Fight for Workers' Rights at T-Mobile USA Goes On

This statement was released by the German trade union ver.di on July 8, 2012. ver.di represents more than 2 million workers, including telecommunications workers at Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile. ver.di has been working with the Communications Workers of America and together the unions have formed TU to support T-Mobile USA workers who want a union voice.

Fight for Workers’ Rights at T-Mobile USA Goes On

Ver.di leader Lothar Schröder travelling the U.S. to support T-Mobile workers

Berlin -- Prominent politicians, trade unionists and attorneys have published an open letter to Deutsche Telekom calling on the company to recognize union rights at its subsidiary T-Mobile USA and to stop its union avoidance. Among the signatories are several former federal ministers, namely Herta Däubler-Gmelin, Gerhart Baum, Franz Müntefering, Norbert Blüm and Peter Struck; representatives of parliamentary factions; the former chairman of the Federal Labour Court, Thomas Dieterich; the chairman of the SPD Sigmar Gabriel and the former union chairmen Hubertus Schmoldt (IG BCE), Detlef Hensche (IG Medien) and Lorenz Schwegler (HBV). The letter reads in part:

 “The signatories urge that the employees of U.S. subsidiaries of German companies, especially T-Mobile USA, should be able to exercise their unrestricted right to opt for organized representation in the company without fear. They must not be influenced, pressured, or intimidated by employers if they exercise their basic right for freedom of association. The human right of freedom of speech notably entails this right as well.” The Deutsche Telekom is asked “to end all collaboration with U.S. consultants who advise employers how to fight employee representation.”

Lothar Schröder, member of the ver.di executive board and head of the telecommunications and IT-sector of the United Services Union (ver.di), is currently in the U.S. to support the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and T-Mobile workers. The importance of such assistance and appeals becomes evident when considering the ongoing collective bargaining negotiations for a small unit of T-Mobile technicians in the U.S. as just one example. "It had not been possible to reach an aggreement regarding even the simplest things such as the installation of a bulletin board for union information or the provision of the technicians with the tools necessary for their work – and this after eight bargaining rounds. The expensive attorney likely had cost the Deutsche Telekom more money than all the demands CWA have been bargaining for taken together. This borders on the absurd," said Schröder.

Ver.di supports its U.S. sister union CWA in organizing T-Mobile employees through various activities, including an online petition on the website www.WirErwartenBesseres.de. Lothar Schröder will attend personally the next bargaining round in mid-July in the U.S. "It is time that Deutsche Telekom lives up to its own claim of being the most social employer of the DAX companies. In a multinational company, in a globalized world, this claim can not stop at national borders," said Schröder.

Schröder met with many decidedly intimidated and fearful T-Mobile employees during the first week of his stay in the U.S. He is shocked about what he has seen during the first few days of his stay. “There is a climate of fear because of totally insecure working conditions, constant fear to be dismissed without any reason, lack of employment contracts and lack of collective agreements". His conclusion: "The workers need help and they need support, they need a voice at the workplace and a strong union to protect and represent them." Schröder is appealing to the Executive Management Board to abandon immediately the politics of fear and infringement of workers’ rights. "We expect better," is his demand to the Group CEO René Obermann.

For questions and contacts: Ado Wilhelm +49-171-3320437. In the U.S., Sarah Bormann, +1 202-304-4527

Contact: Candice Johnson or Liz Schilling, CWA Communications, 202-434-1168, cjohnson@cwa-union.org and eschilling@cwa-union.org