The CWA and IBEW today commended the Maine Public Utilities Commission for setting a December 20 hearing date to determine whether and how to address the “partial, contested” settlement in the sale of Verizon Communications operations to FairPoint Communications.
The consequences of this deal for Maine residents are enormous and a rush to judgment would not have served the public interest, the unions said.
CWA and the IBEW maintain that the proposed deal does not even come close to the recommendations made by the PUC’s Hearing Examiner. Even with the nearly half a billion dollars in concessions that the two companies sought to make, Maine residents still will be left with a financially risky company without sufficient resources to improve service quality and expand high speed broadband. The amount of the concessions, though insufficient, shows that even the companies have been forced to recognize FairPoint’s financial weakness and proves that they have been caught in their attempt to pull a fast one on the regulators in the three states.
The unions are pleased that the Commission has refused to be stampeded into a settlement. The unions hope that if the Commission decides to consider the settlement that it will hold evidentiary hearings to analyze the full implications of the proposed settlement. For example, the proposed settlement will affect FairPoint’s financial viability since it would increase the company’s operating expenses and reduce its revenue which will adversely affect its profits and cash flow, among other issues, the unions said.
The CWA and IBEW continue to agree with the Hearing Examiner’s November 26 recommendation that the sale should be rejected because it is not in the public interest. If the PUC disagrees with this recommendation, the Examiner also recommended that it should condition any approval on requirements that Verizon reduce FairPoint’s debt by $600 million and reduce its Transition Services Agreement fees by approximately $130 million. Further, FairPoint should be required to reduce its dividends, increase capital expenditures and be subject to stronger service quality standards and penalties.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Settlement proposed to Maine PUC by some intervenors fails to protect the public interest
Unions call on regulators to reject deal that falls short of earlier recommendations and hold new hearings
The CWA and IBEW are contesting a settlement reached by FairPoint Communications, Verizon Communications, the Office of Public Advocate, the Advocacy Staff of the Public Utilities Commission, and various other parties because it fails to protect the public interest. The settlement also falls far short of conditions recently proposed by the Commission’s advisory staff and the Office of the Public Advocate. The Commission is not obligated to accept the terms of the deal in whole or in part.
Although the settlement would modestly improve FairPoint’s finances, Mainers still will be left with a financially risky company without sufficient resources to improve service quality and expand high speed broadband. While some issues affecting workers have been addressed, the deal falls drastically short of these critical concerns.
The CWA and IBEW -- joint intervenors in the regulatory proceedings -- have formally asked the Commission to reject the proposed settlement -- or at the very least -- suspend its deliberations and hold hearings to address the problems posed by the settlement. Commission rules allow intervenors the opportunity to present arguments against such a proposed settlement and to request hearings.
“If the PUC allows this deal to be part of the case, then it should follow its own rules and hold a hearing to examine all of its implications,” said Pete McLaughlin, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2327. For example, the Commission should examine the impact of the deal on FairPoint’s financial viability since it would increase the company’s operating expenses and reduce its revenue which will adversely affect its profits and cash flow.
“We are surprised that the Public Advocate settled for much less than what he recommended only a few weeks ago,” added McLaughlin.
The unions were only invited to participate in settlement discussions last Friday December 7, even though such talks had been going on for some time. The unions unsuccessfully tried to ensure that the parties in the settlement discussions addressed the deal’s shortcomings through a number of proposals. After these attempts failed, the unions were again shut out from any discussions. The proposed deal is deficient in a number of areas including the following, because it:
· Requires Verizon to reduce FairPoint’s debt significantly less that the $600 million recommended by the Hearing Examiner and previously by the Public Advocate.
· Permits FairPoint to pay out common stock dividends greatly in excess of FairPoint’s level of net income in each and every year.
· Does not enable FairPoint to weather foreseeable adverse financial circumstances (such as reductions in revenues, increases in expenses, or increases in capital expenditures) without jeopardizing the financial health of FairPoint.
· Does not provide FairPoint with the financial capability to eliminate or substantially modify its plan to dramatically reduce its workforce through attrition during the next eight years.
· Allows FairPoint to invest $40-$50 million a year less in capital expenditures than Verizon’s historic annual levels in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
· Does not require FairPoint to fund any of the more than $400 million in projected retiree health care liabilities it will incur through 2015 and does not provide FairPoint with the financial capability to reasonably meet these liabilities.
· Changes significant aspects of FairPoint’s previously filed financial model, including its projections of revenues, expenses, capital expenditures, and cash flows (not even taking into consideration changes to which FairPoint may be required to agree in New Hampshire and Vermont.)
The CWA and IBEW continue to agree with the Hearing Examiner’s November 26 recommendation that the sale should be rejected because it is not in the public interest. If the PUC disagrees with this recommendation, the Examiner also recommended that it should condition any approval on requirements that Verizon reduce FairPoint’s debt by $600 million and reduce its Transition Services Agreement fees by approximately $130 million. Further, FairPoint should be required to reduce its dividends, increase capital expenditures and be subject to stronger service quality standards and penalties.
“The stakes are very high because it concerns the future of the dominant provider of telecommunications services in this state and the northern New England region,” said Cheryl Ahern, president of CWA Local 1400. “Our current and future economic well-being depends on the financial health of this provider. We cannot afford to be saddled with a financially shaky company without the resources to improve service and provide high speed broadband.”
The CWA and IBEW are contesting a settlement reached by FairPoint Communications, Verizon Communications, the Office of Public Advocate, the Advocacy Staff of the Public Utilities Commission, and various other parties because it fails to protect the public interest. The settlement also falls far short of conditions recently proposed by the Commission’s advisory staff and the Office of the Public Advocate. The Commission is not obligated to accept the terms of the deal in whole or in part.
Although the settlement would modestly improve FairPoint’s finances, Mainers still will be left with a financially risky company without sufficient resources to improve service quality and expand high speed broadband. While some issues affecting workers have been addressed, the deal falls drastically short of these critical concerns.
The CWA and IBEW -- joint intervenors in the regulatory proceedings -- have formally asked the Commission to reject the proposed settlement -- or at the very least -- suspend its deliberations and hold hearings to address the problems posed by the settlement. Commission rules allow intervenors the opportunity to present arguments against such a proposed settlement and to request hearings.
“If the PUC allows this deal to be part of the case, then it should follow its own rules and hold a hearing to examine all of its implications,” said Pete McLaughlin, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2327. For example, the Commission should examine the impact of the deal on FairPoint’s financial viability since it would increase the company’s operating expenses and reduce its revenue which will adversely affect its profits and cash flow.
“We are surprised that the Public Advocate settled for much less than what he recommended only a few weeks ago,” added McLaughlin.
The unions were only invited to participate in settlement discussions last Friday December 7, even though such talks had been going on for some time. The unions unsuccessfully tried to ensure that the parties in the settlement discussions addressed the deal’s shortcomings through a number of proposals. After these attempts failed, the unions were again shut out from any discussions. The proposed deal is deficient in a number of areas including the following, because it:
· Requires Verizon to reduce FairPoint’s debt significantly less that the $600 million recommended by the Hearing Examiner and previously by the Public Advocate.
· Permits FairPoint to pay out common stock dividends greatly in excess of FairPoint’s level of net income in each and every year.
· Does not enable FairPoint to weather foreseeable adverse financial circumstances (such as reductions in revenues, increases in expenses, or increases in capital expenditures) without jeopardizing the financial health of FairPoint.
· Does not provide FairPoint with the financial capability to eliminate or substantially modify its plan to dramatically reduce its workforce through attrition during the next eight years.
· Allows FairPoint to invest $40-$50 million a year less in capital expenditures than Verizon’s historic annual levels in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
· Does not require FairPoint to fund any of the more than $400 million in projected retiree health care liabilities it will incur through 2015 and does not provide FairPoint with the financial capability to reasonably meet these liabilities.
· Changes significant aspects of FairPoint’s previously filed financial model, including its projections of revenues, expenses, capital expenditures, and cash flows (not even taking into consideration changes to which FairPoint may be required to agree in New Hampshire and Vermont.)
The CWA and IBEW continue to agree with the Hearing Examiner’s November 26 recommendation that the sale should be rejected because it is not in the public interest. If the PUC disagrees with this recommendation, the Examiner also recommended that it should condition any approval on requirements that Verizon reduce FairPoint’s debt by $600 million and reduce its Transition Services Agreement fees by approximately $130 million. Further, FairPoint should be required to reduce its dividends, increase capital expenditures and be subject to stronger service quality standards and penalties.
“The stakes are very high because it concerns the future of the dominant provider of telecommunications services in this state and the northern New England region,” said Cheryl Ahern, president of CWA Local 1400. “Our current and future economic well-being depends on the financial health of this provider. We cannot afford to be saddled with a financially shaky company without the resources to improve service and provide high speed broadband.”
# # #
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Verizon's Savings From Tax Loophole in FairPoint Deal Would Fund High-Speed Internet in Northern New England
The $600 million tax windfall Verizon is due to receive in its proposed sale of telephone operations in northern New England, if invested in network upgrades, would be enough to provide high-speed Internet access to every residential customer in the company's service area, according to a new report released today.
Verizon has structured the sale of its phone business in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont to financially strapped FairPoint Communications so as to avoid paying any federal taxes on the profits through an arcane tax loophole, the report by the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers states.
That $600 million, if put into a Broadband Infrastructure Fund – as the unions have recommended to the Federal Communications Commission as a condition for approval of the sale – would allow for:
-- Providing lightening-fast fiber optic service (such as Verizon's FiOS Internet) to 84 percent or 857,000 of the residential customers served by Verizon in the three states;
-- Or, providing access to DSL high-speed service to nearly 100 percent of homes and FiOS to 75 percent of customers in the three states.
According to the report, data from the FCC show that the three states currently rank at or near the bottom in terms of broadband availability in the United States. New Hampshire is last, Vermont is next to last and Maine is fourth from bottom of the 50 states in the percentage of homes with DSL access. Only 64 percent of homes in the three states have broadband access as compared with the national average of 79 percent. Taxpayers are providing a $600 million tax break to Verizon through a loophole called the "Reverse Morris Trust," according to the report entitled, "You Make the Call – High Speed Broadband for All or Tax Loopholes for Verizon?"
Verizon can qualify for the tax loophole because FairPoint, a small telecom company based in North Carolina, is smaller than Verizon's northern New England operations and Verizon's shareholders will own more than 50 percent of FairPoint if the deal is approved. If Verizon sold its properties to a larger corporation for the same price of $2.7 billion, it would owe more than $600 million because its proceeds from the sale would be taxed at the corporate tax rate of 35 percent, according to the report. Because of the advantage of the Reverse Morris loophole, Verizon has an incentive to sell to a small company with limited financial resources rather than rural telecom companies such as Embarq or Citizens, which would be better able to invest in advanced communications networks, the report stated.
"If this deal is approved as currently structured, U.S. taxpayers will be subsidizing Verizon for abandoning its operations in northern New England and leaving these states as a communications backwater for years to come," said Kenneth Peres, PhD economist for CWA and the report's author.
Advisory staff for the public utilities commissions in all three states, as well as the offices of the consumer and public advocates in New Hampshire and Maine, all have urged rejection of the proposed deal, and have called for stringent conditions to be imposed if the commissioners ignore their advice and approve the transaction. The Maine and New Hampshire commission staff urged that, at the very least, Verizon's sale price be cut substantially – the Maine PUC staff recommended $600 million -- to reduce the debt burden that the deal would load onto FairPoint.
The regulatory commissioners in the three states are expected to announce their decisions on whether to approve, reject or impose conditions on the proposed sale later this month.
The report is being sent to governors and every member of the state legislatures in the three state region.
The report is available at www.stopthesalenow.org and www.cwa-union.org.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Nearly 90 percent of letters to NH Public Utilities Commission oppose sale of Verizon to FairPoint
Concord, NH – With just a few weeks remaining before a decision is expected by the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission on the proposed sale of Verizon to FairPoint Communications, an analysis of the correspondence sent to the Commission shows that public comments on the sale are overwhelmingly opposed to the deal.
Jobs with Justice -- a community coalition that supports employment rights -- obtained copies of all comments received by the PUC on the sale. As of November 16, the commission had received a total of 252 letters and emails taking a position on the proposed sale. A surprising 225 comments, or almost 90 percent were against the sale while only 27 were for it. Another 10 comments expressed concerns, but did not take a position either for or against the proposed sale.
Many of the letters were from state and local elected officials. Sixty-two or 97 percent of the 64 comments submitted by elected officials opposed the sale while only two were in favor.
“As the Commissioners deliberate, we really hope they will take into consideration the wisdom of the people of New Hampshire,” said Mark MacKenzie, President of the New Hampshire AFL-CIO. “A clear majority of citizens are very concerned that this sale is not in the public’s interest.”
A public opinion poll conducted in early Sept. by Fingerhut Granados Opinion Research for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Communications Workers of America showed that in the northern states, New Hampshire had the highest level of opposition to the proposed deal with 38 percent against to 18 percent in favor. When survey respondents learned more about the deal, opposition rose to 70 percent.
For a copy of the Jobs with Justice report summarizing public comments at the New Hampshire PUC, please contact Rand Wilson at the above number or by email at rand@mindspring.com.
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
Jobs with Justice -- a community coalition that supports employment rights -- obtained copies of all comments received by the PUC on the sale. As of November 16, the commission had received a total of 252 letters and emails taking a position on the proposed sale. A surprising 225 comments, or almost 90 percent were against the sale while only 27 were for it. Another 10 comments expressed concerns, but did not take a position either for or against the proposed sale.
