Telecommunications Workers Union

Dear TWU Members,

I am happy to share with you that this year's Telecommunications Workers Union (TWU) convention in Montreal was a tremendous success and a truly unifying experience. TWU members, along with members from Local R55, the Retirees Local (attending the Convention for the first time), were able to join our brothers and sisters from the Sheraton Four Points Hotel on the picket lines and, as many will attest, the weather might have been cold, but the feeling on the streets and in all of our hearts was one of warmth, hope and solidarity.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all of the newly elected and re-elected TWU representatives as well as those who ran for positions but were not elected. I am always proud to see the democratic process that enables us to continue the important work that we do for all of our members. This has allowed us to maintain a solid footing of experience by which to carry on.

I am dismayed, however, at the news of more jobs being off-shored to other countries by TELUS. The TWU and the Public Awareness Committee are working hard to relay the information to media outlets and the Canadian public as well as keeping members informed of our plans to address this issue. We recently drafted a template letter that members and the Canadian public can forward to their local Members of Parliament, the Prime Minister and other Government officials to push forward our message and enact legislation that will put a stop to this outrage. You can find this letter on the TWU Web site.

Perhaps TELUS can learn from Bell Canada (and other telecommunications companies) that recently announced it will no longer be transferring one-million calls for technical assistance to India because of results that were below its initial expectations. Yes, it can be done. The focus today seems to be all about profits. TELUS International recently opened its fourth facility in the Philippines (in the Araneta Centre Cyber Park in Cubao) and has disclosed that it aims to expand this facility, that now employs 900 workers (providing inbound customer care, outbound sales, market research and business process solutions), to its full capacity of at least 3,000 workers. That's 3,000 Canadian jobs that could have been created on our Canadian shores.

The TWU strongly believes that companies that earn their revenue in Canadian communities have a duty to reinvest in those communities.

The Union is continuing to work on the issue of contracting out of TWU members' work within Canada and we are challenging the actions of TELUS in unilaterally offering buy-out packages without first negotiating with the Union.

With those three major issues at the forefront and with renewals of collective agreements for our Shaw Abbotsford and other bargaining units under way, we will continue to prepare for our next round of TELUS bargaining in 2010.

There is much important work ahead but I am confident that with the kind of solidarity demonstrated at the 2009 Convention, we will succeed.

We encourage everyone to visit the TWU Web site daily (www.twu-canada.ca), read the Hotline, Transmitter and bulletins, attend local meetings, and call your local business agent.

In Solidarity,

George Doubt, TWU National President