CWAers Rally to Support Striking DT Workers

Lead by CWA President Larry Cohen, more than a hundred union activists in Washington, D.C., demonstrated outside the German Embassy to show solidarity with 16,000 striking workers at Deutsche Telekom in Germany. The workers are fighting management demands to shift 50,000 jobs to subsidiary T-Services, where workers would face big cuts in pay but increased working hours. The workers, members of ver.di, the German telecommunications union, went on strike beginning May 11.

Cohen blasted the German government for its failure to condemn the company's actions on the basis that it was neutral and it could not take sides. "The German government is part owner of Deutsche Telekom and could have a powerful influence on this company's management. It's inexcusable that Chancellor Angela Merkel has chosen to remain silent as this company seeks to crush its workers and their standard of living," he said.

Union Network International also has called on the German government to safeguard the workers' benefits and working conditions. The company has been pressing for huge cuts in compensation and other changes since Blackstone Group, a private equity company, obtained a minority stake in the company. Go to www.unionvoice.org/campaign/dt and urge DT's chief executive officer to bargain fairly with workers.