Ref: SLD 09/473
23 December 2009
CEPU (Communications Electrical Plumbing Union)
Communications Division representing Telstra,
Australia Post, Optus and other communications
sector employees.
CEPU Communications Division, Telecommunications and Services Branch, Victoria, 1st Floor,
139 Queensberry Street, Carlton South VIC 3053 Ph: 03 9349 4411 Fax: 03 9349 3488
E-mail: cdtsvic@victs.cepu.asn.au Websites: www.cepuconnects.org & www.cepu.net.au
TELSTRA DIGS IN FOR THREE MONTHS STRIKE ACTION
CLAIMED CONCERNS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE TRASHED
Telstra's union agreement based workers are being forced to continue their strikes
and other industrial action to try to secure an acceptable wages and conditions
agreement for Telstra employees. A major contention between the Communications
Union (CEPU) and Telstra is the discrimination in pay rates between what is on offer
to the union members, on the one hand and Telstra's workers on non-union contracts
on the other.
Telstra is offering its unionised workers a pay rate 2.5% less and thousands of
dollars short of the amount being paid to their non-union contract workers who
perform similar work. "This is blatant anti-union discrimination," says Len Cooper, the
Victorian Secretary of the Communications Union (CEPU).
Among the workers on strike are key technical workers who maintain and provide the
IP networks of the large corporate customers and large government departments,
key technical workers who maintain the national EFTPOS networks and other private
bank communication systems, and key technical workers who maintain the telephone
and data networks throughout Australia. In addition, the Technical workers who
design and install the high speed data networks for the rollout of the Federal
Government's so-called education revolution and other key workers performing
installation and maintenance on Australia's telecommunications system are also
taking strike and other industrial action.
"Telstra managers are telling their employees that the management is preparing for
at least 3 months of strikes and other industrial action. This demonstrates that
management don't give a damn about customer service and are preparing for a long
war with it's unionised workers to try to retain it's discriminatory anti-union pay rates.
This gives the lie to its claim to be concerned about good customer service," says
Len Cooper. The disruption to customer communications systems could be major
over the Christmas/new year period and beyond.
"Why not simply pay the same rate of pay for the same work, whether it's performed
by labour on union-negotiated or non-union contracts? This is not beyond one of the
biggest and most profitable corporations in Australia and in this way would solve the
dispute and prevent any further disruption to customer service.” says Len Cooper.
Authorised by and further enquiries to:
MEDIA RELEASE
LEN COOPER
Branch Secretary
Communications Union (CEPU)
M. 0438 389 302
Ahs: 9330 2668
NEWS 
