Labor Judge Says T-Mobile Must Disband Illegal Union

Photograph by Andrew Harrer — Bloomberg via Getty Images

Aaron Pressman
Apr 04, 2017

T-Mobile must shut down an internal program called "T-Voice" for call center employees to air gripes, a federal administrative judge ruled on Tuesday.

The employee complaint program, which started in 2015, violated laws prohibiting management-run labor organizations that resemble unions, Sharon Levinson, a judge for the National Labor Relation Board, said in a 47-page decision.

The ruling comes as labor relations in the telecommunications industry face increasing strains. About 40,000 Verizon workers went on strike for seven weeks last year for better wages and extra job security while 17,000 AT&T workers went on a one-day strike last month amid negotiations over an expired contract.

Workers across the industry are upset about reduced health benefits, stagnant pay, and jobs being outsourced or moved overseas. Meanwhile, carriers are trying to please investors who want cost cuts as the wired telephone business continues to shrink and growth in the wireless markets has stalled.

FULL story: http://fortune.com/2017/04/04/labor-judge-says-t-mobile-must-disband-illegal-union/

UNION'S RESPONSE!

We're eager to share some exciting, breaking news: The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has just ruled that T-Mobile created an illegal, company-controlled organization called T-Voice, and must now immediately disband it.

The decision is another victory for T-Mobile Workers United (TU), our democratically elected union anchored by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the German union, ver.di, which represents employees of Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile's parent company. CWA filed the complaint against T-Mobile with the NLRB over a year ago, objecting to its anti-union tactics.

The TU organization, which is of, by, and for the workers, will keep fighting for fairness on the job. If T-Mobile wants to address its workers’ concerns and ideas, we have democratically-elected representatives ready and willing to meet with management to discuss how we can improve our workplace.

Victoria Singer, a T-Mobile customer service representative in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is thrilled with the decision: “T-Voice is not the voice of T-Mobile workers. It’s an illegal organization run by the company to create the illusion of respect for workers.” She says that TU members will continue to work together to find solutions to the serious challenges they face at work. “We will continue pushing for justice—particularly concerning the company’s unrealistic sales metrics and performance goals.”

Please help us spread the good news to everyone by sharing it via Facebook, Twitter, email, or in person!

We're really proud of this week's victory for American workers, but we can't rest now. We have to keep fighting for fairness at T-Mobile.

Across the country call center representatives, retail associates, and technicians are coming together to support one another and fight for fairness on the job. Please take a minute to share the story now.


Thank you so much for all you do!
Sincerely,
Angela Melvin

T-Mobile Workers United (TU)
Wichita, Kansas

CWA
501 Third Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
www.cwa-union.org