dan schulman
Dan Schulman took the helm at Verizon in October 2025, inheriting a company trailing rivals and losing customers. (PHOTO: Dan Schulman/LinkedIn)

If you want to understand what 2026 holds for the American workforce, look no further than Verizon

When Dan Schulman took over as chief executive in October 2025, replacing Hans Vestberg, he inherited a telecom giant haemorrhaging customers and trailing behind rivals. His response was to announce the largest layoffs in the company's history, while openly stating that 'cost reductions will be a way of life' going forward.

For the 13,000 to 15,000 workers facing redundancy, that phrase is not just a corporate slogan. It signals the end of their careers.

$1.8 Billion Already on the Books

This is not speculation or rumours. According to SEC filings, Verizon has pre-booked severance charges of between $1.6 billion and $1.8 billion (£1.19 billion to £1.33 billion) for Q4 2025. More than 80% of affected employees had left by December 2025, with further cuts expected in the new year.

The layoffs account for around 20% of Verizon's non-unionised management workforce and approximately 13% of its total headcount of 99,600 employees. The company projects annual savings of between $3 billion and $4 billion (£2.2 billion to £2.9 billion) from this restructuring.

For context, Verizon has established a $20 million (£14.8 million) reskilling fund for departing workers. That works out to roughly $1,300 (£967) per eliminated position—barely enough to cover a month's rent in most American cities.

Blaming the Predecessor

Schulman has been unusually direct in attributing Verizon's troubles to his predecessor. During investor calls, he cited 'missteps' and 'overinvestments that failed to yield growth' under Vestberg's seven-year tenure. According to Light Reading, Verizon's share price fell by approximately 14% during Vestberg's leadership, while T-Mobile's stock quadrupled over the same period.

However, this narrative carries an awkward footnote. Schulman has served on Verizon's board since 2018 and was elected Lead Independent Director in December 2024, according to official company announcements. When signs of a plan's collapse are evident, one might wonder why those overseeing it didn't intervene sooner. Often, the employees who never saw these decisions coming end up paying the price when leaders make poor choices.

The Price War Reshaping 2026

Verizon's crisis reflects a broader industry reckoning. The telecommunications sector announced 38,035 layoffs in 2025—a staggering 268% increase from the previous year, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas. November 2025 alone saw 15,139 telecom job cuts, the highest monthly figure since April 2020.

The main culprit is a brutal price war. T-Mobile and AT&T have launched aggressive discounts on unlimited plans, eroding profit margins across the industry. Verizon's Q3 2025 results revealed a net loss of 7,000 postpaid phone customers, with churn reaching 0.91%. Meanwhile, T-Mobile added a million new customers in the same quarter—its strongest Q3 performance in over a decade.

For workers in 2026, the message is clear: when telecom companies compete primarily on price, employees become the margin that gets squeezed.

What Customers Should Expect

The Communications Workers of America has criticised the layoffs as shortsighted, warning that reducing frontline staff risks damaging an already fragile customer experience. In fact, Verizon ranked behind T-Mobile on J.D. Power's 2025 customer satisfaction list for paid plans.

Schulman's memo to staff promised to 'reorient our entire company around delivering for and delighting our customers.' Whether that promise is realised with 15,000 fewer employees remains to be seen.

What is certain is that Verizon has signalled workforce reductions are no longer a one-off event but part of an ongoing strategy. For the millions of American workers watching this unfold, the phrase 'a way of life' should serve as a warning. The job cuts reshaping 2026 have already begun.

Writer's pick