Many of the letters were from state and local elected officials. Sixty-two or 97 percent of the 64 comments submitted by elected officials opposed the sale while only two were in favor.
“As the Commissioners deliberate, we really hope they will take into consideration the wisdom of the people of New Hampshire,” said Mark MacKenzie, President of the New Hampshire AFL-CIO. “A clear majority of citizens are very concerned that this sale is not in the public’s interest.”
A public opinion poll conducted in early Sept. by Fingerhut Granados Opinion Research for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Communications Workers of America showed that in the northern states, New Hampshire had the highest level of opposition to the proposed deal with 38 percent against to 18 percent in favor. When survey respondents learned more about the deal, opposition rose to 70 percent.
For a copy of the Jobs with Justice report summarizing public comments at the New Hampshire PUC, please contact Rand Wilson at the above number or by email at rand@mindspring.com.
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Hearing Examiner recommends that Maine Public Utilities Commission reject sale of Verizon to FairPoint
Cautions against “Anybody But Verizon” mentality
In a report written on behalf of the Public Utilities Commission’s advisory staff, the Hearing Examiner recommended that the Commission reject the joint Verizon and FairPoint petition for approval of the sale of Verizon’s assets to FairPoint. Hearing Examiner Trina Bragdon released the report on November 26.
Bragdon wrote in the report’s introduction that, “taken as a whole, the proposed Transaction subjects both ratepayers and shareholders to substantial risks and harms that are not outweighed by any of the potential benefits of the Transaction.”
“The Examiner’s report echoes what the Office of the Public Advocate and we have been saying all along,” said Pete McLaughlin, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2327. “With each passing day, support for this ill-conceived transaction is dwindling. This report is encouraging news for Maine and its future economic development.”
The Examiner’s report shares the view advocated by the Office of the Public Advocate and the two unions representing Verizon employees that conditions on the sale would be critical if the Commission approves the deal. “Indeed, without many of these conditions, the Examiners believe that ratepayers would be harmed by the Transaction,” Bragdon wrote.
Significantly, the report cautioned “the Commission that it should not let its displeasure with Verizon’s lack of cooperation and investment in Maine over the past five years influence the Commission’s decision. The Commission should not succumb to the “anybody but Verizon” mentality that even Verizon, itself, seems to be encouraging. The Commission must make its decision based upon the evidence, or lack thereof, in the record of this proceeding.”
In the event that the sale is approved the, the Hearing Examiner’s report recommends 49 potential conditions the Commission could impose on Verizon and FairPoint to ameliorate the risks and harms to ratepayers and shareholders. Highlights of those conditions include:
· Renegotiate the terms of the agreement so that FairPoint's debt is reduced by $600 million
· Reduce FairPoint's dividend by 30 percent annually
· Verizon to grant FairPoint permission to hire former Verizon workers without a waiting period
· Renegotiate the Transition Services Agreement for a $0 cost for six months and thereafter at a reduced cost until retired workers are replaced and giving the PUC the right to suspend the cutover
· Require FairPoint to develop a plan to address the potential loss of experienced workers
· Require FairPoint to meet stronger service quality standards with higher penalties
· Require FairPoint to increase broadband investment and for Verizon to pay $12 million
· Require FairPoint to establish a separate subsidiary for DSL related services for three years.
In a report written on behalf of the Public Utilities Commission’s advisory staff, the Hearing Examiner recommended that the Commission reject the joint Verizon and FairPoint petition for approval of the sale of Verizon’s assets to FairPoint. Hearing Examiner Trina Bragdon released the report on November 26.
Bragdon wrote in the report’s introduction that, “taken as a whole, the proposed Transaction subjects both ratepayers and shareholders to substantial risks and harms that are not outweighed by any of the potential benefits of the Transaction.”
“The Examiner’s report echoes what the Office of the Public Advocate and we have been saying all along,” said Pete McLaughlin, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2327. “With each passing day, support for this ill-conceived transaction is dwindling. This report is encouraging news for Maine and its future economic development.”
The Examiner’s report shares the view advocated by the Office of the Public Advocate and the two unions representing Verizon employees that conditions on the sale would be critical if the Commission approves the deal. “Indeed, without many of these conditions, the Examiners believe that ratepayers would be harmed by the Transaction,” Bragdon wrote.
Significantly, the report cautioned “the Commission that it should not let its displeasure with Verizon’s lack of cooperation and investment in Maine over the past five years influence the Commission’s decision. The Commission should not succumb to the “anybody but Verizon” mentality that even Verizon, itself, seems to be encouraging. The Commission must make its decision based upon the evidence, or lack thereof, in the record of this proceeding.”
In the event that the sale is approved the, the Hearing Examiner’s report recommends 49 potential conditions the Commission could impose on Verizon and FairPoint to ameliorate the risks and harms to ratepayers and shareholders. Highlights of those conditions include:
· Renegotiate the terms of the agreement so that FairPoint's debt is reduced by $600 million
· Reduce FairPoint's dividend by 30 percent annually
· Verizon to grant FairPoint permission to hire former Verizon workers without a waiting period
· Renegotiate the Transition Services Agreement for a $0 cost for six months and thereafter at a reduced cost until retired workers are replaced and giving the PUC the right to suspend the cutover
· Require FairPoint to develop a plan to address the potential loss of experienced workers
· Require FairPoint to meet stronger service quality standards with higher penalties
· Require FairPoint to increase broadband investment and for Verizon to pay $12 million
· Require FairPoint to establish a separate subsidiary for DSL related services for three years.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Groups turn in more than 2,600 postcards from people opposing sale of Verizon to FairPoint
Message to the Governor: “Don’t let Vermont take a wrong turn on the information superhighway!”
Montpelier, VT – Showing the growing opposition to the proposed sale of Verizon to FairPoint Communications, a delegation of citizens delivered more than 2,600 postcards in a wheelbarrow to Governor Douglas asking him to oppose the sale. David O'Brien, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Public Service received the cards on behalf of the Governor.
The group was composed of elected representatives, first responders, seniors, small business owners and telephone workers -- all of whom want to make sure that Governor Douglas gets the message: Stop the Sale! The post cards ask the Governor to “take a strong stand against allowing Verizon to sell its assets to FairPoint.” Several State Senators and Representatives also attended.
Just prior to delivering the cards, several speakers -- reflecting diverse viewpoints against the sale -- briefed the news media in the Cedar Creek Room at the State House.
“Vermont is in dire need of broadband access for every business and household -- not someday, not maybe, and not when Verizon or FairPoint gets around to it, but rather as soon as possible,” said State Senator Vince Illuzzi. “The Public Service Board should either apply conditions to a sale that requires FairPoint to make broadband services available to all of its customers within a reasonable period, or reject the Verizon / FairPoint deal as now proposed.” Illuzzi is Chair of the Senate Economic Development Committee.
“Businesses increasingly rely on their broadband Internet connections to stay in business and succeed,” said Ron Lewis, founder and co-owner of Computer Care in Colchester. “FairPoint has indicated that its plan is to bring DSL access -- and only DSL -- to the majority of Vermonters. DSL is not state of the art technology. Fiber optics is today’s best technology and that is what Vermont deserves. We cannot settle for a company that promises to deliver only yesterday’s technology. Burlington Telecom is already delivering Internet, phone and television service via fiber and it will be well positioned for the future. All of Vermont deserves the same, or nearly so.” Computer Care provides IT support services to small businesses and individuals primarily in northwest and central Vermont.
“When seconds count, Vermont’s citizens depend on firefighters and emergency medical technicians,” said Matt Vinci, President of the Professional Fire Fighters of Vermont. “In order to assess the risk of any emergency, we need reliable information. We depend upon a high quality ‘information superhighway’ to obtain it. The proposed FairPoint acquisition of Verizon’s northern New England properties poses risks that your firefighters do not want to take. Years ago we had “Ma Bell,” then we had the “Baby Bells.” Fire fighters in this state are concerned that if this acquisition goes through, then we are going to have “Tinker Bell!”
“High speed Internet can help senior citizens live independently, improve our quality of life and reduce the cost of care,” said John Bloch, Vice President of the Vermont chapter of the Alliance for Retired Americans. “Especially in Vermont, long distances often separate friends and family. For seniors, both physical and financial concerns can make long trips difficult. High speed Internet connections can help connect us to friends, family, medical and social assistance, and the larger world. Seniors need to have improved access to the information superhighway. We do not want to have our future access to high speed Internet left to a company that is already on very shaky ground!” Block is also President of the Board of Montpelier’s Onion River Community Access.
“As a 22-year telephone company employee, I have learned a lot about this business,” said Mike Spillane, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2326. “FairPoint is just not in the same league as Verizon with regards to assets, technology, resources and stability. Thousands of Vermonters across the state recognize this and with these postcards have showed their concern. We are honored to bring their voices to the state capitol and hope that our elected officials will listen to the people.”
Opponents of the sale have sought to get as many elected officials as possible to voice their views, so the postcards were addressed to the Governor. “Even though the Vermont Public Service Board will make the final decision, its decision hinges on whether or not this deal is in the ‘public good.’ Who better than the Governor to weigh in on what’s in the public good?” said CWA Stop-the-Sale Campaign Coordinator Ralph Montefusco.
“We went to state fairs and shopping malls to talk with the public and gather signatures for many of these post cards,” said James Haslam, Director of the Vermont Workers’ Center/Jobs with Justice, a coalition that organizes for workers' rights and living wages for all Vermonters. “We found that the majority of people still hadn’t heard about the proposed sale. When they did, they understood just how risky FairPoint could be and were eager to sign.”
Photos from the post card event may be viewed at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/randwilson.aflcio/VermontPostcardEvent
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
Montpelier, VT – Showing the growing opposition to the proposed sale of Verizon to FairPoint Communications, a delegation of citizens delivered more than 2,600 postcards in a wheelbarrow to Governor Douglas asking him to oppose the sale. David O'Brien, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Public Service received the cards on behalf of the Governor.
The group was composed of elected representatives, first responders, seniors, small business owners and telephone workers -- all of whom want to make sure that Governor Douglas gets the message: Stop the Sale! The post cards ask the Governor to “take a strong stand against allowing Verizon to sell its assets to FairPoint.” Several State Senators and Representatives also attended.
Just prior to delivering the cards, several speakers -- reflecting diverse viewpoints against the sale -- briefed the news media in the Cedar Creek Room at the State House.
“Vermont is in dire need of broadband access for every business and household -- not someday, not maybe, and not when Verizon or FairPoint gets around to it, but rather as soon as possible,” said State Senator Vince Illuzzi. “The Public Service Board should either apply conditions to a sale that requires FairPoint to make broadband services available to all of its customers within a reasonable period, or reject the Verizon / FairPoint deal as now proposed.” Illuzzi is Chair of the Senate Economic Development Committee.
“Businesses increasingly rely on their broadband Internet connections to stay in business and succeed,” said Ron Lewis, founder and co-owner of Computer Care in Colchester. “FairPoint has indicated that its plan is to bring DSL access -- and only DSL -- to the majority of Vermonters. DSL is not state of the art technology. Fiber optics is today’s best technology and that is what Vermont deserves. We cannot settle for a company that promises to deliver only yesterday’s technology. Burlington Telecom is already delivering Internet, phone and television service via fiber and it will be well positioned for the future. All of Vermont deserves the same, or nearly so.” Computer Care provides IT support services to small businesses and individuals primarily in northwest and central Vermont.
“When seconds count, Vermont’s citizens depend on firefighters and emergency medical technicians,” said Matt Vinci, President of the Professional Fire Fighters of Vermont. “In order to assess the risk of any emergency, we need reliable information. We depend upon a high quality ‘information superhighway’ to obtain it. The proposed FairPoint acquisition of Verizon’s northern New England properties poses risks that your firefighters do not want to take. Years ago we had “Ma Bell,” then we had the “Baby Bells.” Fire fighters in this state are concerned that if this acquisition goes through, then we are going to have “Tinker Bell!”
“High speed Internet can help senior citizens live independently, improve our quality of life and reduce the cost of care,” said John Bloch, Vice President of the Vermont chapter of the Alliance for Retired Americans. “Especially in Vermont, long distances often separate friends and family. For seniors, both physical and financial concerns can make long trips difficult. High speed Internet connections can help connect us to friends, family, medical and social assistance, and the larger world. Seniors need to have improved access to the information superhighway. We do not want to have our future access to high speed Internet left to a company that is already on very shaky ground!” Block is also President of the Board of Montpelier’s Onion River Community Access.
“As a 22-year telephone company employee, I have learned a lot about this business,” said Mike Spillane, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2326. “FairPoint is just not in the same league as Verizon with regards to assets, technology, resources and stability. Thousands of Vermonters across the state recognize this and with these postcards have showed their concern. We are honored to bring their voices to the state capitol and hope that our elected officials will listen to the people.”
Opponents of the sale have sought to get as many elected officials as possible to voice their views, so the postcards were addressed to the Governor. “Even though the Vermont Public Service Board will make the final decision, its decision hinges on whether or not this deal is in the ‘public good.’ Who better than the Governor to weigh in on what’s in the public good?” said CWA Stop-the-Sale Campaign Coordinator Ralph Montefusco.
“We went to state fairs and shopping malls to talk with the public and gather signatures for many of these post cards,” said James Haslam, Director of the Vermont Workers’ Center/Jobs with Justice, a coalition that organizes for workers' rights and living wages for all Vermonters. “We found that the majority of people still hadn’t heard about the proposed sale. When they did, they understood just how risky FairPoint could be and were eager to sign.”
Photos from the post card event may be viewed at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/randwilson.aflcio/VermontPostcardEvent
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Groups turn in more than 5,000 postcards from people opposing sale of Verizon to FairPoint
Message to the Governor: “Don’t let New Hampshire take a wrong turn on the information superhighway!”
