Possible Strike for Avaya this weekend

[orypecos]

Ayaya and their union CWA might be going on strike this weekend. In the last years Avaya has always gone right down to the wire, and then given the union just about everything that they want. But it appears that this will not be the case this year. Avaya has trained massive numbers of management to take over the phones and there is a company that has posted a job req' for temp outside techs that looks very much like Avaya tech jobs.
With so many outside tech jobs being contracted already, the effect on a tech not coming to your location is less likely than ten years ago when there were many union techs.
The effect on the call center in Denver will be more pronouced as it is all union technicians answering the phones. But many of the technicians have already resigned from the union so they can still go to work if there is a strike.
The main problem between the union and Avaya is that the union wants some kind of job guarantees. Currently Avaya has outsourced some of the Tier 3 duties to India and Poland, but none of the call center Denver jobs. Avaya justs wants to guarantee a few jobs and they want to pick who gets that guarantee.

 

[rioxone]

does anyone know if the strike happened this weekend?

 

[orypecos]

No, the strike did not happen. The unions and Avaya agreed to 'stop the clock' so to speak. That means that the union contracts are still in effect until all three parties agree to 'unstop the clock'. So all union members are working and the only effect that I know of is the union is telling all members not to work any overtime and to work stricly according to the letter of the contract.
I myself don't see a strike. Trying to get three organizations to agree to 'unstop the clock' is very unlikely. It is not to any of their advantage. The union is insisting on a protection for their employees from layoff which I can't see Avaya giving, but Avaya can't really afford a strike. So I see work to continue without a contract till Avaya can get a company in India that they have majority ownership in take over the call center work in Denver. Other union jobs can be replaced in the next year while the unions and Avaya talk but probably make no progress.

 

[orypecos]

AVaya sent out a notice that they planned on signing a contract before last Saturday, but I think that was untrue. The 'demands' of the union, and the proposals of Avaya are so far apart, only a seriously deluded person would have thought that a contract could have been signed last Saturday. But in most cases AVaya spokesmen are left out of the loop.

This is a message from the CWA, one of the unions of AVaya.

" CWA/Avaya Bargaining Report #26
Greetings:
The parties continued to meet in sub-committees and are making progress on issues related to contract language. However, there are still major problems with the Company proposals on Pensions,Healthcare, and other National issues. As we stated yesterday the Company has not made any proposals on wages yet. We will continue to meet as long as there is a possibility of reaching an agreement. If things do not move forward soon, we will have to make a decision on the next steps we must take to get the Company to bargain a fair and equitable contract. Your continued mobilization is necessary if we are to move the Company.
The clock remains stopped, and the 2003 contract is still in
effect. You should report to work as normal. No one should be working overtime and everyone should be working to the rule until we have an agreement.

Mobilize----Mobilize---Mobilize---Mobilize---Mobilize---Mobilize---Mobilize

In Unity,

CWA-Avaya Bargaining Team
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