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[Roger Austin <raustin3 AT nc.rr.com>]

 I question whether this loyalty thing really was an issue. Past "loyalty" 
may have been a product of convenience of the times. Long term employees 
really didn't cost the companies that much more when times were good. 
Managers didn't want the pain of breaking in new employees and firing the old 
ones. Trade unions in the late 1800's were formed to give labor rights; there 
sure wasn't any company loyalty then. There was little loyalty shown to white 
collar workers even after that.

 Now, times are not good everywhere, times are bad in a number of areas. An 
old manager with great and loyal employees can leave (for whatever reason.) 
The new manager may not care what you did in the past. S/he will look at the 
staff as human capital and decide on their future employment without 
consideration to the employee's personal situation. All the good will that 
you built up with those 60-80h 7-day weeks and showing up in the 
hurricane/ice storm/<insert disaster here> goes poof.

 I see companies as amoral. They don't have souls. Human beings are the moral 
creatures in business. Loyalty is to people, not the company. If you have a 
great manager who leaves, follow them or deal with the next one. The company 
has no obligation to you other than pay and benefits that you have earned the 
past pay period (or whatever is in your contract.)

 I've got 33+ years under my belt at the same company and I have been through 
about six managers and multiple upper management changes. It is just about 
the same as moving to six different companies. I just didn't get new keys and 
id cards.

 Company loyalty isn't dead, it just never lived.