I work in a crew under a manager with multiple cities. ATT announce an informal surplus. Affecting some cities within 1st line responsibility but not other cities. So the underlining effect was less seniority group one craft employees being told there job was safe and other with seniority being told they may be affected even though they shared the same 1st line manager and vacation schedule as people hired after them. How does AT&T and Union allow such obvious mess treatment of senior techs. Their manager allow these junior seniority members of the union to work in any office (city) under their responsibilities. This is a gross injustice to the senior union members.
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I hear you, so right.
@OP Grieve that issue!
“What options do junior Sys Techs have if there isn't spots open with the exchange? And the closest exchange is over 35 miles away?”
(For D3)You defacto start out at the state bump list. Pretty much your options are to pack up and go be a sys tech somewhere else or bump a SSIM DT and be an overpaid wire tech somewhere else.
(For D3), it would’ve been nice on this last go-round of bargaining, to have a lot more attention paid to cleaning up job titles, adjusting family of skills, and reigning in some of the absurdity that’s going on with the scope of work. Sys tech, ET, & DT need to be in a single family of skills. Uverse works needs to go back to the wire techs.
What options do junior Sys Techs have if there isn't spots open with the exchange? And the closest exchange is over 35 miles away?
A lot of people complain but don’t file a grievance, file it.
What district are you in? In D6, its about your force adjustment area. You only have seniority over similar titles in your FAA. You can check with the union to see what towns are in your FAA to know who is affected if there is a surplus.
“You can bump within 35 miles when surplussed. Might have to take a cable job to stay at the same wage. Don’t worry, cable techs usually just help on installs unless they went to installation class, then they’ll do uverse and gpon in the hood or nicer neighborhoods.”
Most Systems Techs don’t have any other Systems Techs groups within the exchange or 35 miles for that matter, and depending on what contract the poster is under, there are very few options for out of title bumps. For the SE, Sys Techs are pretty much limited to bumping Digital Techs.
Would you post the law firm for others? It’s better to use or consult with a law firm who has already been through the process and understands AT&T contracts.
Thanks for sharing.
IMO, If one thinks the contract isn’t being adhered to then, file a grievance it’s your right and the process if one feels aggrieved. One can also contact the union “State Representative” who is much more knowledgeable, state your case and ask for clarity. No matter what your local says, file a grievance because that starts everything in motion and becomes official for any further future actions.
One has to follow the process if you want to file with govt agencies (Labor, EEOC) or sue any parties later for not acting in good faith or unfair labor practice. Don’t mention any of the latter until you exhaust the grievance process first. That’s the options and document everything ie. calls, text, what was said, etc.. As someone stated earlier, depending on your contract there can be a difference of exchange vs WRA (work reporting area).
Some people (company & union) like to play favorites and other times they are just following the contract. The contract isn’t perfect but still better than the alternative.
Good luck!
You can bump within 35 miles when surplussed. Might have to take a cable job to stay at the same wage. Don’t worry, cable techs usually just help on installs unless they went to installation class, then they’ll do uverse and gpon in the hood or nicer neighborhoods.
…neither does loyalty (to customers & especially employees).
That systems technician should not have been surplussed if he was in the same WRA as the junior tech. Systems technicians are not supposed to be surplussed by exchange but by wra. Sounds to me like the local union president either doesn’t have a clue or is a company boot li---r.
More of this will be the norm as the company expands 1st line managers areas and techs they cover due to management layoffs. It doesn’t change the contractual articles, the senior employee has several options before off payroll…open vacancies, bumping junior employees, job bank, etc.
Layoffs or surplussing doesn’t have anything to do with the manager’s span of control but where the company decides a HC reduction is needed. If there is less business in one exchange vs the others then that is usually where the layoff occurs. Sometimes they do a “force in balance” to move employees with less work to other busier exchanges.
Never underestimate the ability of both the T management team & the U management team to ignore, not act, or do the wrong thing when it comes to important issues.
Huh?
Have seen similar with bargained for techs in Mobility under the same manager. Did not go straight seniority but played games with work locations and got a more senior person they wanted gone over less senior people.
Ummm of course it don’t, that’s why they are sacking older people who are about to rule75. My brother’s attorney has seven cases going currently against at&t all for age discrimination. His attorney is saying T has been doing this for the last 10 years and they always settle.
Something similar happened in south Florida. A systems tech more senior got surplussed over a junior tech. Both had same manager , same WRA , same job title , same vacation schedule, same everything but the junior tech was technically in a different exchange than where the surplus was declared , even though they cover /work identical areas and are the same WRA. Union shrugged. They. Don’t. Care. About. You. Just your dues.
It would depend on what the contract says insofar as bumping is concerned.
Surplus goes by GCA. If they cut 3 techs in one GCA, surplus is per GCA, not the 1st level reports. My 1st level as 14 techs across 6 GCA's, 2 or 3 per GCA.
Yes it does. The older you are, the more likely you are to get fired, especially the management titles.
The goal is a younger workforce. Lower salaries, cheaper healthcare, etc. They will work any loophole they can find to make that happen. Your expertise, experience and work quality DO NOT MATTER. You and the union need to make it as difficult as possible for them to accomplish their goal. Godspeed, colleagues.
@a6 This is a comtech title. The dynamics of the job has shifted, however company surplus practices not keeping up with, tech responsibilities. There should not exist a situation to which company and Union are allowing higher seniority to be affected before lower seniority within the same crew, if techs have the same title, ( which they do).
What title ?
Discuss this with your CWA rep. (I'm sure he will say "Sorry, there is nothing we can do about it--BTW keep paying your dues to the bitter end"