From: stecz@hotwheel.Eng.Sun.COM (John Steczkowski [CONTRACTOR])
Newsgroups: austin.general
Subject: Re: Ross Perot for President Information
Date: 14 Apr 92 20:37:12 GMT
Reply-To: stecz@hotwheel.Eng.Sun.COM
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
NNTP-Posting-Host: hotwheel

I used to work for EDS, so I'd like to clarify some of this.....

In article 20621@rpp386.lonestar.org, jfh@rpp386.lonestar.org (John F Haugh II) writes: > Just a few facts from EDS -
> 	1). Unmarried women were not allowed to have live-in
> 	    boyfriends, even if the women weren't religiously
> 	    affiliated and didn't believe in marriage.
Semi-true, I think that this was blown out of proportion.  I think it is folklore
from the early, early years and wasn't valid when I worked there (87, 88ish, just
after it was sold to GM).  I know of two women in my group, one pregnant out of
wedlock, the other living with another EDS employee who didn't get any hassles for
their living arrangements.  I'm not saying that somebody wasn't fired from EDS for
having a live-in boyfriend, I'm just saying that it's not as widespread as the
folklore makes it sound.
> 	2). New employees were required to sign promisory notes
> 	    obligating them to "re-pay" EDS for the value of
> 	    their training should they leave.
True, if you were in the Systems Engineering Training program (I was), and you took
the class, you were liable for thousands of dollars in training costs.  This was
because other companies would hire SE's just out of class.  Some companies would
even pay the promissory note to hire new EDS SEs.  This wasn't designed to keep
people from quitting (although that was one result), it was to keep other companies
from hiring employees away.
> 	3). Freedom of expression at EDS was completely
> 	    stiffled.  Either you towed the party line or you
> 	    left.
Utter bullshit, the group where I worked, and the groups I worked with, expected
employees to do what ever it takes to get the job done!  This required on the
spot decision making and the responsibility that goes with that.  Sometimes I
made the wrong decision, and was told that I did and why, but I wasn't "punished"
for it.

A lot of EDS policy sound pretty militant (and maybe they are), but they usually
have a pretty good reason for it.  For instance, men were not allowed to have 
facial hair (except mustaches).  This was because most of EDS`s clients are in
very conservative businesses (banking, etc) and they wanted everyone at the company
to look "professional" for clients that happen to be on site, and a long scraggly
beard doesn't fit the "conservative, professional" image.  That is the same reason
for the men wearing dark suits, white shirts, red ties, it fits the "conservative
professional" image.  It isn't because Perot has a control fetish (he might, but
that's not the reason for the suits), it's because he wants to make a good 
presentation to the client.

Before you get the idea that I think EDS is the greatest company ever, You'll notice
that I don't work for them anymore.  I quit before I had a promissory note to deal
with and went contracting instead.  The main problem I had with them was that they
had over 50k employees while I was there and I wanted to work for a smaller company.


---
  John Steczkowski                            stecz@pencom.com
        65mph: it's not a good idea, it just the law.