Concord, NH -- Showing the growing opposition to the proposed sale of Verizon to FairPoint Communications, a delegation delivered more than five thousand post cards in a wheelbarrow to a representative of Governor Lynch on October 30 asking him to oppose the sale.
The group was composed of representatives from first responders, small business, civic groups, teachers, and telephone workers -- all of whom want to make sure that Governor Lynch gets the message: Stop the Sale!
The post cards ask the Governor to “take a strong stand against allowing Verizon to sell its assets to FairPoint.” They were delivered to Senate President Sylvia Larsen who was designated by Governor Lynch to receive the post cards.
“New Hampshire’s economy depends on our success in requiring the highest quality telecommunications network for our citizens and our businesses,” said Larsen. “We join you in dedicating ourselves to that future.”
Participants in the delegation held a short briefing in the Lobby of the Legislative Office Building just prior to delivering the cards. State Senators Jacalyn Cilley, Martha Fuller Clark, Harold Janeway and Deborah Reynolds, many state representatives and Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand also participated.
“If this sale is approved it could send New Hampshire and its economy backwards,” said Mark MacKenzie, President of the New Hampshire AFL-CIO. “Cutting edge technology is essential to keeping good paying jobs in the state. FairPoint has not demonstrated it has the resources or the technology to keep pace with today’s world.”
“When seconds count, New Hampshire citizens depend on firefighters and paramedics,” said David Lang, President of the Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire. “In order to assess the risk of any emergency, we need reliable information. We depend upon a high quality ‘information superhighway’ to obtain it. The proposed FairPoint acquisition of Verizon’s Northern New England properties poses risks that your firefighters do not want to take. We would prefer that ‘Can you hear me now?’ remain a catchy slogan on television -- not a way of life for the people of New Hampshire.”
“As a small business person and retailer, I depend on the overall health of New Hampshire’s economy,” said Jason Howard, owner of Ross Furniture. “I don’t want state regulators to approve something that could put our state’s future economic development at risk.” Howard has been in the furniture business for 34 years in Dover.
“For generations the motto of the phone company was ‘the only thing we have to sell is our service.’ Despite many changes over the years, Verizon has lived up to that motto and it seems to me that Verizon is far superior to any alternative that we can see in the future,” said Representative James Pilliod from Belmont, NH.
“Verizon is the second largest telecommunications company in the U.S.,” said Jaime Contois from Working Families Win, a statewide organization based in Keene that works to empower citizens to hold elected officials more accountable on economic security issues. “It’s the responsibility of our government and industry regulators to hold it accountable and to do what’s right for the citizens of New Hampshire.”
“Our canvassers went door-to-door to collect many of these post cards,” said Karen Nussbaum, Executive Director of Working America, an AFL-CIO affiliate that organizes working families to fight for good jobs, affordable health care and secure retirements. “The majority of households still hadn’t heard about the proposed sale, but when they did, people understood how risky FairPoint could be and were eager to sign.”
Photos from the post card event may be viewed at: http://picasaweb.google.com/randwilson.aflcio/NewHampshireStopTheSalePostCardEvent
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
Concord, NH -- Showing the growing opposition to the proposed sale of Verizon to FairPoint Communications, a delegation delivered more than five thousand post cards in a wheelbarrow to a representative of Governor Lynch on October 30 asking him to oppose the sale.
The group was composed of representatives from first responders, small business, civic groups, teachers, and telephone workers -- all of whom want to make sure that Governor Lynch gets the message: Stop the Sale!
The post cards ask the Governor to “take a strong stand against allowing Verizon to sell its assets to FairPoint.” They were delivered to Senate President Sylvia Larsen who was designated by Governor Lynch to receive the post cards.
“New Hampshire’s economy depends on our success in requiring the highest quality telecommunications network for our citizens and our businesses,” said Larsen. “We join you in dedicating ourselves to that future.”
Participants in the delegation held a short briefing in the Lobby of the Legislative Office Building just prior to delivering the cards. State Senators Jacalyn Cilley, Martha Fuller Clark, Harold Janeway and Deborah Reynolds, many state representatives and Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand also participated.
“If this sale is approved it could send New Hampshire and its economy backwards,” said Mark MacKenzie, President of the New Hampshire AFL-CIO. “Cutting edge technology is essential to keeping good paying jobs in the state. FairPoint has not demonstrated it has the resources or the technology to keep pace with today’s world.”
“When seconds count, New Hampshire citizens depend on firefighters and paramedics,” said David Lang, President of the Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire. “In order to assess the risk of any emergency, we need reliable information. We depend upon a high quality ‘information superhighway’ to obtain it. The proposed FairPoint acquisition of Verizon’s Northern New England properties poses risks that your firefighters do not want to take. We would prefer that ‘Can you hear me now?’ remain a catchy slogan on television -- not a way of life for the people of New Hampshire.”
“As a small business person and retailer, I depend on the overall health of New Hampshire’s economy,” said Jason Howard, owner of Ross Furniture. “I don’t want state regulators to approve something that could put our state’s future economic development at risk.” Howard has been in the furniture business for 34 years in Dover.
“For generations the motto of the phone company was ‘the only thing we have to sell is our service.’ Despite many changes over the years, Verizon has lived up to that motto and it seems to me that Verizon is far superior to any alternative that we can see in the future,” said Representative James Pilliod from Belmont, NH.
“Verizon is the second largest telecommunications company in the U.S.,” said Jaime Contois from Working Families Win, a statewide organization based in Keene that works to empower citizens to hold elected officials more accountable on economic security issues. “It’s the responsibility of our government and industry regulators to hold it accountable and to do what’s right for the citizens of New Hampshire.”
“Our canvassers went door-to-door to collect many of these post cards,” said Karen Nussbaum, Executive Director of Working America, an AFL-CIO affiliate that organizes working families to fight for good jobs, affordable health care and secure retirements. “The majority of households still hadn’t heard about the proposed sale, but when they did, people understood how risky FairPoint could be and were eager to sign.”
Photos from the post card event may be viewed at: http://picasaweb.google.com/randwilson.aflcio/NewHampshireStopTheSalePostCardEvent
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
Friday, October 19, 2007
Labor intervenors sum up concerns about Verizon - FairPoint deal in brief to VT Public Service Board
Unions’ brief rejects possible PSB imposed “conditions” on the sale
The two labor intervenors in the regulatory oversight of the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines submitted their direct brief to the Vermont Public Service Board concluding that based on FairPoint’s own financial projections, “[It] does not have the financial resources to provide safe and reliable service to Vermont’s consumers.”
The Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) are labor intervenors with regulators in all three Northern New England states and the FCC. The brief was submitted on October 17.
The intervenors were also highly critical of FairPoint’s assumption that through attrition it will lose between 4 and 4.5 percent of its workforce each year beginning in 2009, thus losing about 700 employees within five years. “FairPoint assumes it will be able to provide extensive new network and customer service functions, maintain the physical network, and fulfill its myriad promises, with fewer people than Verizon Northern New England has today.”
The 54 page brief also warned that “FairPoint’s ability to achieve acceptable service quality performance will be impaired by a lack of adequate resources, the potential loss of experienced workers, and the significant risks posed by FairPoint’s creation and implementation of dozens of new operational, support and administrative systems.”
The unions, “[S]trongly recommend that the Board reject the proposed transaction...” The intervenors argue that, “The deficiencies with FairPoint are too pervasive to be cured through the Board’s usual practice of imposing conditions. Conditions cannot make FairPoint financially viable. Conditions cannot give FairPoint the resources necessary to provide reliable service to customers. Conditions cannot fully protect the public against the likely adverse consequences of allowing FairPoint to own and operate Verizon Vermont.”
The unions stated that rejecting the deal would send “a very significant message to Verizon.” First, if Verizon still wants to sell its operations “it would have to find a buyer that would actually have the requisite financial resources, the operational resources and capacity and experience needed to provide reliable service.” Second, if Verizon chooses to retain the business it would have to “change its operating plan and focus more on service quality.”
In their brief, the unions reach the following conclusion, “the best way for the Board to protect the public is to reject the proposed transaction. FairPoint does not have the resources or expertise to step into Verizon’s shoes. There is no set of conditions that would make this transaction consistent with the public good.”
Copies of the Labor Intervenors’ brief are available from Rand Wilson by email to rand mindspring.com. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org.
The two labor intervenors in the regulatory oversight of the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines submitted their direct brief to the Vermont Public Service Board concluding that based on FairPoint’s own financial projections, “[It] does not have the financial resources to provide safe and reliable service to Vermont’s consumers.”
The Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) are labor intervenors with regulators in all three Northern New England states and the FCC. The brief was submitted on October 17.
The intervenors were also highly critical of FairPoint’s assumption that through attrition it will lose between 4 and 4.5 percent of its workforce each year beginning in 2009, thus losing about 700 employees within five years. “FairPoint assumes it will be able to provide extensive new network and customer service functions, maintain the physical network, and fulfill its myriad promises, with fewer people than Verizon Northern New England has today.”
The 54 page brief also warned that “FairPoint’s ability to achieve acceptable service quality performance will be impaired by a lack of adequate resources, the potential loss of experienced workers, and the significant risks posed by FairPoint’s creation and implementation of dozens of new operational, support and administrative systems.”
The unions, “[S]trongly recommend that the Board reject the proposed transaction...” The intervenors argue that, “The deficiencies with FairPoint are too pervasive to be cured through the Board’s usual practice of imposing conditions. Conditions cannot make FairPoint financially viable. Conditions cannot give FairPoint the resources necessary to provide reliable service to customers. Conditions cannot fully protect the public against the likely adverse consequences of allowing FairPoint to own and operate Verizon Vermont.”
The unions stated that rejecting the deal would send “a very significant message to Verizon.” First, if Verizon still wants to sell its operations “it would have to find a buyer that would actually have the requisite financial resources, the operational resources and capacity and experience needed to provide reliable service.” Second, if Verizon chooses to retain the business it would have to “change its operating plan and focus more on service quality.”
In their brief, the unions reach the following conclusion, “the best way for the Board to protect the public is to reject the proposed transaction. FairPoint does not have the resources or expertise to step into Verizon’s shoes. There is no set of conditions that would make this transaction consistent with the public good.”
Copies of the Labor Intervenors’ brief are available from Rand Wilson by email to rand
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Groups turn in more than 5,000 postcards from people opposing sale of Verizon to FairPoint
Augusta, ME -- Showing the growing opposition to the proposed sale of Verizon to FairPoint Communications, a delegation delivered more than 5,000 post cards in a wheelbarrow to Governor Baldacci’s office on September 25 asking him to oppose the sale.
The group was composed of representatives from seniors, telephone workers, first responders, parents and health care providers -- all of whom want to make sure that Governor Baldacci gets the message: Stop the Sale!
The post cards ask the Governor to “take a strong stand against allowing Verizon to sell its assets to FairPoint.” Maine Public Advocate Richard Davies received the cards for Governor Baldacci.
In a short briefing in the State House Welcome Center just prior to delivering the post cards, retired pediatrician Tom Whitney from Norway said, “High speed Internet is vital to providing quality health care to all persons in Maine. In other states, it has already saved lives. Experts at a major hospital can use high-speed Internet to review a patient’s symptoms, monitor a patient and even prescribe the right treatment over the Internet. We have a much better chance of achieving that level of service with Verizon than we do with FairPoint.”
“All Mainers – and especially our schools, hospitals and emergency responders -- desperately need to have improved access to the information superhighway,” said Gerry Gay, President of the Professional Firefighters of Maine in a prepared statement. “In our opinion, the proposed FairPoint acquisition of the Verizon Northern New England properties poses unacceptably high risks. We do not want to be left on FairPoint’s “dirt road” to nowhere!”
“In the modern, competitive global economy, students without high-speed internet will simply be left behind,” said Matt Beck, a parent of three school age children from South Portland. “It’s really unfair that anyone in Maine is denied the kind of high speed Internet service that is available for most of the rest of America. This sale to tiny FairPoint may only deepen the digital divide that is already putting people in Maine at a disadvantage.”
“High speed internet can help senior citizens live independently, improve our quality of life and reduce the cost of care,” said Neena Quirion, Director of the Maine Council of Seniors Citizens. “Especially in Maine, long distances often separate friends and family. For Seniors, both physical and financial concerns can make long trips difficult. High speed Internet connections can help connect us to friends, family, medical and social assistance, and the larger world. Seniors need to have improved access to the information superhighway. We do not want to have our future access to high speed Internet left to a company that is already on very shaky ground!”
“If this sale is approved it could send Maine and its economy backwards,” said Ed Gorham, President of the Maine AFL-CIO. “Cutting edge technology is essential to keeping good paying jobs in the state. FairPoint has not demonstrated it has the resources or the technology to keep pace with today’s world.”
“We went door to door to collect many of these post cards,” said Brian McAnally, Field Director of Working America, an AFL-CIO affiliate that organizes working families to fight for good jobs, affordable health care and secure retirements. “The majority of households still hadn’t heard about the proposed sale, but when they did, people understood how risky FairPoint could be and were eager to sign.”
Pictures from the event may be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/randwilson.aflcio/DeliveringPostCardsToGovBaldacci
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
The group was composed of representatives from seniors, telephone workers, first responders, parents and health care providers -- all of whom want to make sure that Governor Baldacci gets the message: Stop the Sale!
The post cards ask the Governor to “take a strong stand against allowing Verizon to sell its assets to FairPoint.” Maine Public Advocate Richard Davies received the cards for Governor Baldacci.
