@JulesNoctambule: The winning company's CEO gets the biggest annual bonus. There are extra points awarded if you can get taxpayer money rolled into any of it.

I've written to our AT&T rep asking for details, but have yet to get a response.

They aren't going to charge it retroactively so no worries.

I went there to see if I would not see the fee on my account (which has been active for several months) and the discount was applied without any notice of a $36 fee. I printed each page just to be safe in case they decide they want to try it anyway.

actually, if this discount is added during the first 30 days, there is no fee. But, we are being told that the employers are requesting that it is added to help defray the costs of the paperwork.

I still agree that it is bogus. But, it is all about how much do you have, and how much can I get away with taking.

That being said, I had major iPhone envy and just switched over to AT&T as my husband's employer offers a discount through them. Since it's new service, we won't get hit with the ridiculous fee, but I don't think anyone should have to pay that. It can't possibly cost the company $36 to make the change in the system.

I guess I shouldn't complain too much if my discount goes away considering that I've been skating by on a BofA discount when I haven't worked for them in closing on 4 years.

You put in your work/organization email and it takes you to a website which explains all of your discounts. It would avoid the extra $36.

I have a prepaid phone that I pay, on average, $6 a month for. As a result, I don't feel inclined to call my family and significant other the second my plane lands, again when I reach the gate, again when I'm walking off the plane, again then I walk into the airport, etc. For the average phone user, most of their phone time is completely unnecessary...and they pay dearly for it.

In related news my government employeer has a deal with Tmobile. Saves me 12% off my $150 bill every month. To get it I called a number my employeer gave me and it took about 5 minutes. And I've been with Tmobile for 5+ years and I'm only about 3 months into my current 2 year extention.

I just upgraded my account last month but will be leaving my job in another month to go back to school. I've checked the Premier site and I can get a discount through my school, but this new fee has me pretty ticked. I'm not a procrastinator, my situation has just changed.

riiiiight

@Ben Miner: My guess is in most cases where the fee is "paid by your employer" your employer has simply negotiated the fee out of existence. Otherwise it would probably be considered taxable income I would imagine.

@Elvisisdead: The article mentions some employers pay the fee. "Some employers and groups are nice enough to pay the $36 fee for you. "

@jaydez: I'm thiking of doing the same, I'll wait till next year though.

@Radi0logy: 25% is great. I only get 15% I think

Makes me glad I'm with Verizon. I get a 17% discount through my company with them, and no hefty fees. I know people sometimes complain about them, but I've never had any reason to bitch.

The company by whom my fiancé and I are both employed has a 15% discount with Verizon. We both happened to be Verizon customers before either of us started working here (he in 2006; I in 2008) and neither of us has had any trouble applying the discount to our accounts. (Nor did we have trouble keeping it when we rolled our contracts together into a family plan last week.)

Seriously, I don't use the phone that much. I am tired of plans getting more and more minutes. I don't need 1500 minutes for $70 a month. How about $25 for 200? I might go to "pay as you go" when my contract is up, but it looks like they are even trying to get rid of those these days.

The grammar nazi in me is affected by the above sentence.

Some would see that as an upside, since without that restriction the plan would cost more. If you change phones every two years the subsidy is alright; my wife and I haven't upgraded phones in four years, so it'd be nice to have our plan reduced by the amount of the subsidy.

ANY fee under our soa can be waived with the "proper" reasons noted, in my experience.

Now that the internet has made it so easy to price shop, the hidden fee is the new method of increasing profits.

Retailers have been doing it for years. It's the same thing.

People "put up with this crap" because it would cost WAY more money to use a prepaid (Tracfone) phone if minute usage and text messaging is high.

You should get the right information before making an article. It's $36 Fee per Account, If you have a Family Talk its only a single $36 charge.

Also, If you get charged this fee and do an upgrade on or within 7 days AT&T will waive the upgade fee.

The main reason behind this is to encourage people to get their discounts at the time of sign up (less paperwork on the backend). The charge is waived for any account opened within 30days.

I'll be anxiously waiting for the people to tell me "but I asked for the employer discount within the 30 days!" whether they actually did or not.

This is another ridiculous fee that will be waived constantly.

Why do companies feel the need to do this? It really makes them (and me because I work for them) crappy.

Thats like me paying 50 cents to get 50 cents off a box of lucky charms... thx but no thx

You nailed it. That exactly what these fees are. You want to do something. There's a fee. You want to pay your bill? There's a fee for that. You haven't used your phone in a while, there's a fee for that too.

What I cannot understand is why people put up with this crap. My Tracfone may not be "cool" but it works and I know exactly how much it costs to use. There is no fricken way I'd subject myself to this absolute BS.

A "you're getting a discount" fee is just asinine. I have to pay the company a fee because I'm paying less per month?

I hope this doesn't give retailers any ideas. Next thing you'll know there will be fees for using a coupon and fees for using the loyalty cards.

For new lines of service, you have 30 days to apply for your employee discount in order to waive the $36 fee. If you wait longer than 30 days, you'll be charged. This also only applies to the primary line on the account, so the additional lines on a family plan are exempt from this fee.

For existing AT&T customers who want to upgrade and are not currently receiving an employee discount, you have to apply for your discount ON THE DAY OF THE UPGRADE. There is no 30 day grace period, either you ask for your employee discount the day of your upgrade or you get charged the fee. And that is still in addition to the $18 upgrade fee you may have to pay.

Hope that helps.

It's a very nice plan, too. 2k anytime minutes, unlimited everything else, for roughly half the price of their most basic plan. The downside is you can't subsidize a phone with it, so you have to buy your phone outright.

This is straight BS! Kinda sorta related to this, I've had to call Sprint several times this year asking why the hell my discount vanishes off my bill!