Despite a second round of sell out bargaining by the TWU leadership in B.C. the workers on the line in Edmonton remain defiant, against Telus and against the sell out leadership of their union.
"I am strong, stronger now than when we walked out. If this lock out has proven anything to me its where I stand, what I am willing to do to fight for my rights. And I am willing to stay out for six more weeks or three month, or whatever it takes." said a picketer I talked to on the line yesterday. They were joined in by head nods and similar comments from the other defiant workers on the line in front of the Telus Building on Jasper Avenue. "I got married while on the picket line, bought a new truck, and the only difference from before the lock out is that now I have more debt."
A second contract was agreed to last weekend by the TWU bargaining committee, after the first contract vote was rejected by 50.03% of the workers. And the scabs of course got to vote, but due to the union screw ups workers in Northern Alberta were underrepresented in the vote in Edmonton, so now the union is doing a mail in vote. Screw ups are still happening as the picketing workers await their ballots, which are due today. Failure to get their votes in with a small timeline after getting their ballots, will mean that they don't count. The workers figure that their union leadership wants the vote to pass. But in Edmonton these workers who have spent their lives for the last nine weeks on the line are just as sceptical about this contract as the previous two, the last one they rejected, and the original Telus offer they rejected, preceding the lock out.
The new collective agreement still allows for the contracting out of work by Telus.
THIS FIGHT IS ABOUT CONTRACTING OUT.
"This fight is about contracting out, its a fight that will determine the fate of the labour movement in Canada." said the Telus worker on the line. While the media has reported that only janitor and maintenance services will be contracted out under the agreement, the Telus workers in Edmonton, many who work in customer service say that their jobs too are under the gun. Telus is already using call centres in Manilla and India to supply customer service saving millions by management estimates, and allowing Telus to rack up record profits. "If this contract goes through that will be the death of Telus workers in B.C.", says the picketer. The contract lasts five years, and by that time these workers figure that most of Telus will be contracted out to call centres abroad. Since B.C. is the largest customer service centre for Telus, the workers know the writing is on the wall. "Telus has said it will continue to use call centres, and not hire new staff, they will simply keep us working, and fill our jobs through contracting out and attrition. As the baby boomers retire, their jobs will go overseas." Another concern raised by the workers in Edmonton is that Manilla and India are centres of Identity Theft. The call centres abroad have full access to all your personal account information including social security numbers and credit card accounts.
Telus has no direct supervision over the accounts handled offshore, like they do here. Little coverage in the media has focused on these very serious security concerns raised by the Telus Workers.
THE DEATH OF TWU-A Union Commits Suicide
The workers predict that if this contract passes it will mean the death of their union and their union rights. "The agreement does not recognize our right to a grievance procedure, if we want to grieve we have to take it to a manager. If we are grieving against that manager we have to find another one to place the grievance with. So that leaves the union without any grievance procedure without any representation for our grievances", says the Telus picket.
Besides the ability to represent workers through collective bargaining, the key power workers have through a union is their ability to grieve violations of the collective agreement, or grieve over apparent violations of human rights laws etc. The grievance procedure is the core of labour relations and labour law, it presumes natural justice as well as common law applies in the workplace and the union gains the right to represent its members through this procedure. They have given up the right to wobble the job, to wildcat, giving management all rights to run the workplace except where it violates the collective agreement. To give up the right to process grievances to management means that the union effectively is failing to represent its members and sets it up to be challenged under labour law for failing in 'its duty to represent". Why any union would agree to what is essentially a suicide pact with management is beyond me and beyond the Telus rank and file.
"I hate to say this but we had it better under IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) ", says the Telus worker. "We had a better contract ten years ago than the one we got five years ago imposed on us, and the one we are being offered now."
Before Telus bought B.C. Telephones its workers were represented by IBEW which had union representation rights for workers with Alberta Government Telephones (AGT) which was privatized to create Telus. And they represented Edmonton Telephones workers, which the City of Edmonton sold to Telus on the promise that the company would remain in Edmonton and its Headquarters would be in Edmonton. That lasted two years and with the purchase of B.C. Telephones it moved lock stock and barrel to Vancouver.
There the workers were represented by a local trades based craft union, the Telecommunications Workers Union (TWU). This union was the union for B.C. Tel employees, and was not a national or international union. Its union culture was locally based. With the merger came a vote on union representation. IBEW which also is a business craft based union, had failed to represent the growing membership of non-trades workers, mainly women, who made up the majority of operators, call centre, and customer service workers. As well IBEW as a quizzling business union in Edmonton had historically identified with management, what was good for Ed Tel was good for IBEW, until Telus took over.
For five years Telus workers have been without a contract because TWU was outmanuvered by Telus Management, and they still bargained as if they were a small union local within B.C. instead of a national bargaining union for the second largest phone company in Canada. This Vancouver based bargaining, allowed management to stall TWU in contract talks, giving it a virtual free hand to make profits while not increasing costs, that is workers wages and benefits.
In the past year Telus shares have risen in price and in each of the last three quarters Telus has reported record profit taking. During this lock out Telus has saved millions in wages and benefits, so much so its been able to outsource more work overseas and pay scabs record wages and give them gifts like ipods, DVD players etc., and of course payout overtime, and pay for private security goons. Despite all that Telus shares today are the highest they have been at for a year.
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The union has signed an agreement that is no different that what they were offered when they walked out. "There is no way I am agreeing to this, I am stronger than that, if it takes month walking the line I will stay out, this contract is not what we want, its why we walked out," says the Telus picketer.
The contract allows for continuing contracting out via atrition, it does not grant an amnesty to those fired during the lock out, many of the militant rank and file leadership, instead their firings will be ajudicated by a labour Tribunal under the Canada Labour Act. While there are wage increases, and recognition of union representation rights for Telus Mobility workers, the contract itself last fives years.
"By then B.C. Telus will be contracted out, there will no longer be a B.C. Telus, the union will be busted, thats what they have to understand, thats why no matter the vote, I will stay and fight. Edmonton and Calgary will be here, but B.C. will be contracted out. Thats what this fight is all about, the fight to stop contracting out of our work. This is a fight for the whole labour movement", says the Telus Worker as fellow workers on the line nod in agreement.
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Mr. Entwistle, hoping that workers accept the contract this time, is gearing up for life after the labour disruption. His plans include the rollout of a new TV service, launch of a voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service for consumers, and implementing efficiency and productivity measures, such as contracting out certain non-core jobs.
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