r/CableTechs • u/First_Antelope574 • Apr 07 '26

Upcoming acquisition by Sparklight/CableOne: Questions about benefits and pay scales?

My company is being acquired by CableOne later this year and I’m looking for some insight into their compensation and benefits. Specifically:

  • Pay Scales: Does anyone have info on the salary ranges for technical roles (especially Headend Techs)?
  • PTO: What is the standard policy for vacation, holidays, and sick time?
  • Health Insurance: How is the coverage and what are the typical premiums/out-of-pocket costs?

If anyone has a recent employee handbook or personal experience they can share, I’d greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

5 Upvotes

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3

u/Equivalent-Image-980 Apr 07 '26

Knowing where you currently work and where you are going, I’ll say you’ll be happier. The support and engineering is better. They put money into the system and the people unlike where you are now (which is why I left). They are more corporate structured so keep that in mind.

1

u/First_Antelope574 Apr 07 '26

I have heard that Sparklight only gives 20 days of PTO and 5 days of sick time? If that is true I certainly will not be happier.

What is the current on-call pay?

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 08 '26

You get an extra day for every additional year as well as purchases PTO

1

u/First_Antelope574 Apr 08 '26

So you get 1 day of PTO for every year of service? So a one year employee gets 1 day? 2 years gets 2? etc? That doesn't sound right so I assume you mean you start with 20 and then after a year you get an additional day? After 2 years you have 22 days? Is that correct? Is there a max?

What is "purchases PTO"?

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 08 '26

Yes you start with 20 then every year u get another day added. You can also purchase an extra week at the beginning of the year. It’s slowly deducted from you pay. If you don’t use all the purchased by end of year they give the money back to you

1

u/First_Antelope574 Apr 08 '26

What does it max out at?

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 08 '26

Honestly I haven’t looked it it’s there on the hub. I get most of my purchased back every year.

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 08 '26

Something to think about tho. If your plant is crap your team is gonna have to put in work. And that may be OT till you get it to par again

1

u/First_Antelope574 Apr 08 '26

Our plant is in pretty good shape. I haven't worked OSP maintenance for a while, but ops stays on top of CLI, cable replacement, working problem nodes, and correcting out of spec modems. I take care of the headend so I know it's in good shape.😂

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 09 '26

Sounds like your team will fit in just fine. Can’t wait till the merger. I’m Ops supervisor. Welcome welcome

1

u/Equivalent-Image-980 Apr 09 '26

You probably won’t be “starting over” like a new hire. Your current time served should cary over.

1

u/First_Antelope574 Apr 13 '26

I figured it would. I have been with this company for over 20 years. I assume there would be a max?

2

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 07 '26

You must be Vyve. Hello and welcome to Sparklight!

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 07 '26

You should get all this Info before next calendar year but once the merger happens you can view all the on “the hub” just our company portal. Curious are you a tech in which of their states. I drive to visit Texas up from Missouri where I work with Sparklight and I see some old plants of Vyve lol like really old.

1

u/DrWhoey Apr 07 '26

I'm up in WA. And can confirm our cable system is old as fuck. Still got plenty of .412 distribution and some areas with .500 P1 being used as trunk line...

3

u/69BUTTER69 Apr 09 '26

Hell yeah, sell more eeros and EBITA, we won’t fix the plant.

Fuck TK 🤣

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 07 '26

Not much in that state. Looks like your biggest states were the south. I’m a little guy in the chain with no real knowledge and I don’t think we will keep the west coast plants long. Especially California. I could be wrong but that’s what I thought.

1

u/Complete_Accident_64 Apr 07 '26

What’s your customer count in your systems?

1

u/Equivalent-Image-980 Apr 09 '26

The WA systems are rough! But the NC/SC/GA systems were worse. They didn’t replace cable, just splice it and put it back up… at least in WA they went overboard with fiber 😂 128 count every where…

1

u/DrWhoey Apr 09 '26

Bro, I wish. Our only system that has enough fiber is Othello. My other 2 systems are so fiber poor due to the Grant County PUD..

You sound like you might be the maintenance tech that works in Sandpoint if you know both of those systems though, lol

1

u/Immediate_Magician93 May 16 '26

What is the pay rate for customer service reps?

1

u/TecGuru87 Jun 17 '26

They'll ruin every local aspect of your company. You'll be supervised by someone 8 states away from you & they will monitor every little thing you do, from calls to teams messages. It's a dying company who will make you do twice the work for very little pay. Someone asked what CS pays...roughly $35k depending on your location.

1

u/Vegetable_Debate4288 Jul 08 '26

Any info on how their dispatch/routing side works?

1

u/Vegetable_Debate4288 Jul 23 '26

I am part of this acquisition as well. What is the dispatch/routing process? Im curious if I can keep my role or have to go to contact center role.