For former employees of Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks who stayed on following the merger with Charter Communications, it didn’t take long for them to learn that their new company runs a pretty tight ship.
In a memo released last week to all Charter employees at corporate offices in Charlotte, St. Louis, Denver, Herndon, New York City and Stamford, the company outlined some practices that those employees will be expected to abide by as the MSO looks to “harmonize” its workplace policies in the months to come.
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Among the examples, Charter doesn’t have a work-from-home policy. “[A]ny formal work from home arrangement” must be signed off on by an executive vice president, the memo explained.
Jeans? Forget it. Unless an EVP approves it, denim pants are out, as they are “not deemed professional attire.”
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The party is also over for TWC employees who partook in that MSO’s “summer hours” program, where they could put in more hours earlier in the workweek in order to get a jump start on their weekend festivities.
“Perception matters, and a different standard for “Corporate” employees is not consistent with the values we want to project to the much larger employee base who work regular shifts during the day, nights and weekends,” the memo read.
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Several industry sources said employees that are new to Charter understood that their new company does some things differently, but were likewise taken aback by the “tone” of the memo.
A Charter spokesman confirmed the contents of the memo, noting that it was issued to ensure that all corporate employees of the newly-merged entity had a full understanding of the consistencies of the company’s corporate policies.
Here’s the memo:
Sent to all employees at corporate office locations in Charlotte, St. Louis, Denver, Herndon, NYC and Stamford.
Charter will harmonize various work policies in the coming months, but I wanted to address specific employee questions regarding Charter’s practices at corporate locations. Here you will find immediate guidance on three areas:
Work Location:
Remote work locations: All Charter employees will be co-located with their work group at a designated Charter office location. We will work with you and your departmental leadership on potential relocation if necessary. In the interim, anyone who manages people should travel and be onsite where the majority of their employees report for work, for the duration of the work week.
Work from home: Charter does not have a work from home policy. If you have been or sometimes work from home and you are assigned to work functions in these corporate buildings you should immediately begin to report to your work location every day. If you have a concern regarding this you should speak to your manager. In the interim, anyone who manages people should travel and be onsite where the majority of their employees report for work, for the duration of the work week. Any formal work from home arrangement must be approved by an EVP and must have time bound criteria.
Workplace Dress Policy:
Whether we service internal or external customers, employees in Charter’s corporate functions are all professionals by trade and the expectation is we look the part. We will provide a harmonized workplace dress policy in the coming months, however unless approved by an EVP for a specific department and location, jeans are not deemed professional attire. In advance of the policy, if you are in doubt as to whether your attire is appropriate, better to not wear it. If you are still in doubt as to what is appropriate, please see your immediate manager.
“Summer Hours”:
We recognize that this practice at Legacy TWC was in exchange for working additional hours, earlier in the week. However, this is a benefit that is not extended to employees whom our departments serve, the same employees who generate our revenue and provide service to our customers. Perception matters, and a different standard for “Corporate” employees is not consistent with the values we want to project to the much larger employee base who work regular shifts during the day, nights and weekends. We will continue to be flexible with our employees as needs or special situations arise, but a broadly applied Summer Hours policy will not be in place within Charter.
If you should have any questions or concerns please discuss with your manager or let me know.
Paul Marchand
Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