In a short briefing in the State House Welcome Center just prior to delivering the post cards, retired pediatrician Tom Whitney from Norway said, “High speed Internet is vital to providing quality health care to all persons in Maine. In other states, it has already saved lives. Experts at a major hospital can use high-speed Internet to review a patient’s symptoms, monitor a patient and even prescribe the right treatment over the Internet. We have a much better chance of achieving that level of service with Verizon than we do with FairPoint.”
“All Mainers – and especially our schools, hospitals and emergency responders -- desperately need to have improved access to the information superhighway,” said Gerry Gay, President of the Professional Firefighters of Maine in a prepared statement. “In our opinion, the proposed FairPoint acquisition of the Verizon Northern New England properties poses unacceptably high risks. We do not want to be left on FairPoint’s “dirt road” to nowhere!”
“In the modern, competitive global economy, students without high-speed internet will simply be left behind,” said Matt Beck, a parent of three school age children from South Portland. “It’s really unfair that anyone in Maine is denied the kind of high speed Internet service that is available for most of the rest of America. This sale to tiny FairPoint may only deepen the digital divide that is already putting people in Maine at a disadvantage.”
“High speed internet can help senior citizens live independently, improve our quality of life and reduce the cost of care,” said Neena Quirion, Director of the Maine Council of Seniors Citizens. “Especially in Maine, long distances often separate friends and family. For Seniors, both physical and financial concerns can make long trips difficult. High speed Internet connections can help connect us to friends, family, medical and social assistance, and the larger world. Seniors need to have improved access to the information superhighway. We do not want to have our future access to high speed Internet left to a company that is already on very shaky ground!”
“If this sale is approved it could send Maine and its economy backwards,” said Ed Gorham, President of the Maine AFL-CIO. “Cutting edge technology is essential to keeping good paying jobs in the state. FairPoint has not demonstrated it has the resources or the technology to keep pace with today’s world.”
“We went door to door to collect many of these post cards,” said Brian McAnally, Field Director of Working America, an AFL-CIO affiliate that organizes working families to fight for good jobs, affordable health care and secure retirements. “The majority of households still hadn’t heard about the proposed sale, but when they did, people understood how risky FairPoint could be and were eager to sign.”
Pictures from the event may be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/randwilson.aflcio/DeliveringPostCardsToGovBaldacci
More information about why citizens are mobilizing to stop the Verizon sale to FairPoint is at: www.stopthesalenow.org and www.no-deal.org. For information about ending the digital divide visit: www.speedmatters.org.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Labor Board charges Verizon Business illegally interfered with employees’ freedom to form a union
Management tactics included making illegal threats, intimidation and surveillance of union supporters
In two separate cases, the National Labor Relations Board issued formal complaints against Verizon Business (VZB) for violating federal labor laws by spying on workers, suppressing free speech in the workplace and issuing illegal warnings to union supporters.
The complaints were issued by the Region 2 (NY) and Region 6 (PA) offices of the NLRB on August 30. The complaints were made after an investigation of charges filed by workers in Verizon Business’ Monsey, NY and Pittsburgh, PA facilities earlier this year. The Board’s complaints allege that Verizon management:
· "...selectively and disparately prohibited union solicitations and distributions, while permitting nonunion solicitations and distributions."
· "...engaged in surveillance of employees to discourage their union activities. [And] created an impression amongst its employees that their union activities were under surveillance."
· illegally warned two VZB techs for supporting the union.
· illegally "informed the employees that they were not to discuss the union at work."
· illegally "threatened employees with layoff for supporting the union"
· illegally gave two oral warnings and one written warning to three pro-union VZB techs.
"Verizon technicians want to have the same job protections and rights that so-called "core" Verizon employees have. Instead, management has subjected us to its propaganda machine and interfering with our rights on the job. Top management should recognize our union and begin bargaining for the good jobs and respect we all deserve," said Dave Rogol, a Senior Technician at Verizon Business who works at its Charlton, MA facility.
"It’s about time this company got slapped for intimidating VZB techs from making a free and fair choice," said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One, which includes more than 26,000 Verizon members throughout the Northeast. "Now Verizon should honor the neutrality and union recognition procedure that so many other Verizon employees have benefited from."
The National Labor Relations Act forbids employers from interfering with, restraining, or coercing employees in the exercise of rights relating to organizing, forming, joining or assisting a labor organization for collective bargaining purposes, or engaging in protected concerted activities to improve wages and working conditions.
NLRB hearings by an Administrative Law Judge on the Pittsburgh complaint are planned for October 31. Separate hearings on the Monsey, NY case are set for November 5 in New York City.
For copies of the NLRB complaints, contact Rand Wilson by email at rwilson aflcio.org . For more info about the technicians organizing campaign, visit www.freechoiceatverizon.com.
In two separate cases, the National Labor Relations Board issued formal complaints against Verizon Business (VZB) for violating federal labor laws by spying on workers, suppressing free speech in the workplace and issuing illegal warnings to union supporters.
The complaints were issued by the Region 2 (NY) and Region 6 (PA) offices of the NLRB on August 30. The complaints were made after an investigation of charges filed by workers in Verizon Business’ Monsey, NY and Pittsburgh, PA facilities earlier this year. The Board’s complaints allege that Verizon management:
· "...selectively and disparately prohibited union solicitations and distributions, while permitting nonunion solicitations and distributions."
· "...engaged in surveillance of employees to discourage their union activities. [And] created an impression amongst its employees that their union activities were under surveillance."
· illegally warned two VZB techs for supporting the union.
· illegally "informed the employees that they were not to discuss the union at work."
· illegally "threatened employees with layoff for supporting the union"
· illegally gave two oral warnings and one written warning to three pro-union VZB techs.
"Verizon technicians want to have the same job protections and rights that so-called "core" Verizon employees have. Instead, management has subjected us to its propaganda machine and interfering with our rights on the job. Top management should recognize our union and begin bargaining for the good jobs and respect we all deserve," said Dave Rogol, a Senior Technician at Verizon Business who works at its Charlton, MA facility.
"It’s about time this company got slapped for intimidating VZB techs from making a free and fair choice," said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One, which includes more than 26,000 Verizon members throughout the Northeast. "Now Verizon should honor the neutrality and union recognition procedure that so many other Verizon employees have benefited from."
The National Labor Relations Act forbids employers from interfering with, restraining, or coercing employees in the exercise of rights relating to organizing, forming, joining or assisting a labor organization for collective bargaining purposes, or engaging in protected concerted activities to improve wages and working conditions.
NLRB hearings by an Administrative Law Judge on the Pittsburgh complaint are planned for October 31. Separate hearings on the Monsey, NY case are set for November 5 in New York City.
For copies of the NLRB complaints, contact Rand Wilson by email at rwilson
Friday, September 7, 2007
New England Congressional Delegation Raises Concerns with FCC Over Verizon’s Proposed Sale of Landlines to FairPoint
Washington, D.C. – The entire U.S. House of Representatives delegation from Northern New England has called on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to carefully review the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont and to hold off on making any decision approving the sale until after the states have done so.
Before the sale can be completed it must be approved by regulators in all three states and the FCC.
The letter was signed by Rep. Thomas Allen (D-ME), Rep. Paul Hodes (D-NH), Rep. Michael Michaud (D-ME), Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH) and Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT).
In their September 26 letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, the Representatives asked the FCC to “conduct a thorough and extensive review of the proposed transaction to ensure that it is in the best interest of consumers, employees, and state and local economies.”
They also requested that the FCC “defer making a final decision about the transaction until all three state regulatory agencies have ruled on its merits.” A decision in the states will likely come at the end of the year.
Copies of the letter are available from Rand Wilson by email to rwilson@aflcio.org. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org.
Before the sale can be completed it must be approved by regulators in all three states and the FCC.
The letter was signed by Rep. Thomas Allen (D-ME), Rep. Paul Hodes (D-NH), Rep. Michael Michaud (D-ME), Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH) and Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT).
In their September 26 letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, the Representatives asked the FCC to “conduct a thorough and extensive review of the proposed transaction to ensure that it is in the best interest of consumers, employees, and state and local economies.”
They also requested that the FCC “defer making a final decision about the transaction until all three state regulatory agencies have ruled on its merits.” A decision in the states will likely come at the end of the year.
Copies of the letter are available from Rand Wilson by email to rwilson@aflcio.org. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Message to FairPoint shareholders: Merger with Verizon could leave shareholders “holding the bag”
IBEW and CWA to urge “no” vote at annual meeting
FairPoint shareholders will receive paper bags with a message that the proposed deal to acquire Verizon's assets in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont would “pose unacceptably high risks” that could “leave shareholders holding a costly bag” of customer complaints, antiquated equipment and potentially expensive PUC findings.
The unions are calling on shareholders to vote “no” on the proposed “Agreement and Plan of Merger” with Verizon at FairPoint’s annual meeting set for 9:00 AM in Charlotte, NC.
“We are concerned that FairPoint’s business model is to acquire small companies and then use the cash flow from those companies to pay inflated dividends at the expense of the long-term health of the company,” said Jim Voye, research director for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Washington, DC. “But that model won’t work in New England. The telephone lines and equipment are old and there are potentially costly regulatory decisions pending.”
“Who’s kidding who here,” said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One, which includes 180,000 members throughout the Northeast. “The cash flow from these access lines will have to be plowed back into network upgrades in order to satisfy regulators and customers who are demanding improved service quality. Management’s projected profit windfall from this deal is an illusion. FairPoint shareholders should vote ‘No” or be left holding a bag full of customer complaints and employee problems.”
Wall Street appears to share these concerns. When the sale was announced on January 16, 2007 FairPoint’s stock price shot up 15.5 percent to $20.41 a share. But by August 13, the price had fallen to $15.68 a share, suggesting serious concerns about FairPoint’s financial viability if the sale is approved.
A movement in all three states to oppose the deal has been growing because of concerns that FairPoint’s small size and fragile finances won’t allow it to provide better service or make significant upgrades in the availability of high speed Internet access. Copies of the leaflet for FairPoint shareholders are available from Rand Wilson.
FairPoint shareholders will receive paper bags with a message that the proposed deal to acquire Verizon's assets in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont would “pose unacceptably high risks” that could “leave shareholders holding a costly bag” of customer complaints, antiquated equipment and potentially expensive PUC findings.
The unions are calling on shareholders to vote “no” on the proposed “Agreement and Plan of Merger” with Verizon at FairPoint’s annual meeting set for 9:00 AM in Charlotte, NC.
“We are concerned that FairPoint’s business model is to acquire small companies and then use the cash flow from those companies to pay inflated dividends at the expense of the long-term health of the company,” said Jim Voye, research director for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Washington, DC. “But that model won’t work in New England. The telephone lines and equipment are old and there are potentially costly regulatory decisions pending.”
“Who’s kidding who here,” said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One, which includes 180,000 members throughout the Northeast. “The cash flow from these access lines will have to be plowed back into network upgrades in order to satisfy regulators and customers who are demanding improved service quality. Management’s projected profit windfall from this deal is an illusion. FairPoint shareholders should vote ‘No” or be left holding a bag full of customer complaints and employee problems.”
Wall Street appears to share these concerns. When the sale was announced on January 16, 2007 FairPoint’s stock price shot up 15.5 percent to $20.41 a share. But by August 13, the price had fallen to $15.68 a share, suggesting serious concerns about FairPoint’s financial viability if the sale is approved.
A movement in all three states to oppose the deal has been growing because of concerns that FairPoint’s small size and fragile finances won’t allow it to provide better service or make significant upgrades in the availability of high speed Internet access. Copies of the leaflet for FairPoint shareholders are available from Rand Wilson.
Telecom workers march for good jobs and reliable services at Verizon
Make Verizon work for everyone…
Boston, August 2 -- More than a thousand telephone workers from throughout Massachusetts marched on Verizon’s New England headquarters to rally for good jobs and reliable services.
“Next year’s collective bargaining offers telephone workers our best chance to refocus management on making Verizon work for everyone: customers, employees and investors alike,” said Myles Calvey, a 39-year splice service technician and Business Manager of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2222.
“Winning an agreement that preserves good jobs, quality health care and secure pension benefits will take unprecedented membership involvement and unity,” added Calvey, who also chairs the New England telephone workers’ bargaining committee. “All members need to get ready now.” The current agreement covering about 70,000 employees with Verizon East expires on August 2, 2008.
Calvey was joined at the rally by many Verizon workers from Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont who are opposing the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines to FairPoint Communications, a highly leveraged company based in North Carolina.
“FairPoint doesn’t have the same capacity as Verizon to expand high speed internet service throughout the northern states,” said Darlene Stone, a 28-year Administrative Assistant at Verizon’s Consumer Sales and Service Center in Burlington, VT. “I believe the proposed sale would only make the growing digital divide between rural and urban areas much worse.” Stone is a member of Communications Workers of America Local 1400 who lives in Colchester, VT.
Regulators in the three northern states are expected to rule on allowing the sale later this year.
Boston, August 2 -- More than a thousand telephone workers from throughout Massachusetts marched on Verizon’s New England headquarters to rally for good jobs and reliable services.
“Next year’s collective bargaining offers telephone workers our best chance to refocus management on making Verizon work for everyone: customers, employees and investors alike,” said Myles Calvey, a 39-year splice service technician and Business Manager of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2222.
“Winning an agreement that preserves good jobs, quality health care and secure pension benefits will take unprecedented membership involvement and unity,” added Calvey, who also chairs the New England telephone workers’ bargaining committee. “All members need to get ready now.” The current agreement covering about 70,000 employees with Verizon East expires on August 2, 2008.
Calvey was joined at the rally by many Verizon workers from Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont who are opposing the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines to FairPoint Communications, a highly leveraged company based in North Carolina.
