TELUS recently informed affected members of several contracting out, off-shoring and downsizing plans.

TELUS recently informed affected members of several contracting out, off-shoring and downsizing plans. The Company said it will begin a process of contracting out work in several areas:

Complex Business Voice Fulfillment (Centrex design, assign and activate). This change will affect 22 people in Edmonton, Calgary and Burnaby.

Data Services Fulfillment (Mainstream enhanced data – design, assign, activate turn up and test). This change will affect 133 members in Edmonton, Calgary, Burnaby and Vancouver.

Mass Market Fulfillment (Assignment and activation). Some of this work has already been off-shored to TSI in the Philippines. This will affect 80 to 90 members in Edmonton and Burnaby.

TELUS plans to gradually move the work to contractors over the next 12 to 18 months. TELUS’ representatives claim that “the size of the group is not the size of the outsourcing” and that “some work will remain”. However, they would not commit to numbers of people that they expect will be offered severance packages or redeployed.

Customer Care Business Office (NBO), Partner Client Care in Calgary. The Company intends to offer this group made up of 47 people (who carry out assignment and some voice over IP work) VDIP/ERIP packages. They hope to approve 10 severance packages while members may be redeployed. The work now being done by those members will be off-shored.

TELUS refuses to negotiate the terms of the VDIP/ERIP offers with the TWU (that issue is presently before the CIRB) and continues to deny TWU requests to have Union officers present at the meeting where the members are informed of these decisions that impact their lives so dramatically.

The TWU is deeply concerned with decisions by TELUS to move more jobs from Canadian communities to off-shore locations. The Union will be meeting with TELUS on these issues and more information will be provided when it is available. If you have any questions, please call your business agent.