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CWA's Customer Service Reps Build Future
Participants at this year's National Marketing Conference in Nashville, Tenn., explored the impact and promise of new technology and discussed ways CWA can best handle such industry practices as sales incentives, bundling and more.
The schedule was full, with general sessions and workshops on such issues as ergonomics, stress and job design, and new technology, but CWA members still managed to make the trip to nearby Carthage for Vice President Al Gore's official announcement of his bid for the presidency.
Hosted by CWA Local 3808, the conference brought together some 200 CWAers from every district. Participants agreed that CWA has made progress for customer service employees, but that the work environment continues to be very stressful, due to such concerns as understaffing, monitoring and adherence, scripting and sales pressure.
Panels covered key issues for service reps, including a discussion of bundling and getting the industry's new work, led by Kenny Rucker, CWA Local 2222; sales incentives, led by Melissa Morin, Local 1400; and job performance by the numbers, with a focus on adherence, monitoring and job stress, led by Kathy Kinchius, Local 9415.
As part of the job performance panel, a joint task force - negotiated by District 6 last year to propose solutions to reduce high job turnover - reported on its recommendations, including the exclusion of adherence from performance appraisals, no force freezes and extension of the one-year prohibition on termination for failure to meet sales objectives for another year.
In general discussion, participants concluded that bundling provides a real opportunity for CWA members, as employers come to realize that it takes skilled employees to be able to sell the complex array of services that companies want customers to buy.
Discussion focused on sales incentives - union negotiated plans, not company "commissions" - as another way to keep new work in the core company. Some CWA units are negotiating such plans to minimize inequities and protect workers against discipline for not meeting sales objectives. Team-based incentive plans, sales objectives and contracting out of new services were among other issues raised.
CWA Secretary-Treasurer Barbara J. Easterling reminded delegates that "who gets elected to Congress does matter" and cited pending action to delay implementation of an important new ergonomics standard.
Larry Cohen, CWA's executive vice president, said CWA's future in customer service - across all sectors -depends on our ability to negotiate for bundled services and to resist efforts to contract out customer service. We must especially focus on work that is being done on-line, he stressed, citing companies that are offering long distance service and bill posting on-line, among other services.
Other presenters included CWA District 13 Vice President Vince Maisano, who talked about the need to manage and use new technologies to benefit our members, along with CWA Vice Presidents Jimmy Smith, District 3, and Tony Bixler, District 9; Dina Beaumont, executive assistant to CWA President Morton Bahr, and Rick Feinstein, president of Local 3808.
The schedule was full, with general sessions and workshops on such issues as ergonomics, stress and job design, and new technology, but CWA members still managed to make the trip to nearby Carthage for Vice President Al Gore's official announcement of his bid for the presidency.
Hosted by CWA Local 3808, the conference brought together some 200 CWAers from every district. Participants agreed that CWA has made progress for customer service employees, but that the work environment continues to be very stressful, due to such concerns as understaffing, monitoring and adherence, scripting and sales pressure.
Panels covered key issues for service reps, including a discussion of bundling and getting the industry's new work, led by Kenny Rucker, CWA Local 2222; sales incentives, led by Melissa Morin, Local 1400; and job performance by the numbers, with a focus on adherence, monitoring and job stress, led by Kathy Kinchius, Local 9415.
As part of the job performance panel, a joint task force - negotiated by District 6 last year to propose solutions to reduce high job turnover - reported on its recommendations, including the exclusion of adherence from performance appraisals, no force freezes and extension of the one-year prohibition on termination for failure to meet sales objectives for another year.
In general discussion, participants concluded that bundling provides a real opportunity for CWA members, as employers come to realize that it takes skilled employees to be able to sell the complex array of services that companies want customers to buy.
Discussion focused on sales incentives - union negotiated plans, not company "commissions" - as another way to keep new work in the core company. Some CWA units are negotiating such plans to minimize inequities and protect workers against discipline for not meeting sales objectives. Team-based incentive plans, sales objectives and contracting out of new services were among other issues raised.
CWA Secretary-Treasurer Barbara J. Easterling reminded delegates that "who gets elected to Congress does matter" and cited pending action to delay implementation of an important new ergonomics standard.
Larry Cohen, CWA's executive vice president, said CWA's future in customer service - across all sectors -depends on our ability to negotiate for bundled services and to resist efforts to contract out customer service. We must especially focus on work that is being done on-line, he stressed, citing companies that are offering long distance service and bill posting on-line, among other services.
Other presenters included CWA District 13 Vice President Vince Maisano, who talked about the need to manage and use new technologies to benefit our members, along with CWA Vice Presidents Jimmy Smith, District 3, and Tony Bixler, District 9; Dina Beaumont, executive assistant to CWA President Morton Bahr, and Rick Feinstein, president of Local 3808.