“FairPoint doesn’t have the same capacity as Verizon to expand high speed internet service throughout the northern states,” said Darlene Stone, a 28-year Administrative Assistant at Verizon’s Consumer Sales and Service Center in Burlington, VT. “I believe the proposed sale would only make the growing digital divide between rural and urban areas much worse.” Stone is a member of Communications Workers of America Local 1400 who lives in Colchester, VT.
Regulators in the three northern states are expected to rule on allowing the sale later this year.
Pete McLaughlin, the Business Manager from IBEW Local 2327 based in Augusta, ME announced that both unions would be expanding the “Stop the Sale” effort by launching a nationwide campaign focused on getting the Federal Communications Commission to also rule against the sale. Rally participants took post cards opposing the sale addressed to the FCC back to their workplaces and communities, while the national offices of IBEW, CWA and Jobs with Justice sent over 175,000 members and supporters an email with a link to sign a public petition to the FCC opposing the sale.
Verizon recently announced that it was selling its New England headquarters at 185 Franklin Street in Boston where the phone company has been based since 1947.
Attending the rally was John Elia, a Sonet Technician from Melrose, MA who works for Verizon Business, a new subsidiary created after the company bought the remnants of MCI/WorldCom. “All we want is the same job protections and rights that so-called “core” Verizon employees have. That’s why a majority of us have been trying to form a union for more than eight months. But now Verizon is refusing to grant us the same organizing rights past employees have used to join IBEW or CWA without management interference. It’s time to tear down the walls that divide and weaken our company.”
Labor leaders from the AFL-CIO and Jobs with Justice announced that over 50 elected officials (including 21 from Massachusetts) are supporting the campaign to allow all Verizon employees to make a free and fair choice about forming a union.
“Thank God over 97,000 of us are united in a union that can stand up to this greedy $88 billion telecommunications giant,” said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One, which includes 180,000 members throughout the Northeast. “Once again Verizon needs to be reminded that its huge profits are only made because of our dedication to providing high quality and reliable service.”
“All of us want to win a good contract, stop the sale, and tear down the wall at Verizon Business. But these goals can’t be accomplished without strong support from the communities where we live and work,” added Shelton. “Fortunately, each of you earns that community support everyday through your involvement in community, church and civic organizations. That is our trump card – and we are going to call on each of you to play it in 2008!”
“The best way to avert a strike is to be prepared for one if it proves necessary,” said Calvey. “Now is the time to save your money and avoid taking out any large loans.” At the rally, union members were met by representatives from the Telephone Workers Credit Union who helped members set up hundreds of special “rainy day” savings accounts.
Other union rallies were held today in Upland, CA; Fredericksburg, Petersburg and Richmond, VA; Baltimore, MD and Charleston, Morgantown and Poca, WV. Members also gathered at many company garages and workplaces throughout Verizon’s footprint.
About 10,000 Verizon workers in Massachusetts and 13,000 throughout New England are united in the IBEW and CWA.
Verizon recently announced that it was selling its New England headquarters at 185 Franklin Street in Boston where the phone company has been based since 1947.
Attending the rally was John Elia, a Sonet Technician from Melrose, MA who works for Verizon Business, a new subsidiary created after the company bought the remnants of MCI/WorldCom. “All we want is the same job protections and rights that so-called “core” Verizon employees have. That’s why a majority of us have been trying to form a union for more than eight months. But now Verizon is refusing to grant us the same organizing rights past employees have used to join IBEW or CWA without management interference. It’s time to tear down the walls that divide and weaken our company.”
Labor leaders from the AFL-CIO and Jobs with Justice announced that over 50 elected officials (including 21 from Massachusetts) are supporting the campaign to allow all Verizon employees to make a free and fair choice about forming a union.
“Thank God over 97,000 of us are united in a union that can stand up to this greedy $88 billion telecommunications giant,” said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One, which includes 180,000 members throughout the Northeast. “Once again Verizon needs to be reminded that its huge profits are only made because of our dedication to providing high quality and reliable service.”
“All of us want to win a good contract, stop the sale, and tear down the wall at Verizon Business. But these goals can’t be accomplished without strong support from the communities where we live and work,” added Shelton. “Fortunately, each of you earns that community support everyday through your involvement in community, church and civic organizations. That is our trump card – and we are going to call on each of you to play it in 2008!”
“The best way to avert a strike is to be prepared for one if it proves necessary,” said Calvey. “Now is the time to save your money and avoid taking out any large loans.” At the rally, union members were met by representatives from the Telephone Workers Credit Union who helped members set up hundreds of special “rainy day” savings accounts.
Other union rallies were held today in Upland, CA; Fredericksburg, Petersburg and Richmond, VA; Baltimore, MD and Charleston, Morgantown and Poca, WV. Members also gathered at many company garages and workplaces throughout Verizon’s footprint.
About 10,000 Verizon workers in Massachusetts and 13,000 throughout New England are united in the IBEW and CWA.
# # #
Why telephone workers are fighting for the good jobs our communities’ need
By Myles Calvey
Negotiations for nearly 70,000 Verizon workers – including nearly 13,000 in New England – will begin next June to replace the contract that expires on August 2, 2008. But Verizon’s union members aren’t waiting until then to get ready.
Negotiations for nearly 70,000 Verizon workers – including nearly 13,000 in New England – will begin next June to replace the contract that expires on August 2, 2008. But Verizon’s union members aren’t waiting until then to get ready.
This August 2 – a year early – more than a thousand telephone workers will march to Verizon’s headquarters and rally for the good jobs and reliable services our communities need. Union members are getting prepared now because the next collective bargaining agreement offers us our best chance to refocus management on making Verizon work for everyone: customers, employees and investors alike.
In contract negotiations with the $88 billion telecommunications giant next year, telephone workers will be pressing management at Verizon to address the preservation of good jobs, quality health care and secure pension benefits. But much more is at stake.
For example, thousands of Verizon Wireless and Business employees want the benefits and protections of a union contract, yet management is opposing their efforts to unite in the IBEW and CWA.
Employees and customers in Northern New England are facing a company intent on destroying jobs and quality service by spinning off less profitable parts of its business to a shaky company called FairPoint that doesn’t have the same capacity to expand high speed internet service throughout the region.
Finally, even here in Massachusetts Verizon has yet to offer its high-speed fiber optic Internet services to many working class communities, opting instead to focus on high-income cities and towns, only increasing the digital divide.
Next year’s negotiations for a new agreement will be critical to everyone’s future. On August 2, Verizon workers and many of our community allies will rally in a show of unity. But telephone workers can’t stop Verizon’s low-road strategy by ourselves. That will take much broader support from customers, regulators and our elected officials.
A telephone worker for more than 35 years, Myles Calvey is the Business Manager of IBEW Local 2222 and chair of the New England telephone workers’ bargaining committee.
Telephoned workers gearing up for contract fight
Thousands of CWA and IBEW members who work for Verizon rallied in New York City on June 28 to slam management for its repeated interference in its employees’ freedom to form unions and the company’s decision to abandon rural communities.The rally was part of an on-going union-wide mobilization to involve members and build public support for a good contract at the $88 billion telecommunications giant.
“Verizon advertises that its ‘Network’ provides reliable service. Well, we – the members of CWA and IBEW are the network,” said CWA District One Vice President Chris Shelton. “We are the reason that Verizon made $6 billion in profits last year. We are the reason it is the thirteenth largest corporation in America. It couldn’t do it without us. We are Verizon.”
Can you hear us now?
To underscore the point CWA District One held a Verizon “geek” look-a-like contest. Pictured
Also featured at the New York rally, was Verizon Business (VZB) technician John Sweeney. VZB – a division of Verizon formed after the company’s merger with the remnants of MCI/Worldcom – has refused to recognize the technicians’ organizing rights.
Sweeney spoke about the need for VZB techs to keep up the fight and challenged the company to respect the wishes of the majority of his co-workers who have already signed cards to join the union.“I want to send a message to any Verizon Business techs who may be on the fence,” said Sweeney. “Ask yourself a simple question: How do you expect to support your family, raise your kids and retire comfortably when the cost of living is rising faster than your paycheck? Get down off the fence, sign a union card and take control of your future!”
IBEW and CWA members will rally on August 2 in several cities to mark the one-year countdown before the Verizon-East contract expires in 2008. Picture from the rally are up on the web at: http://picasaweb.google.com/randwilson.aflcio/RallyAtVerizonSNewYorkHeadquarters
Expert says Verizon - FairPoint deal not in Maine’s best interest
FairPoint poses “unacceptable risks” for customers, employees and the public.
A prominent financial expert submitted testimony to the Maine Public Utilities Commission saying the proposed sale of landline operations in northern New England to FairPoint “is not in the best interests of Verizon’s customers or employees, or the State of Maine as a whole.”
The testimony by Randy Barber was submitted on behalf of the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers on July 24. With about 2,500 members in Northern New England, the two unions are intervenors in the pending review of the sale by the Maine Public Utilities Commission.
Barber is the president of the Center for Economic Organizing. He has worked as a consultant for more than 25 years specializing in complex financial and operational analysis of companies and industries.
“Mr. Barber backed up his testimony with powerful evidence showing just how shaky FairPoint could be after the merger,” said Myles Calvey, IBEW T-6 System Council Chair. “I hope the Commissioners take his statement very seriously.”
Barber testified that “FairPoint is a very risky holding company, specializing in acquiring, operating, and selling telecommunications companies. Fundamental to its financial strategy is the utilization of “free cash flow,” derived primarily from depreciation, to pay very high dividends.
“FairPoint is cannibalizing itself by continually paying out more in dividends than it earns. It generates the cash to do this from depreciation – taking money that should be reinvested in its networks and, instead, paying it out to stockholders as a dividend. …[I]n the last two years, FairPoint has paid dividends equal to nearly twice its level of net income.
“In order to sustain FairPoint’s approach to business, it must continually acquire new companies and use the depreciation-based cash flows from those new companies to provide the cash to support its high payments.
“In other words, FairPoint’s approach to business is to invest as little as possible in capital plant and siphon the rest of the cash out of the operating companies to support its extraordinarily high dividend payment.
“If its projections prove to be over-optimistic and its results materially suffer, FairPoint will need to adjust by squeezing its employees’ compensation, raising prices, permitting service to deteriorate, reducing investment, cutting dividends, or, more likely, a combination of these. The impact of such actions is likely to be devastating to Maine.
“In summary, based on the size and complexity of the transaction, FairPoint’s demonstrated inability to reduce operating expenses on a per-access-line basis, and its heavy reliance on depreciation-based dividend and debt retirement strategies, among other considerations, I conclude that the proposed FairPoint acquisition of the Verizon Northern New England properties poses unacceptably high risks. Those risks are posed not only to FairPoint itself, but to the customers, employees, communities and economies that rely upon Verizon’s telecommunications network in Maine,” Barber concluded.
Copies of Randy Barber’s full testimony are available from Rand Wilson at the above number. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org.
A prominent financial expert submitted testimony to the Maine Public Utilities Commission saying the proposed sale of landline operations in northern New England to FairPoint “is not in the best interests of Verizon’s customers or employees, or the State of Maine as a whole.”
The testimony by Randy Barber was submitted on behalf of the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers on July 24. With about 2,500 members in Northern New England, the two unions are intervenors in the pending review of the sale by the Maine Public Utilities Commission.
Barber is the president of the Center for Economic Organizing. He has worked as a consultant for more than 25 years specializing in complex financial and operational analysis of companies and industries.
“Mr. Barber backed up his testimony with powerful evidence showing just how shaky FairPoint could be after the merger,” said Myles Calvey, IBEW T-6 System Council Chair. “I hope the Commissioners take his statement very seriously.”
Barber testified that “FairPoint is a very risky holding company, specializing in acquiring, operating, and selling telecommunications companies. Fundamental to its financial strategy is the utilization of “free cash flow,” derived primarily from depreciation, to pay very high dividends.
“FairPoint is cannibalizing itself by continually paying out more in dividends than it earns. It generates the cash to do this from depreciation – taking money that should be reinvested in its networks and, instead, paying it out to stockholders as a dividend. …[I]n the last two years, FairPoint has paid dividends equal to nearly twice its level of net income.
“In order to sustain FairPoint’s approach to business, it must continually acquire new companies and use the depreciation-based cash flows from those new companies to provide the cash to support its high payments.
“In other words, FairPoint’s approach to business is to invest as little as possible in capital plant and siphon the rest of the cash out of the operating companies to support its extraordinarily high dividend payment.
“If its projections prove to be over-optimistic and its results materially suffer, FairPoint will need to adjust by squeezing its employees’ compensation, raising prices, permitting service to deteriorate, reducing investment, cutting dividends, or, more likely, a combination of these. The impact of such actions is likely to be devastating to Maine.
“In summary, based on the size and complexity of the transaction, FairPoint’s demonstrated inability to reduce operating expenses on a per-access-line basis, and its heavy reliance on depreciation-based dividend and debt retirement strategies, among other considerations, I conclude that the proposed FairPoint acquisition of the Verizon Northern New England properties poses unacceptably high risks. Those risks are posed not only to FairPoint itself, but to the customers, employees, communities and economies that rely upon Verizon’s telecommunications network in Maine,” Barber concluded.
Copies of Randy Barber’s full testimony are available from Rand Wilson at the above number. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org.
Could union grievances scuttle Verizon – FairPoint deal?
Arbitrator to consider possible job security violations in proposed sale of northern New England landlines to FairPoint
Verizon's IBEW New England union council has charged that the agreement between Verizon and FairPoint on the proposed sale of landline operations in northern New England violates provisions of the current union contract with Verizon.
