom Pragmatics, click here... http://www.glgroup.com/News/Embarq-CEO-has-read-the-riot-act-17930.html

Letter: "When is this insanity going to end?"

F. Mark Longcrier of Willow Spring, N.C. has written a letter to the Smithfield, N.C. Herald critical of executive greed at several North Carolina companies. He makes a very good point concerning politicians as well. You will need to click on the link below to read the entire letter, but here is a brief excerpt...

Goodyear just announced plans to cut my retiree take-home pay by 6 percent and cancel my life-insurance policy. At age 72, it will cost me $200 or more per month to replace that policy.

And yet the state is giving Goodyear a $40 million incentive that could stretch to about $57 million?

Embarq is cutting retiree benefits while paying its chief executive a $100,000 bonus to get his salary to $1 million. I can’t even switch to another carrier in protest.

Blue Cross Blue Shield, a nonprofit, made a $56.2 million profit in the second quarter but expects to increase rates 10 to 15 percent because of rising health-care costs.

Where did the profit go unless for executive-pay increases?

The scary thing about this letter is that Goodyear is cutting Mark's pension by 6%.
Click here to read the letter...http://www.theherald-nc.com/opinion/story/5689.html

Newspaper: New health plan irks Embarq retirees

Embarq's theft of retiree benefits is featured in Saturday's Charlottesville Daily Progress. Here is an excerpt from the Virginia newspaper...

When Vera Terrell retired from her clerk job with Sprint in 1993, she thought she would be set for life when it came to insurance.

Terrell, now 73, stayed with the company for 23 years. The Charlottesville resident retired with $25,000 in life insurance and the ability to keep her prescription drug plan and health insurance through Sprint.

But Terrell won’t have the perks much longer.

Embarq, which split off from Sprint a year and a half ago, sent a letter to its 14,000 retirees July 26 telling them their health and life insurance policies would change significantly by 2008, ending some coverage to retirees...

Embarq’s move will save the company $30 million annually, spokesman Charles Fleckenstein said. The affected include retirees from Sprint and Centel...

The telecommunications company, based in Overland Park, Kan., will no longer offer medical coverage for people eligible for Medicare, will stop providing a monthly subsidy for Medicare premiums and cap its life insurance benefit at $10,000.

Charitable contributions made by any employee or retiree stopped being matched by the company after Sept. 1. Embarq will continue to offer medical coverage to retirees and dependents who are ineligible for Medicare.

The company’s initial letter to the retirees said recent changes in Medicare make it “more practical and efficient” for eligible individuals to buy coverage directly through a national carrier...

Bishop, who was with the company for 34 years, said many Embarq employees remained with Sprint and Centel to reach the maximum of $40,000 in post-retirement life insurance. For Terrell, the life insurance cap is the worst part of Embarq’s anouncement.

“You can’t even bury yourself for $10,000,” Terrell said. “You are actually leaving your spouse with nothing...”

Embarq has been receiving some feedback on the changes from retirees, too.

“I can’t comment on the response,” Fleckenstein said. “Retirees have been letting us know how they feel.”

See the entire story here...

http://www.dailyprogress.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=CDP%2FMGArticle%2FCDP_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1173353262831&path=!news

You Cannot Shrink Your Way To Greatness

Apparently Wall Street is not happy that Embarq's management has confessed to giving up its fight with cable and wireless. EQ stock started off today at 56.50 and as I type this note, it is at 54.50. A loss of $2 per share.

The comments that Mr. Holland made yesterday are the only thing that I can find suggesting this selloff...“We are not going to wait until we have a problem to do the right things... We are doing them in anticipation of remaining competitive.”

That "in anticipation of" statement signals that he believes Embarq can't compete in the future, and that problems lie ahead. Mr. Holland may be thinking, "We have to let people go, because when won't have as much business."

But Wall Street investors perceive a dying company that is casting off newly unneeded manpower.

Regardless of the reason for the sell off, Embarq's executives like to make big announcements like this before quarterly conference calls. It shows investors that they are getting things done - no matter how poor the decisions are. The next call is November 1st. Expect more big announcements before the call.

Your editor read an interesting anonymous post at kansascity.com...

I have never heard anything good about EJ Holland. He ran Payless Cashways in the ground. He was a hatchet man for Sprint. All he cares about is his own pocketbook and has no compassion for anyone. Talk about an ego!

Well, the truth is Mr. Holland personally lost lots of cash today. So did a lot of other investors. Embarq needs to grow. Not shrink. Investors know this fundamental fact.

Because you cannot shrink when you face competition.

Letter to Editor: "...Ultimate Disregard for Our Health Needs."

Martha Lamm of Nashville, N.C. wrote to the editor of the Rocky Mount, N.C. Telegram...

I also was hired by Carolina Telephone & Telegraph, later Sprint, later Embarq.

It seems to me the loyalty we (as retirees) gave the company so it would prosper cost us our very standard of living and the ultimate disregard for our health needs.

In the letter all retirees received, under the headline "Practical Ingenuity," and I quote, "This is our promise to customers and the marketplace. We found it more practical and efficient for Medicare-eligible individuals to receive medical coverage directly through national carriers who specialize in the Medicare market than for Embarq to provide this coverage."

What about the promise to us for our dedication and service?

Visit the Rocky Mount Telegram online at... http://www.rockymounttelegram.com/

So Far - An Incredible October

Thanks for visiting eq65.com!

For Older Retirees - A Financial Nightmare

Rochelle Cobb, 67, the wife of a Sprint retiree Cullen Cobb, 77, has been comparing the cost of various life insurance plans, as well as Medicare supplement policies. Sadly, she has been finding that premiums are much higher now than they were when the couple was younger. No insurance company has turned her down, but the monthly premiums are more than they can comprehend.

Mrs. Cobb sent eq65 a note a few weeks ago - and with her permission - here is an excerpt...

…How can it be more practical and efficient when the retiree who has paid nothing for supplemental coverage, now has to fork out monthly insurance premiums ranging from $153 to $230 per retiree and the same for the spouse, depending on which carrier you select.

My husband worked for Carolina Telephone, then Sprint for 40 years and this is what he gets in return for his hard worked hours. It is individuals like him who made this company what it is today.

The money they have taken away from the retirees benefits have benefited Mr. Foresee, and undoubtedly he will not have any benefits taken away from him for screwing up the lives of so many former employees.

Just thought you would be interested in the whopping insurance fees that the retirees will now have to start paying out of their pockets monthly, for a benefit that was promised to them verbally years ago.

That with the loss of life insurance benefits is a lot to absorb.

My prayers are with the Cobbs and others during this trying ordeal. Maybe they can find some solace in knowing that many different people are working as hard as they can to convince Embarq to not take earned retiree benefits.

We have 69 more days to work. And aren't giving up without a fight.

Embarq Calls For Voluntary Workforce Reduction

A letter was distributed throughout Embarq's Network Services group last Tuesday advising them that preselected employees have been chosen to voluntarily resign. Apparently these people would get a sweetened deal to step aside for the good of the company. The Kansas City Star broke the story to the internet today at...
http://www.kansascity.com/business/companies/story/328500.html

Now that this story has been outed by the traditional media, eq65 can share with you a copy of the note that went out to Embarq's Network employees:

From: May, Frank H [EQ]
Sent: Wed 10/17/2007 6:30 AM
Subject: Workforce Reduction - Voluntary Separation

Dear Colleagues:

Since launching EMBARQ, we have focused on continuous improvement and innovation in our products and processes to become an increasingly stronger competitor. As part of that focus, we’ve benchmarked ourselves against industry leaders to deter