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UNI - Progress at Deutsche Telekom
CWA Executive Vice President Larry Cohen welcomed a statement by Deutsche Telekom CEO Kai-uwe Ricke that the time has come to negotiate a global framework agreement with Union Network International to ensure labor rights for workers throughout the Deutsche Telekom group of companies, including T-Mobile in the United States.
Ricke made the statement as part of a presentation to the UNI Telecom World Meeting in Berlin, May 11, chaired by Cohen, who is president of UNI Telecom. The world trade union secretariat's Telecom Sector comprises 200 unions in 150 countries representing 2 million telecommunications workers. Among the 13 sectors in UNI, CWA participates in four: Telecom; Graphical; Media, Entertainment and the Arts; and Information Technology.
After Ricke's announcement, Cohen conferred with the head of Ver.di, the German telecommunications union, and indicated negotiations will take place in June.
More than 150 delegates attended UNI's World Telecom Meeting and overwhelmingly embraced its theme, "It's All Up to Us."
Delegates passed an action agenda to achieve "UNI Telecom for the Long Run," by promoting consistent global regulation for universal, affordable service; quality service and quality jobs; and financial transparency of companies. They also formed a UNI Global Union Multinational Alliance to work on issues with Deutsche Telekom.
Delegates voiced concern about the outsourcing of telecom work worldwide and resolved to oppose such outsourcing - a threat to quality jobs and long-term employment - wherever it might occur. A delegate from the Netherlands said that one company, KPN, is now "insourcing" call center work after experiencing poor quality service from an outsourced operation.
More than 180 delegates attended the larger UNI Telecom European Conference, held concurrently in Berlin, May 8-11. They noted that the industry stands at a turning point in employment, with many highly profitable companies announcing massive job cuts, outsourcing and contracting out of work, and investing heavily in technological change that will result in the widespread elimination of jobs and major changes to the skills needed by workers in the industry. Delegates put forth several action points, including a UNI Outsourcing Charter for all companies, requiring that they consult with unions before outsourcing is proposed.
Delegates also stressed that telecom regulators have not adequately taken employment concerns into consideration. For a sustainable telecom industry, there must be secure and quality jobs based on fair terms and conditions and with the best training and development, delegates declared. They developed an action plan to meet these challenges and pressed national governments and the European Commission to urgently commence a program of analysis and research into the employment related effects of these changes.
Ricke made the statement as part of a presentation to the UNI Telecom World Meeting in Berlin, May 11, chaired by Cohen, who is president of UNI Telecom. The world trade union secretariat's Telecom Sector comprises 200 unions in 150 countries representing 2 million telecommunications workers. Among the 13 sectors in UNI, CWA participates in four: Telecom; Graphical; Media, Entertainment and the Arts; and Information Technology.
After Ricke's announcement, Cohen conferred with the head of Ver.di, the German telecommunications union, and indicated negotiations will take place in June.
More than 150 delegates attended UNI's World Telecom Meeting and overwhelmingly embraced its theme, "It's All Up to Us."
Delegates passed an action agenda to achieve "UNI Telecom for the Long Run," by promoting consistent global regulation for universal, affordable service; quality service and quality jobs; and financial transparency of companies. They also formed a UNI Global Union Multinational Alliance to work on issues with Deutsche Telekom.
Delegates voiced concern about the outsourcing of telecom work worldwide and resolved to oppose such outsourcing - a threat to quality jobs and long-term employment - wherever it might occur. A delegate from the Netherlands said that one company, KPN, is now "insourcing" call center work after experiencing poor quality service from an outsourced operation.
More than 180 delegates attended the larger UNI Telecom European Conference, held concurrently in Berlin, May 8-11. They noted that the industry stands at a turning point in employment, with many highly profitable companies announcing massive job cuts, outsourcing and contracting out of work, and investing heavily in technological change that will result in the widespread elimination of jobs and major changes to the skills needed by workers in the industry. Delegates put forth several action points, including a UNI Outsourcing Charter for all companies, requiring that they consult with unions before outsourcing is proposed.
Delegates also stressed that telecom regulators have not adequately taken employment concerns into consideration. For a sustainable telecom industry, there must be secure and quality jobs based on fair terms and conditions and with the best training and development, delegates declared. They developed an action plan to meet these challenges and pressed national governments and the European Commission to urgently commence a program of analysis and research into the employment related effects of these changes.