AT&T contractor layoffs spread

Another AT&T contractor has been forced to lay off workers, as the carrier takes a break from some of its wireless infrastructure projects. Velocitel, which does tower site work for AT&T in Oregon, reportedly had to release 25 of its roughly 85 Portland employees. Four of the 25 were LTE construction managers.
A worker who was let go says that most of the Portland logistics team dedicated to AT&T was eliminated. Several coordinators and members of the closeout teams also lost their jobs. They say Velocitel is telling them that the AT&T work should come back soon, but things could get worse before they get better. Remaining Velocitel are hearing that more layoffs may be ahead. Velocitel has not yet responded to requests for comment.
One of the former Velocitel employees told RCR that there is a lot of site acquisition activity in the Portland area, a promising sign for future hiring. But for now, many workers are facing a very slow summer.
Velocitel is a California wireless infrastructure services company that has had AT&T’s primary turf vendor contracts in North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota. It has also been the minority vendor in Oregon, Virginia, West Virginia, Seattle, and Northern Idaho.
Last year Velocitel purchased Doty Moore Tower Services, and hired founders Don Doty and Patrick Moore, two veterans of the tower industry who helped establish many of the industry’s current safety protocols and standards. Prior to the acquisition, estimated annual revenue for Velocitel was $35 million.
In Oregon, WesTower Communications has been seen in the industry as AT&T’s primary infrastructure services partner. The company currently has no posted tower-related job openings in Oregon. So far, RCR has heard no reports of WesTower layoffs this summer.
Update 7/1: Wireless Estimator reports that WesTower did announce layoffs last week.
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