Verizon plans to cut 3,000 jobs and sell 274 company-owned retail stores to franchise owners next month as the wireless giant continues to slash costs as part of its latest restructuring strategy under CEO Dan Schulman.

Roughly 2,500 retail employees whose stores will transition to franchise ownership will be affected by the move, along with another 500 corporate workers whose positions are to be eliminated.

The Verizon-to-franchise ownership transfers are set to take effect on August 16th, leaving the wireless carrier with roughly 1,000 company-owned retail locations across the US.

News of the cuts quickly spread among Verizon workers online.

“My boss just told us we got laid off. im in retail,” one Reddit user wrote.

Another responded: “Thats so fucked up dude. I just moved into a 14 month leased apartment because of this job. its my first job after graduating.”

One former Verizon employee who said they lost their job in November after a decade with the company offered support to those affected by the latest cuts.

“Yup! I lost my job with Verizon back in November after being there for 10 years. Best of luck to you all…there’s life after Verizon! But Dan needs to GO!”

the Reddit user wrote.

Other users questioned whether changing consumer habits had made Verizon’s retail arm obsolete.

“Looks like people aren't buying phones and plans much anymore,” another Redditor wrote.

Another round of Verizon cuts

The latest job cuts follow Verizon’s sacking of 13,000 employees only weeks before the holiday season kicked off last November, as well as several hundred additional layoffs in May.

About 179 Verizon-owned retail stores were also transferred to franchise operators coinciding with the pink slips last fall.

The job cuts are part of Shulman’s overall strategy to “reset, restructure, and realign” the carrier's priorities and help recapture its spot as the nation’s “leading communications provider," the former PayPal president said at the time.

It's estimated that after this third cut, about 20% of Verizon’s pre-November 2025 workforce will have been affected. Verizon has said that the layoffs are not triggered by the use of AI.

Inside Schulman’s $5 billion reset

Schulman, who was appointed CEO last October, has pursued an aggressive restructuring designed to reduce operating expenses by $5 billion in 2026.

The strategy plan also includes reorganizing parts of its business around Verizon's Mobile, Home, and Value brands, and investing in premium retail experiences.

Still, Verizon said most retail workers are expected to remain employed under the new franchise operators rather than lose their jobs outright.

Six large operators now run most of Verizon's franchised stores, including Victra, the largest, Cellular Sales, and Russell Cellular.

The telecommunications giant also noted that about 70% of employees affected by those previous store sales ultimately accepted positions with those acquired locations.

The company has not released a public list of the 274 affected stores.

Reddit becomes a support hub for workers

In a note sent to employees on Thursday, Schulman said it was working with franchise owners at its remaining 5,000 locations to “elevate” the overall customer experience.

Still, that was little consolation for the employees about to lose their jobs.

On Reddit, some Verizon workers had shared information about the restructuring before the company's public announcement.

Users on a Verizon subreddit even created a megathread for affected stores and employees to exchange information and support.

One former Verizon employee said the latest cuts fit a long-running pattern.

"Former VZ employee here, Verizon has been doing regular layoffs since early 2000s, this is routine operations for them! Just to give you an idea, when I was with them in the early to mid 00s, they had over 250k employees, today it is down to around 90k,”

they said.

"Telcos operate on very thin margins, and gone are the glory days of stable wireline income," they added.

Others simply called out Verizon for its dismal customer service and "shady stores tactics to gain sales."

"They don’t even help you in the store / carry any backstock so you walk in to get something and they tell you to order online. They did this to themselves," one user wrote in the thread.

Another said they were "surprised Verizon would still operate about 1,000 company-owned stores after the sale," arguing that “ordering phones online, activating devices with eSIM technology, and paying bills digitally have reduced the need for traditional wireless stores.”

Last November, Schulman said Verizon would establish a “$20 million career transition fund” for laid-off workers to expand their "opportunities and necessary skill sets as we enter the age of AI."

The restructuring also comes as Microsoft, Meta, and a slew of other technology companies continue to cut workforces while investing billions in artificial intelligence.