 GTE the second-largest cellular operator in the U.S. at the time. The company expanded into the Internet arena in 1997 with the purchases of BBN Corp. and Genuity. The same year it invested $465 million in long-distance carrier Qwest. Baby Bell and GTE tie the knot GTE merged with Bell Atlantic in June 2000 to form Verizon Communications. With the addition of GTE's wireless assets, Verizon Wireless became the largest wireless communications provider in the U.S. The company had planned to spin off Verizon Wireless in an IPO shortly after the merger, but delayed the action because of the slow IPO market. The company then rescheduled the $5 billion IPO for mid-2002, but again viewing the market as lackluster, started dragging its feet. Finally, in January 2003, Verizon scrapped the idea of an IPO altogether. Lending its services Verizon came to the communications rescue following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. While people struggled to get in touch with loved ones, Verizon aided in the cause, even though its downtown office had been nearly destroyed by the collapse of the Twin Towers. The company offered free local service from all of its payphones in the five New York boroughs for several days following the attack. It 142 VAULT LIBRARY CAREER 2005 Vault Inc. Vault Guide to the Top Telecom Employers Verizon Communications also installed hundreds of new phone lines in hospitals, police stations and temporary work centers. Tough climate Like most telecommunications companies, Verizon's business suffered during the economic slowdown that began in 2001. The weak economy hurt sales throughout 2002. In response, Verizon eliminated about 18,000 positions in 2002 to help save costs. That's in addition to the 29,000 job cuts that had been made in 2001. But the company didn't fare much better in 2003 on the labor front. In July, the 60,000 employees of Verizon who are represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) voted to give their union leaders authorization to call for a strike. In the vote, 92 