The alleged contract violations concern the proposed transfer and termination of jobs as spelled out in the Verizon - FairPoint merger agreement. The case is pending before a neutral arbitrator whose decision will be binding on both parties.
Existing job security contract language limits Verizon from transferring more than 0.7 percent of IBEW members' jobs without an agreement from members to do so. The contract also prohibits Verizon from terminating employees with net credited service dates prior to August 3, 2003 and requires that the company follow specific force adjustment procedures.
Whether the employee surplus falls within the 0.7 percent maximum or is larger, according to the union's grievances Verizon is obligated to make workforce changes in compliance with the Job Security and Force Adjustment provisions of the contract.
"The strong job security provisions in our contract were mutually agreed to by both Verizon and IBEW because they benefit both the company and employees. We believe that if the arbitrator upholds our case, then the terms of the sale will have to be modified to be in compliance," said Myles Calvey, IBEW T-6 System Council Chair. "Verizon may be allowed to sell its landlines, but we will not allow it to make an end run around our union or compromise the rights of our members."
IBEW and Verizon have scheduled eight days of hearings with the arbitrator in Boston beginning on July 12. A decision on the grievances is expected prior to final consideration of the landline sale by telecommunications regulators in the three northern New England states.
The IBEW's System Council T-6 unites over 11,000 Verizon employees throughout New England, including about 2,500 in the Northern states.
Copies of the contract language in the collective bargaining agreement referenced above are available from Rand Wilson at the above number. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org.
Verizon's IBEW New England union council has charged that the agreement between Verizon and FairPoint on the proposed sale of landline operations in northern New England violates provisions of the current union contract with Verizon.
The alleged contract violations concern the proposed transfer and termination of jobs as spelled out in the Verizon - FairPoint merger agreement. The case is pending before a neutral arbitrator whose decision will be binding on both parties.
Existing job security contract language limits Verizon from transferring more than 0.7 percent of IBEW members' jobs without an agreement from members to do so. The contract also prohibits Verizon from terminating employees with net credited service dates prior to August 3, 2003 and requires that the company follow specific force adjustment procedures.
Whether the employee surplus falls within the 0.7 percent maximum or is larger, according to the union's grievances Verizon is obligated to make workforce changes in compliance with the Job Security and Force Adjustment provisions of the contract.
"The strong job security provisions in our contract were mutually agreed to by both Verizon and IBEW because they benefit both the company and employees. We believe that if the arbitrator upholds our case, then the terms of the sale will have to be modified to be in compliance," said Myles Calvey, IBEW T-6 System Council Chair. "Verizon may be allowed to sell its landlines, but we will not allow it to make an end run around our union or compromise the rights of our members."
IBEW and Verizon have scheduled eight days of hearings with the arbitrator in Boston beginning on July 12. A decision on the grievances is expected prior to final consideration of the landline sale by telecommunications regulators in the three northern New England states.
The IBEW's System Council T-6 unites over 11,000 Verizon employees throughout New England, including about 2,500 in the Northern states.
Copies of the contract language in the collective bargaining agreement referenced above are available from Rand Wilson at the above number. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org.
Unions challenge effort to muzzle Verizon employees from speaking out about sale of northern New England landlines
IBEW and CWA demand Verizon rescind overly broad “quiet period” memo
Verizon managers issued a memo on June 18 warning all employees in New England that, “…employees should not make public statements which speculate about either the operations of northern New England before or after the FairPoint transaction, or the success or future performance of FairPoint.”
Verizon claimed the “quiet period” order was needed because of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules governing the proposed sale of its operations in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont to FairPoint Communications.
The System Council T-6 of the IBEW that represents over eleven thousand Verizon employees throughout New England was quick to respond. In an email to Verizon, IBEW’s legal counsel wrote:
“None of the union’s members is in a position to either obtain or release any information that would be restricted under these [SEC] rules. It seems, therefore, that the email and the directions contained therein amount to nothing more than an attempt by Verizon to place a gag order on its employees who have been on the forefront in raising concerns about the efficacy of the proposed transaction – both as Verizon employees and as Verizon customers. The restrictions… plainly run afoul of our members’ First Amendment rights to free speech and free association as well as their rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act... This is particularly true of Verizon’s attempt to block our members from speaking in public forums on their own time, which is patently unlawful.
“We therefore demand that Verizon rescind the instructions issued to the bargaining unit yesterday or at least provide complete and accurate information about what information is actually restricted during the quiet period so that our members will understand that they are unaffected by these rules,” the email concluded.
A similar letter was sent to top Verizon labor relations executive John Navarro from the General Counsels of both the IBEW and the CWA on June 19. The joint union letter requested a response and clarification from Verizon no later than June 21.
“Once again Verizon has overreached in its desperation to make the landline sale go through,” said Myles Calvey, IBEW T-6 System Council Chair. “One of the clear benefits of uniting in a union is that it gives workers the right to speak out about what’s right and what’s wrong. Our members have been leading the charge to protect the public from this ill-advised scheme. We certainly aren’t going to stop now.”
“We are getting our point across,” said Dave Decelles, a 20-year lineman who works in White River Junction, Vermont and is a member of IBEW Local 2326. “It sounds like Verizon is nervous and just doesn’t want the real truth to come out to the general public.”
Copies of the Verizon “quiet period” memo and the IBEW’s response are available from Rand Wilson at the above number. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org
Verizon managers issued a memo on June 18 warning all employees in New England that, “…employees should not make public statements which speculate about either the operations of northern New England before or after the FairPoint transaction, or the success or future performance of FairPoint.”
Verizon claimed the “quiet period” order was needed because of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules governing the proposed sale of its operations in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont to FairPoint Communications.
The System Council T-6 of the IBEW that represents over eleven thousand Verizon employees throughout New England was quick to respond. In an email to Verizon, IBEW’s legal counsel wrote:
“None of the union’s members is in a position to either obtain or release any information that would be restricted under these [SEC] rules. It seems, therefore, that the email and the directions contained therein amount to nothing more than an attempt by Verizon to place a gag order on its employees who have been on the forefront in raising concerns about the efficacy of the proposed transaction – both as Verizon employees and as Verizon customers. The restrictions… plainly run afoul of our members’ First Amendment rights to free speech and free association as well as their rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act... This is particularly true of Verizon’s attempt to block our members from speaking in public forums on their own time, which is patently unlawful.
“We therefore demand that Verizon rescind the instructions issued to the bargaining unit yesterday or at least provide complete and accurate information about what information is actually restricted during the quiet period so that our members will understand that they are unaffected by these rules,” the email concluded.
A similar letter was sent to top Verizon labor relations executive John Navarro from the General Counsels of both the IBEW and the CWA on June 19. The joint union letter requested a response and clarification from Verizon no later than June 21.
“Once again Verizon has overreached in its desperation to make the landline sale go through,” said Myles Calvey, IBEW T-6 System Council Chair. “One of the clear benefits of uniting in a union is that it gives workers the right to speak out about what’s right and what’s wrong. Our members have been leading the charge to protect the public from this ill-advised scheme. We certainly aren’t going to stop now.”
“We are getting our point across,” said Dave Decelles, a 20-year lineman who works in White River Junction, Vermont and is a member of IBEW Local 2326. “It sounds like Verizon is nervous and just doesn’t want the real truth to come out to the general public.”
Copies of the Verizon “quiet period” memo and the IBEW’s response are available from Rand Wilson at the above number. More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and www.no-deal.org
Doubts about Verizon sale lead to growing concerns about FairPoint’s shaky financial position
New Morgan Stanley research brief says FairPoint’s low cash flow won’t cover 2008 dividend
A new report by Morgan Stanley raises major concerns about the sale of Verizon’s landlines in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont to FairPoint Communications. The Morgan Stanley analysts concluded that FairPoint "will not generate enough cash to cover its current dividend in 2008, with an increasing deficit in the years that follow.” The finding was reported in a June 5 research brief.
“We are concerned that FairPoint’s apparent expectation that it will not be able to generate enough cash to pay its current dividend without the proposed merger with Verizon’s NH, ME, and VT lines suggests that the company is in a vulnerable position,” the research brief said. “Scrutiny of telecom deals appears to be intensifying and increases the risk that FairPoint would face pressure to make concessions in order to get a deal approved.”
One near-term implication cited in the Morgan Stanley report: "Given that the company does not expect to generate enough cash to cover its current dividend on a standalone basis, we are concerned that FairPoint may be in a position where the Verizon NE lines transaction has become a necessity for the stock rather than an option."
"If the sale is approved, tens of thousands of Verizon employees, retirees and many others will become 'involuntary investors' in FairPoint," said Rich Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO. "This report raises serious concerns about FairPoint’s financial viability after the transaction for shareholders.”
The Morgan Stanley research report also said that “if transactions such as Verizon's planned reverse Morris Trust merger with FairPoint become more difficult to accomplish, it would reduce the options available for the Bells as well as rural telecoms in an era when companies are increasingly turning to non-organic sources of growth in the telecom sector."
Verizon structured the sale using a little known part of the tax code called a “Reverse Morris Trust” that allows it to avoid paying up to $700 million in taxes on the proposed transaction.
A movement in all three states to oppose the deal has been growing because of concerns that FairPoint’s small size and fragile finances won’t allow it to provide better service or make significant upgrades in the availability of high speed Internet access.
More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and
www.no-deal.org
A new report by Morgan Stanley raises major concerns about the sale of Verizon’s landlines in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont to FairPoint Communications. The Morgan Stanley analysts concluded that FairPoint "will not generate enough cash to cover its current dividend in 2008, with an increasing deficit in the years that follow.” The finding was reported in a June 5 research brief.
“We are concerned that FairPoint’s apparent expectation that it will not be able to generate enough cash to pay its current dividend without the proposed merger with Verizon’s NH, ME, and VT lines suggests that the company is in a vulnerable position,” the research brief said. “Scrutiny of telecom deals appears to be intensifying and increases the risk that FairPoint would face pressure to make concessions in order to get a deal approved.”
One near-term implication cited in the Morgan Stanley report: "Given that the company does not expect to generate enough cash to cover its current dividend on a standalone basis, we are concerned that FairPoint may be in a position where the Verizon NE lines transaction has become a necessity for the stock rather than an option."
"If the sale is approved, tens of thousands of Verizon employees, retirees and many others will become 'involuntary investors' in FairPoint," said Rich Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO. "This report raises serious concerns about FairPoint’s financial viability after the transaction for shareholders.”
The Morgan Stanley research report also said that “if transactions such as Verizon's planned reverse Morris Trust merger with FairPoint become more difficult to accomplish, it would reduce the options available for the Bells as well as rural telecoms in an era when companies are increasingly turning to non-organic sources of growth in the telecom sector."
Verizon structured the sale using a little known part of the tax code called a “Reverse Morris Trust” that allows it to avoid paying up to $700 million in taxes on the proposed transaction.
A movement in all three states to oppose the deal has been growing because of concerns that FairPoint’s small size and fragile finances won’t allow it to provide better service or make significant upgrades in the availability of high speed Internet access.
More information about the campaign to Stop the Sale is on www.stop-the-sale.org and
www.no-deal.org
Mayor Howard, other Massachusetts mayors call on Verizon CEO to respect workers’ rights
Malden Mayor Richard Howard joined a growing chorus of elected officials supporting Verizon Business technicians who have formed a new union and are now seeking their collective bargaining rights.
In a May 9 letter to Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg, Howard wrote, “I urge you to immediately recognize the clear support of Verizon Business technicians for union representation and to commence collective bargaining.”
The letter was sent as part of an effort by the AFL-CIO and other groups to win broader political support for the Verizon workers.
In March 2006, over sixty percent of the Verizon Business techs in the Northeast formed a union and sought formal recognition from Verizon. The technicians had their majority support verified by elected officials in New York and Massachusetts who counted the signed union cards and matched them against a company roster of employees.
Management's response was to mount a classic union-avoidance campaign with mandatory employee meetings, supervisory one-on-ones, and distribution of misleading "fact sheets" full of distortions about unions.
To date, 5 Senators and 15 members of Congress (including Rep. James McGovern) have written to Verizon expressing concern about how management in its wireless and business divisions is aggressively interfering to prevent employees from forming unions. In Massachusetts, the mayors of Boston, Cambridge, Haverhill, Holyoke, Revere and Somerville along with the Braintree Board of Selectmen have also sent letters to Verizon.
With the support of the AFL-CIO and the community-labor coalition Jobs with Justice, union members at Verizon are increasing the pressure on management to turn away from its low-road, anti-union strategy. Employees want the company to return to its prior practice of remaining neutral and voluntarily negotiating with employees after a majority shows their support for a voice at work. Nearly 100,000 workers at Verizon are already united in CWA and IBEW.
“Verizon technicians are grateful for this outpouring of political support to help us convince management to recognize our union and begin bargaining for the good jobs and respect we all deserve,” said John Elia, a Verizon Business technician who works in Burlington MA. “All we are asking is that the company drop the intimidation and honor the neutrality and union recognition procedure that many other Verizon employees have previously benefited from.”
For more info about the technicians organizing campaign, visit www.freechoiceatverizon.com. For copies of the letters, contact Rand Wilson at (617) 803-0799 or rwilson@aflcio.org.
In a May 9 letter to Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg, Howard wrote, “I urge you to immediately recognize the clear support of Verizon Business technicians for union representation and to commence collective bargaining.”
The letter was sent as part of an effort by the AFL-CIO and other groups to win broader political support for the Verizon workers.
In March 2006, over sixty percent of the Verizon Business techs in the Northeast formed a union and sought formal recognition from Verizon. The technicians had their majority support verified by elected officials in New York and Massachusetts who counted the signed union cards and matched them against a company roster of employees.
