Telus reduces workforce by one third …
Workers vote for job action

Telus is currently implementing a massive down-sizing initiative it announced last summer. The plan will see the unionized workforce of 17,000 cut by more than 5,000 — a reduction of 30 per cent. In addition, more than 1,000 managers are being let go.

Along with this staff reduction, drastic cuts to service will flow from consolidation or closure of call centres and phone mart stores. The service cuts will reduce the number of telephone company employees in a number of smaller centres and eliminate them entirely in others. Areas affected include operator services, repair service, customer care, telemarketing, and credit and collections.

The cuts, the first major initiative by TELUS since the merger of Alberta TELUS and BC TEL in 1999, will affect employees and customers in both provinces. Of the 5,000 unionized staff members to be cut, 2,800 were targeted from BC and 2,200 from Alberta.

Of the 17,000 workers who are represented by the Telecommunications Workers Union (TWU) following the merger, roughly 10,000 were from BC and 7,000 from Alberta.  The Burnaby-based TWU won the right to represent the entire unionized workforce in the year 2000 following a merger vote initiated by TELUS and supervised by the federal Labour-board.

The staff reductions were achieved through buyouts — an Early Retirement Incentive (ERIP) for those who had reached retirement age, and a Voluntary Departure Initiative (VDIP) for those who wanted to leave but were not yet eligible for a retirement pension.

The reduction in staff led to serious disruptions which the TWU had to deal with, but perhaps even more serious were the disruptions which resulted from the closure of offices, the pressure which that placed on employees to accept the voluntary buyout, and the movement of employees from cities and towns where services were slashed to centres where services were being consolidated or where vacancies had been created.

A great deal of the Union’s efforts this fall have been directed to achieving the best results, under very trying circumstances, for the members who remain employed.

The Union has severely criticized TELUS senior management for the downsizing initiative and closures, arguing that TELUS should be committed instead to provision of quality service. The Union also argues that if staff cuts are necessary, they can be achieved on a gradual basis through attrition and early retirement, and that the service cuts and office closures are unnecessary.

In the midst of all the turmoil, the Union has also recently taken a strike vote, and won a strike mandate with a Yes vote from more than 84 per cent of the membership in Alberta and BC.

The TWU members have been working almost two years without a contract, and with little progress at the bargaining table, the Union went to the membership for the strike mandate. TELUS responded by applying for conciliation, and two federal conciliators have been appointed, so a strike is not imminent.

The TWU is also awaiting a ruling from the federal labour board on an application to include some 2,000 or more employees of Clearnet Communications in the bargaining unit. Clearnet was recently acquired by TELUS.