"Telus cuts subscriber access to pro-union website"
"Last Updated Sun, 24 Jul 2005 22:45:13 EDT CBC News"
"The B.C.-based communications company that's in a bitter fight with
unionized employees has blocked its internet subscribers from
accessing a website supporting striking union members.
"Telus subscribers can't get into Voices for Change, which says it's
'a community website run by and for Telecommunications Workers Union
(TWU) members ...
[ snip, snip, snip, rest at:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/24/telus-sites050724.html
- and... if you check the Verizon FIOS Terms of Service,
they (VZ) could do the same thing.
[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: And in case you did not read the
newspaper over the weekend or this morning, the international
labor organization AFL-CIO is in the midst of a _major schism_ with
its member organizations. Two or three of the major union
organizations which make up the AFL-CIO pulled out to go with a new
rival bunch, taking their several million dollars in union dues with
them. The AFL-CIO had already laid off about 25 percent of its own
internal worker force. This latest thing will really just about do
them in for good. The (A)merican (F)ederation of (L)abor and the
(C)ongress of (I)ndustrial (O)rganizations had merged (they were two
separate and competing labor organizations) in 1958 largely because
the ranks for each of them were thinning greatly. Originally (like
the 1930's and 1940's) both AFL and CIO were very strong, vibrant
organizations. AFL tended to represent more 'white and blue collar'
workers; CIO represented more manual labor type situations. Employees
at Standard Oil refineries in the 1950 era were represented by CIO
usually, while office workers and technicians tended to be
represented by AFL. As times got tough in the 1950's the two blanket
organizations decided to merge. A long, very difficult over the years
has been 'are labor unions important and needed?' Like the old which
came first, chicken or egg argument, there were good reasons for all
sides to this. I would suggest that one reason working conditions in
general have gotten much better (in the 1920's one worked normally
six days per week, 10-12 hours per day, no medical insurance, for
_much_ (disproportionaly) wages, and 'at the will' of the employer)
was because unions were started to protect the guys. Now, I know that
now-days all that sounds silly, but US Steel, Andrew Carnegie and
Mr. Ford and Mr. Pullman did not make their millions of dollars by
giving vacation time and sick pay. But now, most large companies,
(Walmart and Sprint are two notable exceptions) know they had better
'behave themselves' or the unions will return with a vengeance. The
unions served a _very_ important function; do they still? Its a
question I doubt we could ever answer here. Regards 'ISP as Censor',
well it is just the big bosses playing games, throwing their weight
around a little, to 'show who is boss'. PAT]
Danny Burstein (dannyb@panix.com)