Verizon workers may have been training their own replacements without realizing it. An employee has come forward claiming the carrier required staff to participate in mandatory AI role-playing exercises just weeks before announcing it would cut 13,000 jobs.
According to PhoneArena, the program started six weeks before CEO Dan Schulman publicly announced the massive layoffs in late November. Sales representatives had to interact with an AI system designed to improve customer service skills. While Verizon says the AI training wasn't meant to gather data for replacing workers, the timing has raised eyebrows among employees who participated.
The wireless carrier, which employs around 100,000 people, plans to eliminate roughly 13 percent of its workforce. Schulman has denied that AI is directly causing the job cuts, but the company has been pushing hard into artificial intelligence since June through an initiative called Project 624. That program uses AI to handle customer inquiries and support calls.
One former employee told the outlet that these AI training sessions became mandatory and more intense after Schulman took over as CEO. Before his arrival, the exercises were optional and less demanding. Business employees and consumer-facing staff both went through the training, though customer service reps faced more rigorous requirements.
Verizon hasn't confirmed whether employee responses during these role-playing sessions were used to train AI models. The company could have been using the exercises simply to give personalized coaching to workers struggling with customer retention, since Verizon has been bleeding subscribers for three straight quarters. But workers question why the program suddenly became mandatory right before thousands of layoffs were announced.
The layoffs have already started affecting Verizon's operations. Key management positions at retail stores have been eliminated, leaving remaining staff scrambling to cover more responsibilities. Some stores are understaffed, and customers are noticing longer wait times and reduced service quality.
Verizon didn't respond to requests for comment about whether the AI training program was connected to the workforce reduction. For now, employees are left wondering if they spent those six weeks teaching artificial intelligence how to do their jobs.
Source: PhoneArena
