Former Insurance Company Employee Gets Fired After 22 Years, Then Confronts the CEO

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Oct 10, 2022 11:00 AM EDT

Sometimes, the only way to truly make your point heard is to be loud about it and to go straight for the top. In this case, this former GEICO employee was laid off with very little explanation after working at the company for over 20 years. He could have walked away and left his side of the story unheard, but instead, he wrote a strongly worded letter to the CEO and shared this letter via this thread on Reddit's r/antiwork subreddit.

 

Let's hope that the issues raised in this letter are addressed for the benefit of other employees at GEICO whose jobs may be on the line, but let's also hope that other CEOs and people in positions of power take note. Even if layoffs are uncontrollable or inevitable, there are infinitely smarter ways to handle them than the way GEICO did in this situation. Next to no explanation after two decades is heartless. If "15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance," then at least 15 minutes of transparency from the CEO could help save this company's reputation.

 

For more content like this, check out this post about another CEO who had it coming. Keep scrolling below for the full letter!

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  • 01
    Font - I was laid off today. This is the letter I have for the CEO. Mr. Todd Combs, December would have been my 22nd Anniversary at GEICO. I came to GEICO after being laid of from a former employer. My former employer was generous enough to let the company know about 6 months in advance that layoffs would be occurring. They prepared us for it. I was not surprised when I got the call into my managers office and she told me that the company I worked for was being bought out, and my position would
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 02
    Font - Today, I was completely blindsided. I was told that after 22 years of service, to turn in my laptop. I was not given much of an explanation, and when I asked about a severance, it was an insult. You sir, have been with the company for 2 years. You have made more money in the past 2 months than I made in my entire 22 year career with GEICO. You make more money in one hour than I make in an entire month, yet you cannot afford me. Let me state that again Mr. Combs; you make more money in one
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 03
    Font - Mr Combs, you have lost the most important thing a company has: the pride of its workforce. You see, before you came here, people enjoyed GEICO. People were proud to say they worked for GEICO. People did more than what was asked because we felt like it mattered. We know if we did our best, we might be rewarded with a larger profit sharing check. That pride is gone. You lost the buy ins of your employees. You lost the passion that we were willing to give. You are now left with fearful empl
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 04
    Font - We are all adults. We understand layoffs occur. We understand that difficult decisions need to be made in business. We only ask for two things: one is transparency. Why are these lay offs happening, how many more will there be, and who is going to be safe. The second thing we ask: how is it that GEICO can afford to pay you $8,000 an hour but you are laying of employees far make less money in a month than you do in an hour. Please explain. Yours Kindly, A Former GEICO Analyst
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 05
    Rectangle - GrognardDave 14 hr. ago Well, sounds like I may have to become a "former GEICO customer." 122 Reply Share
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  • 06
    Font - NarrowAd4973. 3 hr. ago I assume you've never had to file a claim. Every person I've known that used Geico became a former customer after trying to make a claim, because they had to fight with the company over everything. But yes, this is also a very good reason to become a former customer.
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 07
    Rectangle - bgplsa 14 hr. ago And they just raised my rate again when I've never had so much as a parking ticket in the last 20 years, that clinched it I'm changing companies.
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 08
    Font - lacker101 7 hr. ago Much like Job hopping insurance requires you to move around alot to find the best rates. Every company raises rates on older, safer, and less likely to leave customers. But slowly enough you don't put in the effort to sit down and shop.
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 09
    Font - ackmannj 9 hr. ago Definitely let it be known on Glassdoor that you worked for 23 years and got no severance. To me, no severance means no 2 week notices. It goes both ways Reply Share 29 ...
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 10
    Font - dabobbo 1 hr. ago They basically shed nearly everyone who had a pension plan, so anyone hired before it was discontinued in 2004. OP would have a pension, not that it's any consolation.
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 11
    Font - CrazyCronus55 47 min. ago You are right. I made the comment because he said he asked about it and "it was an insult" Does that mean he got a severance he thought was an insult? Or there is no severance and that was the insult. It just wasn't clear. In almost every Fortune 500 RIF reduction in force I have ever heard of - a severance is given.
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 12
    Font - C-Redd-it 14 hr. ago I feel for you. My father was let go after 46 years. Big national chain came in and bought the small business. The exact words they said to him... "we've eliminated your position, how soon can you have your desk cleaned out?" These things are always terrible.
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 13
    Organism - clarissa_vaughn - 5 hr. ago That's choosing to be a psycho, though. It doesn't have to be so abrupt and heartless.
    via u/ICantAffordAComb
  • 14
    Font - Less_Noisy Insurance 4 10 11 hr. ago is a scam. Reply Share
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  • 15
    Font - panopticon 91 8 hr. ago I think we need a new law that has executive salaries capped at 5x median pay of their workforce 28 Reply Share
    via u/ICantAffordAComb

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