Management's response was to mount a classic union-avoidance campaign with mandatory employee meetings, supervisory one-on-ones, and distribution of misleading "fact sheets" full of distortions about unions.
To date, 5 Senators and 15 members of Congress (including Rep. James McGovern) have written to Verizon expressing concern about how management in its wireless and business divisions is aggressively interfering to prevent employees from forming unions. In Massachusetts, the mayors of Boston, Cambridge, Haverhill, Holyoke, Revere and Somerville along with the Braintree Board of Selectmen have also sent letters to Verizon.
With the support of the AFL-CIO and the community-labor coalition Jobs with Justice, union members at Verizon are increasing the pressure on management to turn away from its low-road, anti-union strategy. Employees want the company to return to its prior practice of remaining neutral and voluntarily negotiating with employees after a majority shows their support for a voice at work. Nearly 100,000 workers at Verizon are already united in CWA and IBEW.
“Verizon technicians are grateful for this outpouring of political support to help us convince management to recognize our union and begin bargaining for the good jobs and respect we all deserve,” said John Elia, a Verizon Business technician who works in Burlington MA. “All we are asking is that the company drop the intimidation and honor the neutrality and union recognition procedure that many other Verizon employees have previously benefited from.”
For more info about the technicians organizing campaign, visit www.freechoiceatverizon.com. For copies of the letters, contact Rand Wilson at (617) 803-0799 or rwilson@aflcio.org.
Citizens unite against proposed Verizon sale to FairPoint calling it a “wrong turn” on the information super-highway
Sen. Bernie Sanders, State Sen. Vince Illuzzi and Rep. Ernie Shand join call to “stop the sale”
Hundreds of Verizon workers and supporters rallied in Burlington’s Waterfront Park on June 2 to send a message to Vermont’s Public Service Board that the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines to FairPoint Communications will leave northern New England residents stranded on the information super-highway. Pictures from the rally may be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/wilsonforworkingfamilies/BurlingtonVTStopTheSaleRally
The Vermont Public Service Board -- along with its counterparts in New Hampshire and Maine, and the Federal Communications Commission -- is currently considering whether to approve Verizon’s proposed $2.7 billion sale to FairPoint. If all three states and the FCC approve it, Verizon will be allowed to abandon all its “low-value” customers, while keeping its more profitable big business and wireless ones.
Approval would mean that residential telephone customers -- not to mention schools, businesses, hospitals and emergency responders -- will be dependent on FairPoint, a small, highly-leveraged North Carolina based firm that is worth only $630 million. FairPoint has only announced plans to provide dial-up for Internet access or at best, digital subscriber line (DSL) service, a technology that is widely regarded as already outdated and inadequate for rural economic development.
“The Verizon-FairPoint sale is a bad deal for hundreds of thousands of telephone consumers. It won’t lead to better service quality, more investment, or the high-speed Internet access everyone wants,” said IBEW System Council T-6 Chair Myles Calvey. “It also threatens the pay, benefits, decent working conditions and job security of 2,800 union members employed by Verizon throughout northern New England.”
The sale would leave Vermont even further behind on the information super-highway -- to the detriment of its overall economic development and job creation efforts.
In a statement read at the rally, Senator Bernie Sanders said, “…It is absolutely imperative for the economic future of this state that every area of Vermont has the highest quality broadband service at a cost that Vermonters can afford. Vermont is now behind much of America in that regard, and America is behind much of the world.”
Verizon particularly benefits from the sale by exploiting an obscure tax loophole called a “Reverse Morris Trust.” It would allow Verizon to save $600 million in taxes, as long as its infrastructure is sold in pieces to a small firm, as opposed to larger, more stable companies that have the capacity to invest in improved service.
“Verizon picked tiny FairPoint because it allows Verizon shareholders to end up controlling more than 50 percent of the newly merged company’s voting rights and economic value – while Verizon reaps huge tax savings!” said Mike Spillane, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2326.
“Let’s not be fooled by the idea that a company worth only $630 million, which is borrowing heavily to buy Verizon properties three times its present size, is going to be an improvement over a firm worth $100 billion,” said James Haslam from the Vermont Workers Center.
“I understand why some customers are unhappy with Verizon. Even though it’s one of the richest telecom firms in the world, Verizon has failed to include much of Vermont in its plans to build a high-speed broadband network,” said Meg Collins, an 18-year Verizon Service Rep and Executive VP of CWA Local 1400. “But if this sale goes through, Vermont and all of Northern New England’s citizens will be ‘road kill’ on the information super highway.”
IBEW and CWA recently submitted expert testimony to the Vermont Public Service Board with data showing why the board should deny the proposed transaction between Verizon and FairPoint. The full testimony is available at:
http://files.cwa-union.org/national/verizon/20070524_VTPSB_KenPeres.pdf
http://files.cwa-union.org/national/verizon/20070524_VTPSB_RandyBarber.pdf
A growing coalition of labor and consumer groups is fighting the sale as a first step toward securing a broadband build-out that would guarantee “High Speed Internet For All.” The regional economy, schools, hospitals, and public safety systems would all benefit. To prevent companies like Verizon -- which have the deepest pockets and best technology -- from abandoning markets like northern New England, there must be fundamental changes in state and federal regulatory policies.
For details on these policy proposals, see www.SpeedMatters.org, a website that also lets Internet users check their own access speeds against world standards. More arguments against the sale can be found on: www.verizonvsfairpoint.com, www.no-deal.org, and www.stop-the-sale.org
Participants left the rally with leaflets to educate the public about the importance of contacting their state legislators and Vermont Public Service Board. Organizers also distributed lawn signs and stickers to give the campaign more visibility with the public.
For copies of a special report on the why the proposed FairPoint purchase of Verizon’s properties would place consumers, workers and communities at risk, contact Rand Wilson at (617) 803-0799 or rwilson@aflcio.org
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Hundreds of Verizon workers and supporters rallied in Burlington’s Waterfront Park on June 2 to send a message to Vermont’s Public Service Board that the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines to FairPoint Communications will leave northern New England residents stranded on the information super-highway. Pictures from the rally may be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/wilsonforworkingfamilies/BurlingtonVTStopTheSaleRally
The Vermont Public Service Board -- along with its counterparts in New Hampshire and Maine, and the Federal Communications Commission -- is currently considering whether to approve Verizon’s proposed $2.7 billion sale to FairPoint. If all three states and the FCC approve it, Verizon will be allowed to abandon all its “low-value” customers, while keeping its more profitable big business and wireless ones.
Approval would mean that residential telephone customers -- not to mention schools, businesses, hospitals and emergency responders -- will be dependent on FairPoint, a small, highly-leveraged North Carolina based firm that is worth only $630 million. FairPoint has only announced plans to provide dial-up for Internet access or at best, digital subscriber line (DSL) service, a technology that is widely regarded as already outdated and inadequate for rural economic development.
“The Verizon-FairPoint sale is a bad deal for hundreds of thousands of telephone consumers. It won’t lead to better service quality, more investment, or the high-speed Internet access everyone wants,” said IBEW System Council T-6 Chair Myles Calvey. “It also threatens the pay, benefits, decent working conditions and job security of 2,800 union members employed by Verizon throughout northern New England.”
The sale would leave Vermont even further behind on the information super-highway -- to the detriment of its overall economic development and job creation efforts.
In a statement read at the rally, Senator Bernie Sanders said, “…It is absolutely imperative for the economic future of this state that every area of Vermont has the highest quality broadband service at a cost that Vermonters can afford. Vermont is now behind much of America in that regard, and America is behind much of the world.”
Verizon particularly benefits from the sale by exploiting an obscure tax loophole called a “Reverse Morris Trust.” It would allow Verizon to save $600 million in taxes, as long as its infrastructure is sold in pieces to a small firm, as opposed to larger, more stable companies that have the capacity to invest in improved service.
“Verizon picked tiny FairPoint because it allows Verizon shareholders to end up controlling more than 50 percent of the newly merged company’s voting rights and economic value – while Verizon reaps huge tax savings!” said Mike Spillane, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2326.
“Let’s not be fooled by the idea that a company worth only $630 million, which is borrowing heavily to buy Verizon properties three times its present size, is going to be an improvement over a firm worth $100 billion,” said James Haslam from the Vermont Workers Center.
“I understand why some customers are unhappy with Verizon. Even though it’s one of the richest telecom firms in the world, Verizon has failed to include much of Vermont in its plans to build a high-speed broadband network,” said Meg Collins, an 18-year Verizon Service Rep and Executive VP of CWA Local 1400. “But if this sale goes through, Vermont and all of Northern New England’s citizens will be ‘road kill’ on the information super highway.”
IBEW and CWA recently submitted expert testimony to the Vermont Public Service Board with data showing why the board should deny the proposed transaction between Verizon and FairPoint. The full testimony is available at:
http://files.cwa-union.org/national/verizon/20070524_VTPSB_KenPeres.pdf
http://files.cwa-union.org/national/verizon/20070524_VTPSB_RandyBarber.pdf
A growing coalition of labor and consumer groups is fighting the sale as a first step toward securing a broadband build-out that would guarantee “High Speed Internet For All.” The regional economy, schools, hospitals, and public safety systems would all benefit. To prevent companies like Verizon -- which have the deepest pockets and best technology -- from abandoning markets like northern New England, there must be fundamental changes in state and federal regulatory policies.
For details on these policy proposals, see www.SpeedMatters.org, a website that also lets Internet users check their own access speeds against world standards. More arguments against the sale can be found on: www.verizonvsfairpoint.com, www.no-deal.org, and www.stop-the-sale.org
Participants left the rally with leaflets to educate the public about the importance of contacting their state legislators and Vermont Public Service Board. Organizers also distributed lawn signs and stickers to give the campaign more visibility with the public.
For copies of a special report on the why the proposed FairPoint purchase of Verizon’s properties would place consumers, workers and communities at risk, contact Rand Wilson at (617) 803-0799 or rwilson@aflcio.org
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Citizens unite against proposed Verizon sale to FairPoint calling it a “wrong turn” on the information super-highway
Hundreds of consumers and workers rallied in Portsmouth’s Prescott Park on May 19 to send a message to New Hampshire’s Public Utilities Commission that the proposed sale of Verizon’s landlines to FairPoint Communications will leave northern New England residents stranded on the information super-highway.
The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission -- along with its counterparts in Vermont and Maine, and the Federal Communications Commission -- is currently considering whether to approve Verizon’s proposed $2.7 billion sale to FairPoint. If all three states and the FCC approve it, Verizon will be allowed to abandon all its “low-value” customers, while keeping its more profitable big business and wireless ones.
Approval would mean that residential telephone customers -- not to mention schools, businesses, hospitals and emergency responders -- will be dependent on FairPoint, a small, highly-leveraged North Carolina based firm that is worth only $630 million. FairPoint can only provide dial-up for Internet access or at best, digital subscriber line (DSL) service, a technology that is widely regarded as already outdated and inadequate for rural economic development.
“The Verizon-FairPoint sale is a bad deal for hundreds of thousands of telephone consumers. It won’t lead to better service quality, more investment, or the high-speed Internet access everyone wants,” said IBEW System Council T-6 Chair Myles Calvey. “It also threatens the pay, benefits, decent working conditions and job security of 2,800 union members employed by Verizon throughout northern New England.”
The sale would leave New Hampshire even further behind on the information super-highway -- to the detriment of its overall economic development and job creation efforts. To make the point, rally participants used special FairPoint telephones (pictured at right) to make phone calls of protest to the state Public Utilities Commission.
Verizon particularly benefits from the sale by exploiting an obscure tax loophole called a “Reverse Morris Trust.” It would allow Verizon to save $600 million in taxes, as long as its infrastructure is sold in pieces to a small firm, as opposed to larger, more stable companies that have the capacity to invest in improved service.
“Verizon picked tiny FairPoint because it allows Verizon shareholders to end up controlling more than 50 percent of the newly merged company’s voting rights and economic value – while Verizon reaps huge tax savings!” said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One. “Working together, we can make our voices heard so the great potential of the information age is actually fulfilled in Portsmouth and throughout all of New Hampshire,” said Mayor Steve Marchand.
“Let’s not be fooled by the idea that a company worth only $630 million, which is borrowing heavily to buy Verizon properties three times its present size, is going to be an improvement over a firm worth $100 billion,” said New Hampshire AFL-CIO President Mark MacKenzie.
“I understand why some customers are unhappy with Verizon. Even though it’s one of the richest telecom firms in the world, Verizon has failed to include much of New Hampshire in its plans to build a high-speed broadband network,” said Glenn Brackett, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2320. “But if this sale goes through, New Hampshire citizens will be ‘road kill’ on the information super highway.”
A growing coalition of labor and consumer groups is fighting the sale as a first step toward securing a broadband build-out that would guarantee “High Speed Internet For All.” The regional economy, schools, hospitals, and public safety systems would all benefit. To prevent companies like Verizon -- which have the deepest pockets and best technology -- from abandoning markets like northern New England, there must be fundamental changes in state and federal regulatory policies.
For details on these policy proposals, see www.SpeedMatters.org, a website that also lets Internet users check their own access speeds against world standards. More arguments against the sale can be found on: www.verizonvsfairpoint.com, www.no-deal.org, and www.stop-the-sale.org
Other rally speakers included Portsmouth Metal Trades Union Council President Paul O’Connor, CWA Local 1400 President Cheryl Ahern, IBEW Business Managers William McGowan (Local 2323), Pete McLaughlin (Local 2327), John Rowley (Local 2324), and Mike Spillane (Local 2326), Local 2222 President Ed Fitzpatrick, and IBEW Intl. Rep Bob Erickson. All presidential candidates were invited.
