How Our Jobs Data Predicted Verizon’s Biggest Workforce Cut in History
November 18, 9:21 am
Verizon (VZ) stunned the market with news that the company will eliminate roughly 15,000 jobs - the largest workforce reduction the company has ever executed. But while the headlines just broke, the early warning signs were visible in the data weeks before the announcement. They weren’t hidden in earnings reports or leaked memos. They were sitting in the job-posting data.
At AltIndex, we track hiring activity across thousands of public companies. Verizon’s job-posting trend had been steady for more than a year, signaling stability. Then, in late September, something changed. The decline began quietly. It accelerated in October. And on November 7, the company’s open positions fell so sharply that it triggered a stock alert to any AltIndex member holding Verizon in their portfolio. Five days later, the layoffs became public.
Verizon Stock Alert
A Restructuring Wave Under a New CEO
Verizon plans to reduce its workforce by about 15% through layoffs and by shifting roughly 200 stores into franchise operations, removing those employees from its payroll. With around 100,000 workers earlier this year, it marks a dramatic shift in how the company operates.
The timing aligns closely with the arrival of Dan Schulman, who became CEO on October 6. Schulman has emphasized leaner operations, divesting underperforming business units, and sharpening the company’s focus. The sweeping layoffs indicate that his plan is now moving into high gear.
But to anyone watching hiring data, the transition had already begun.
What AltIndex Detected Before the Layoffs Were Announced
For 18 months, Verizon held a remarkably consistent hiring pattern, maintaining around 2,000 open positions daily. Stability in job postings usually reflects steady demand, confident leadership, and healthy operations.
Then came the shift.
- Late September: Job postings begin to drift downward.
- October: The decline becomes more pronounced.
- November 7: Open roles drop to ~1,000 - triggering a stock alert for AltIndex users.
- Five days later: Reports confirm Verizon’s plan to eliminate 15,000 jobs.
Since then, hiring activity has kept falling. As of mid-November, open roles sit around 755, the lowest level we’ve tracked in years.
These hiring reductions weren’t random fluctuations. They were early operational signals of a company bracing for a major restructuring.
Why Job-Posting Data Is a Reliable Early Indicator
Hiring behavior is one of the clearest windows into a company’s expectations and strategy. It reflects decisions being made at the executive level, often before they are communicated publicly.
Job data helps investors by revealing:
1. Internal Confidence and Financial Health
Companies expand hiring when they anticipate growth and stable demand. When job postings freeze or decline, it often signals caution, internal pressure, or shifting expectations.
2. Early Warning of Cost-Cutting or Restructuring
Hiring slowdowns regularly precede layoffs, divestments, or operational resets. Reductions in job postings are often the first visible sign that a company is preparing to reduce expenses or reorganize.
3. Insight Into Strategic Direction
Job descriptions themselves reveal where a company is focusing its energy - whether it’s AI, security, new product lines, or emerging technologies. A change in job roles can signal a shift in priorities or upcoming initiatives long before public announcements.
For those tracking Verizon, the pattern was unmistakable: a stable hiring trend abruptly reversed. And that reversal came long before the public knew why.
How the Market Is Reacting
On November 18, 2025, Verizon stock traded at $41.48, seeing modest upward movement as investors processed institutional activity, options volume, and the workforce reduction.
The company continues to offer strong income appeal with:
- P/E ratio: roughly 8–9
- Dividend per share: $2.76
- Dividend yield: around 6.7%
- 52-week range: $35.79 – $47.36
Income-focused investors may appreciate the yield, but the company now enters a period where execution risk is high. And that’s where alternative data becomes valuable. Monitoring hiring trends from this point forward will help reveal whether Verizon’s restructuring stabilizes operations - or indicates further weakness ahead.
What Investors Should Do With Insights Like These
The Verizon case highlights a simple truth: companies rarely pivot overnight. The earliest signs almost always show up in alternative data.
Job postings, in particular, offer:
- real-time visibility
- high sensitivity to operational changes
- reliable early warnings
- insights that often appear weeks or months before traditional financial disclosures
Whether the indicator is hiring activity, web traffic, app engagement, or employee sentiment, alternative data allows investors to position themselves sooner and with greater confidence.
Bottom Line
Verizon’s workforce reduction is historic, but the signals weren’t hidden. They were visible through AltIndex’s job-posting data well before the announcement. Members received early alerts as hiring collapsed from 2,000 roles to 1,000 in early November - days before the news reached the world.
This is exactly why alternative data is becoming essential for modern investors. It reveals the shift before the headline. It shows the trend before the market reacts. And it gives anyone paying attention a smarter way to analyze companies and anticipate major moves.
Want to stay ahead of major stock moves? Our real-time alerts track job postings, web traffic, app activity, sentiment shifts, and dozens of other alternative data signals across thousands of companies. Get notified the moment something changes so you can react faster and invest smarter.
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