CTL is going downhill fast - Anonymous employee Lumen Employee Review

1.0
4 Dec 2019
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

There are still some good people left there and you can be a rock star if you understand the telecom business but, don’t look for advancement opportunities because those are few and far between and are only available to former Level 3 employees. Work life balance is good but not good enough to offset the fear and risk of being randomly laid off.

Cons

CenturyLink was a good company until it merged with Level 3. Level 3 leadership is in control and is in way over their heads. Many of the Level 3 leaders are inexperienced and don’t truly understand the business (especially regulated local markets) or how to lead. Level 3 has jettisoned all of the former CenturyLink tools and processes and put their own inferior tools and processes in place setting the company backwards 15 years and catapulting the company towards bankruptcy. Revenues are declining so the company cuts costs by laying off former Qwest/CenturyLink employees in order to meet earnings goals. Layoffs are continuous and secretive. Entire groups are suddenly gone. I chose to leave before I got laid off. CenturyLink has no realistic plan to grow revenues. They are in a declining revenue industry. The only way they can survive financially and stave off bankruptcy is to continue to lay off employees to manage earnings and hope that someone buys them before they have to file bankruptcy again. (Level 3 has filed bankruptcy twice previously.) Leadership lies to employees regularly. For example, they are closing the office in New Century, KS in March 2020. In August 2019, they said they would not be laying off employees and that everyone could work from home if their VP approved. Apparently, a number of VPs don’t like work from home so 300 of the 800 employees in that office are getting laid off. Based on the recent employee survey, 2/3rds of employees would not recommend that their friends work for CenturyLink.

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Lumen Response
6y
CenturyLink has a history of growth through acquisitions. As the needs of the business change; we must evaluate our workforce and transform accordingly, to ensure we are able to meet customer demands and remain an industry leader. Unfortunately, at times that means lay-offs and/or reorganizations are needed to drive our transformation. Those decisions are difficult and are not something we take lightly. We are sorry to hear you did not enjoy working here. We have taken extensive and innovative measures to create a combined company culture, reflective of who we are, and who we want to be.

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Pros

good env team is good

Cons

nothing there is a con team is good

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Lumen Response
7mo
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. We value your input. We're glad to hear that your team has given you a positive experience! We're happy to have you on board with us, you help us succeed together.
2.0
13 May 2026
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Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

work life balance, excellent time off so long as manager doesn’t micromanage/track and limit FTO, nice people, leadership has turned the business around.

Cons

No pay raises even with great performance review (5years with zero raise) No career growth/progression - been on a high-performing team for 5 years and not one person on the team has been progressed or promoted during that time. Little opportunity for career advancement and growth New jobs within the company are going to external hires, not much grwoth for current employees

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Lumen Response
2w
Thank you for your transparency about your experience. We want to hear from people like you to learn how we can do better. We are sorry to hear about your experience. Lumen is taking a proactive approach to pay equity and regularly conducts market reviews to ensure Lumen's pay is market competitive, positioning us at the forefront of compensation best practices. Your review will help us take any necessary action. We're glad you value work-life balance, our people, and leadership. Please reach out to us at CTLHRActionTeam@lumen.com if you would like to discuss anything further with your review. Thanks for being part of the team.
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