The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission has already held three hearings on the impact of the proposed sale. The two final hearings are scheduled for May 22 in Newport and May 24 in Littleton at 7:00 PM.
Pictures from the rally may be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/rand.wilson/StopTheSaleRally
For copies of a special report on the why the proposed FairPoint purchase of Verizon’s properties would place consumers, workers and communities at risk, contact Rand Wilson at (617) 803-0799 or rwilson@aflcio.org
# # #
The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission -- along with its counterparts in Vermont and Maine, and the Federal Communications Commission -- is currently considering whether to approve Verizon’s proposed $2.7 billion sale to FairPoint. If all three states and the FCC approve it, Verizon will be allowed to abandon all its “low-value” customers, while keeping its more profitable big business and wireless ones.
Approval would mean that residential telephone customers -- not to mention schools, businesses, hospitals and emergency responders -- will be dependent on FairPoint, a small, highly-leveraged North Carolina based firm that is worth only $630 million. FairPoint can only provide dial-up for Internet access or at best, digital subscriber line (DSL) service, a technology that is widely regarded as already outdated and inadequate for rural economic development.
“The Verizon-FairPoint sale is a bad deal for hundreds of thousands of telephone consumers. It won’t lead to better service quality, more investment, or the high-speed Internet access everyone wants,” said IBEW System Council T-6 Chair Myles Calvey. “It also threatens the pay, benefits, decent working conditions and job security of 2,800 union members employed by Verizon throughout northern New England.”
The sale would leave New Hampshire even further behind on the information super-highway -- to the detriment of its overall economic development and job creation efforts. To make the point, rally participants used special FairPoint telephones (pictured at right) to make phone calls of protest to the state Public Utilities Commission.
Verizon particularly benefits from the sale by exploiting an obscure tax loophole called a “Reverse Morris Trust.” It would allow Verizon to save $600 million in taxes, as long as its infrastructure is sold in pieces to a small firm, as opposed to larger, more stable companies that have the capacity to invest in improved service.
“Verizon picked tiny FairPoint because it allows Verizon shareholders to end up controlling more than 50 percent of the newly merged company’s voting rights and economic value – while Verizon reaps huge tax savings!” said Chris Shelton, Vice President of CWA District One. “Working together, we can make our voices heard so the great potential of the information age is actually fulfilled in Portsmouth and throughout all of New Hampshire,” said Mayor Steve Marchand.
“Let’s not be fooled by the idea that a company worth only $630 million, which is borrowing heavily to buy Verizon properties three times its present size, is going to be an improvement over a firm worth $100 billion,” said New Hampshire AFL-CIO President Mark MacKenzie.
“I understand why some customers are unhappy with Verizon. Even though it’s one of the richest telecom firms in the world, Verizon has failed to include much of New Hampshire in its plans to build a high-speed broadband network,” said Glenn Brackett, Business Manager of IBEW Local 2320. “But if this sale goes through, New Hampshire citizens will be ‘road kill’ on the information super highway.”
A growing coalition of labor and consumer groups is fighting the sale as a first step toward securing a broadband build-out that would guarantee “High Speed Internet For All.” The regional economy, schools, hospitals, and public safety systems would all benefit. To prevent companies like Verizon -- which have the deepest pockets and best technology -- from abandoning markets like northern New England, there must be fundamental changes in state and federal regulatory policies.
For details on these policy proposals, see www.SpeedMatters.org, a website that also lets Internet users check their own access speeds against world standards. More arguments against the sale can be found on: www.verizonvsfairpoint.com, www.no-deal.org, and www.stop-the-sale.org
Other rally speakers included Portsmouth Metal Trades Union Council President Paul O’Connor, CWA Local 1400 President Cheryl Ahern, IBEW Business Managers William McGowan (Local 2323), Pete McLaughlin (Local 2327), John Rowley (Local 2324), and Mike Spillane (Local 2326), Local 2222 President Ed Fitzpatrick, and IBEW Intl. Rep Bob Erickson. All presidential candidates were invited.
The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission has already held three hearings on the impact of the proposed sale. The two final hearings are scheduled for May 22 in Newport and May 24 in Littleton at 7:00 PM.
Pictures from the rally may be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/rand.wilson/StopTheSaleRally
For copies of a special report on the why the proposed FairPoint purchase of Verizon’s properties would place consumers, workers and communities at risk, contact Rand Wilson at (617) 803-0799 or rwilson@aflcio.org
# # #
Record ‘Say on Pay’ vote giving Verizon shareholders advisory role on CEO pay wins majority support in recount
(Washington, DC May 18) – A proposal to give Verizon shareholders a more meaningful voice in executive pay decisions has won after a recount garnering 50.18 percent of shareholder votes. The measure was opposed by Verizon’s top management.
The recount by independent election officials was needed because the vote was too close to call at the company’s annual meeting in Pittsburgh on May 3. The proposal, which was submitted by C. William Jones, President of the Association of BellTel Retirees, requires Verizon to submit future executive compensation packages to a non-binding shareholder vote. It is the first time a “say on pay” proposal has won majority support at a publicly owned U.S. company.
Other resolutions by the AFL-CIO Reserve Fund on “Golden Parachutes” and the CWA Members’ Relief Fund on “Compensation Consultants” also received very strong support from shareholders.
The AFL-CIO pointed to the record-high support as a strong indication that shareholders are clearly looking for a change in CEO compensation at Verizon.
Through retirement savings, America’s working families are significant holders of Verizon stock. Union-sponsored pension funds have $400 billion in total assets as institutional investors.
“The record vote by Verizon shareholders reflects the growing dissatisfaction by shareholders over unregulated and excessive CEO compensation,” said AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka. “The question remains: Will Verizon listen, respond and reach out to investors, or will it continue the status quo despite the record shareholder vote demanding change?”
For more detailed information and investor resources about visit http://investor.cwa-union.org/verizon
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The recount by independent election officials was needed because the vote was too close to call at the company’s annual meeting in Pittsburgh on May 3. The proposal, which was submitted by C. William Jones, President of the Association of BellTel Retirees, requires Verizon to submit future executive compensation packages to a non-binding shareholder vote. It is the first time a “say on pay” proposal has won majority support at a publicly owned U.S. company.
Other resolutions by the AFL-CIO Reserve Fund on “Golden Parachutes” and the CWA Members’ Relief Fund on “Compensation Consultants” also received very strong support from shareholders.
The AFL-CIO pointed to the record-high support as a strong indication that shareholders are clearly looking for a change in CEO compensation at Verizon.
Through retirement savings, America’s working families are significant holders of Verizon stock. Union-sponsored pension funds have $400 billion in total assets as institutional investors.
“The record vote by Verizon shareholders reflects the growing dissatisfaction by shareholders over unregulated and excessive CEO compensation,” said AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka. “The question remains: Will Verizon listen, respond and reach out to investors, or will it continue the status quo despite the record shareholder vote demanding change?”
For more detailed information and investor resources about visit http://investor.cwa-union.org/verizon
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Record Shareholder Votes on CEO Pay at Verizon Meeting Send Powerful Message that Shareholders are Fed Up with the Status Quo
(Pittsburgh, May 3) -- Verizon shareholder proposals on CEO pay supported by the AFL-CIO received a record number of votes today at the company’s annual meeting. Additionally, the AFL-CIO-sponsored binding resolution on Golden Parachutes received extremely strong support. The AFL-CIO pointed to the record-high support as a clear marker that shareholders want a serious shift in CEO compensation at Verizon. The shareholder proposals were introduced at Verizon’s annual shareholder meeting in Pittsburgh.
Through retirement savings, America’s working families are significant holders of Verizon stock. Union-sponsored pension funds have $400 billion in total assets as institutional investors.
“The record votes at today’s meeting send a strong and powerful message to Verizon that shareholders will not stand for excessive CEO compensation,” said AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka. “The question remains: Will Verizon listen, respond and reach out to investors, or will it continue to ignore the strong message that was sent today to clean up its corporate governance?”
The votes for the AFL-CIO supported shareholder proposals:
· 46 percent in favor of the “Golden Parachutes” proposal (Item # 4) The AFL-CIO introduced a proposal that would close substantial loopholes in Verizon’s current policy for shareholder approval of golden parachutes. Verizon’s current policy allows shareholders to vote on severance agreements that exceed 2.99 times base salary plus bonus but does not include retirement benefits, stock awards or tax reimbursements in the calculation. The proposal would encourage Verizon to eliminate the perverse incentive created when executives look forward to a windfall if they fail to provide good leadership for the company.
· 47 percent in favor of the “Compensation Consultants” proposal (Item # 5) This proposal would safeguard the independence of pay consultants by requiring Verizon to disclose information to shareholders necessary for a full assessment of its consultants’ independence. This proposal is especially important at Verizon, whose former compensation consultant also performed hundreds of millions of dollars of business for the company itself.
· More than 49 percent in favor of Say on Pay (will not have final count until next week) The best way to ensure that shareholders maintain a meaningful voice in executive pay decisions is to require Verizon to submit executive compensation packages to a non-binding shareholder vote.
The vote against the reelection of directors who are members of the Human Resources Committee, which sets executive compensation at Verizon, failed, but was seen as an important first step in engaging the Board to be responsive and accountable. The strong votes on the shareholder proposals today indicate that shareholders will continue to demand for reform at Verizon, said the AFL-CIO.
For more detailed information and investor resources about visit http://investor.cwa-union.org/verizon
For copies of the proposals, please call 202-637-5018.
###
Verizon workers voice concerns about sale of landlines and abuse of workers’ rights
Hundreds of Verizon workers and retirees gathered today before the Verizon annual shareholders meeting to show their lack of confidence in management’s leadership at the $88 billion telecommunications giant. Verizon employees at the rally were joined by members of the Steelworkers union and many community supporters.
“Verizon is increasingly out of step with the labor practices of most of the world’s telecommunications companies,” said Ed Hill, President of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. “By attacking its employees' right to bargain for a better life, Verizon is creating internal strife among its frontline workers and jeopardizing the company’s value and reputation.
“Verizon is also walking away from its obligation to serve customers in rural communities, instead choosing to favor higher-income suburban and urban markets,” added Hill. “The company’s proposed sale of hundreds of thousands of land lines in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont to a tiny company based in North Carolina would net Verizon a big tax windfall while leaving citizens of those states with dim prospects for ever having access to high-speed Internet services.”
At the Annual Meeting the IBEW and the Communications Workers of America distributed a special report to shareholders documenting how Verizon management is attacking bargaining rights, abandoning millions of customers, and eroding shareholder value.
“Verizon management is trying to isolate us from the company’s unionized workforce to keep us from having a voice on the job,” said John Elia, a technician who now works for the former MCI unit that was renamed Verizon Business. “Management has made blatantly false statements to us in their so-called ‘union awareness’ materials. All we are asking is that the company drop the intimidation and honor the neutrality and union recognition procedure that other Verizon employees have benefited from.”
More than 60 percent of the 360 Verizon Business technicians in the Northeast have petitioned the company for union representation and bargaining rights. Their majority support for a union was certified by elected officials and community leaders in Boston and New York, but the company has so far refused to recognize their union.
“Most of us see through their rhetoric,” Elia added. “We know they want to keep us divided and weak -- so that we can’t be part of national contract negotiations in 2008.”
“Verizon Business is an example of why we need to pass the Employee Free Choice Act,” said Richard Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO. “Employees shouldn’t have to face this kind of coercive management interference just because they want to unite for a voice at work.”
The Employee Free Choice Act recently passed the U.S. House of Representatives and is currently pending before the Senate.
For more background info, visit www.freechoiceatverizon.com and www.stop-the-sale.org and www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/efca
For a copy of the “Report to Shareholders” visit www.cwa-union.org
“Verizon is increasingly out of step with the labor practices of most of the world’s telecommunications companies,” said Ed Hill, President of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. “By attacking its employees' right to bargain for a better life, Verizon is creating internal strife among its frontline workers and jeopardizing the company’s value and reputation.
“Verizon is also walking away from its obligation to serve customers in rural communities, instead choosing to favor higher-income suburban and urban markets,” added Hill. “The company’s proposed sale of hundreds of thousands of land lines in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont to a tiny company based in North Carolina would net Verizon a big tax windfall while leaving citizens of those states with dim prospects for ever having access to high-speed Internet services.”
At the Annual Meeting the IBEW and the Communications Workers of America distributed a special report to shareholders documenting how Verizon management is attacking bargaining rights, abandoning millions of customers, and eroding shareholder value.
“Verizon management is trying to isolate us from the company’s unionized workforce to keep us from having a voice on the job,” said John Elia, a technician who now works for the former MCI unit that was renamed Verizon Business. “Management has made blatantly false statements to us in their so-called ‘union awareness’ materials. All we are asking is that the company drop the intimidation and honor the neutrality and union recognition procedure that other Verizon employees have benefited from.”
More than 60 percent of the 360 Verizon Business technicians in the Northeast have petitioned the company for union representation and bargaining rights. Their majority support for a union was certified by elected officials and community leaders in Boston and New York, but the company has so far refused to recognize their union.
“Most of us see through their rhetoric,” Elia added. “We know they want to keep us divided and weak -- so that we can’t be part of national contract negotiations in 2008.”
“Verizon Business is an example of why we need to pass the Employee Free Choice Act,” said Richard Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO. “Employees shouldn’t have to face this kind of coercive management interference just because they want to unite for a voice at work.”
The Employee Free Choice Act recently passed the U.S. House of Representatives and is currently pending before the Senate.
For more background info, visit www.freechoiceatverizon.com and www.stop-the-sale.org and www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/efca
For a copy of the “Report to Shareholders” visit www.cwa-union.org
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