sprint
Sprint has asked some of its employees to consider
voluntarily resigning by December 3rd in exchange for a compensation package. Says a spokesperson, "No one is being forced to do anything. There are no forced reductions. There are no layoffs in store. It's a matter of employees having the option to exercise discretion. No targets have been announced."
IntoMobile says retail store employees and managers are not being included in the offer.
Update: We've received a little more info from an anonymous tipster about the downsizing, and what it might mean for customers of Sprint.
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money meltdown
The AP is reporting that AIG executives aren't done partying yet — they took an $86,000 hunting trip even as the company was requesting an additional $37.8 billion loan from the Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, New York attorney general Andrew Cuomo has said that as long as the company continues to be propped up by the taxpayer — he has the power under state business law to review and possibly rescind any inappropriate AIG spending.
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unacceptable food
We've never really stopped to wonder what sort of compensation we would require if we found small rocks in our raisin bread, but we're pretty sure that it's more than $5. Maybe we're being unrealistic, because when Michael Snyder found rocks in the raisin bread he bought from a bakery in Somerville, Massachusetts, he asked for 5 loaves of bread in compensation and settled for $5 instead.
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law
The Supreme Court is currently considering
whether to halve the punitive damages levied against Exxon for its massive 1989 oil spill from the Exxon Valdez tanker, from the current $2.5 billion to something more like $1 billion. Exxon claims the higher number amounts to excessive punishment. According to the New York Times, the decision may come down to a tie with four justices on either side; Justice Alito is not participating because he owns Exxon Mobile stock. The Exxon Valdez disaster "caused a 3,000-square-mile oil slick and still affects Alaska's fisheries after nearly 19 years."
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travel
A reader just sent us a description of her flight back from London to Minneapolis that reads like a synopsis of a particularly unpleasant episode of "The Amazing Race." The return flight, on Iceland air, was supposed to go from Heathrow in London to Keflavik in Reykjavik, then from there to Minneapolis. The initial flight is delayed for 2 1/2 hours—but not to worry, Icelandair tells the passengers, because the other flight is being held. When they arrive in Iceland, however, there's no plane waiting for them—it's been overbooked, so the airline has sent it ahead and left the passengers stranded overnight.
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ask the consumerists
Here's a question that never gets any easier to answer. When a company's customer service drives you into a blinding rage or otherwise severely inconveniences you but doesn't actually cost you any money... what, if anything, should you expect as compensation?
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leaks
United will soon unveil a miserly compensation policy in response to the harsh media coverage of extreme delays caused by snowstorms. Flights delayed for more than four hours on departure, or an hour and a half on arrival, will be declared "flights of note." Passengers on "flights of note" will receive the following:
An apology note;
20% off one (1) roundtrip economy ticket on a future United flight;
One (1) $10 airport meal voucher.
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at&t
Thanks to hetereoerotic
Valleywag soulmate Nick for pointing out this ridiculous ad, in which AT&T proudly proclaims that they will compensate your business
fifty whole dollars if an internal flub on their part results in thousands or millions of dollars worth of lost revenue for your business.
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Consumerist
aig
