Telecom stands by decision to use Visionstream
Telecom stood by its decision to contract its services to Visionstream at its annual meeting in Auckland today - despite causing huge union unrest and customer delays.
Hundreds of people protested outside the meeting, which was held at Ellerslie Racecourse, over contracts that were terminiated when Visionstream took over the maintenance of Telecom's lines.
Telecom chief executive Paul Reynolds apologised to customers who had experienced down time due to the industrial action and endeavoured
to get phone lines up and running as soon as possible.
The affected areas include Auckland and Northland, and some customers have been without a phone line for several weeks. Mr Reynolds especially highlighted Northland as an area of particular concern.
Last week, Telecom conceded for the first time customers were suffering major delays as a result of the EPMU-lead strikes against owner-operator contracts being offered to lines engineers.
Around 200 engineers lost their jobs two weeks ago when Visionstream won the contract ahead of Downer EDI Engineering and Transfield to manage Telecom’s line in Auckland and Northland (like Visionstream, they are Australian-owned). Some of these engineers have been offered jobs with Visionstream as dependant contractors. Financial assistance is available for those who need it.
Mr Reynolds said the move was for the betterment of the company, and therefore shareholders, and for all New Zealanders who depended on Telecom to deliver worldclass telecommunication services.
“We can’t stand still. We have to move forward. I apologise to customers, especially those in Northland. I take every complaint personally. We are 18 months into our five-year plan, and Telecom needs to get it right. We need to be given space to get it right,” he said.
Mr Reynolds said what Telecom had achieved over the past year was unprecedented of any telecommunications company in the world. “With clean air we can climb the mountain. Telecom is changing and New Zealand is taking notice.”
He said the changes the company had implemented were akin to changing the wings of a Boeing, the engines and retouching the paint work while the plane was in mid-fight, while keeping the passengers and traffic control happy.
He said the company had achieved this despite changes to technology, regulatory framework and new competition such as from 2degrees, “and they will fight hard for their corner and so they should. Kordia is under pressure; Vodafone was down on its [net after tax] profits."
Mr Reynolds said Telecom was a complex company and a company that has had to deal with constant change during a time of unique economic instability both in world markets but also here in New Zealand.
He added the XT network launch, Telecom’s third generation ultra-fast broadband, had brought New Zealand inline with other Western countries, in some cases XT was better than other international networks.
Mr Reynolds said when he moved to New Zealand from the UK two years ago, he had been using 1 megabit per second mobile bandwidth. With XT that increased to 7Mbit/s. Now the Telecom boss is trialling his company's 20Mbit/s XT upgrade, due ahead of Christmas.
"We support the government’s initiative to directly bring fibre to 75% of New Zealand homes. We support that vision, we see it as essential in this digital age.
“The difference between Telecom today and Telecom a year ago, is the difference between night and day,” he said.
Telecom's shares (NZX: TEL) were up 1.5% in late trading.
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Comments
Fibre to the home
He won't be singing from the same prayerbook once the country is wired with fibre optic cable.
vision
The move is for the betterment of the company.?
The move to regional fibre is for the betterment of nz.Without telecom.
The move to Visionstream was
The move to Visionstream was for the betterment of Telecoms shareholders he says. Well he got that right.
He couldn't care less about the loyal workforce that are now on the dole or the customers without phone service for several weeks.
Visionstream cant get enough engineers to sign up to debt with their so called dependent contract and don't have enough experienced engineers to cope with the workload.
As long as the shareholders are happy that's OK then!
Telecom
What a load of pompous garbage from Mr Reynolds. Unable to grow or even defend market share in a market where there is now some compettion, Telecom need to cut costs to pay for their "world class" management team. He and Visionstream have miscalculated how much of a screwing the engineers would take, it's that simple.
telecom
Telecom is not for me now--BYE BYE...
difference
The difference between telecom today and telecom next year is the difference between night and night.No difference just perpetual darkness.
With clean air we can climb the mountain.
Is that the mountain of faults that keep mounting.?
when it come to telecom...
when it come to telecom & visionstream... an old proverb comes to mind..."Never wrestle with a pig, you both will get dirty and the pig likes it...!"
let telecom grovel in their filth.
Yes, Telecom once had a very
Yes, Telecom once had a very loyal network workforce. However over the years, mistreatment from greedy and shortsighted management has seen this loyalty gradually wither and die. Loyalty is a very scarce commodity. Should not have been destroyed.
The recent Visionstream debacle is a clear example of Telecom's arrogant approach to its workforce in Auckland & Northland. Most view the Visionstream dependent contractor model as the last straw. Many are simply walking away. Their knowledge and skills never to be seen again.
Wise heads also know Visionstream's contracting model will only led to shortcuts being taken in both build and maintenance as the workers strive to earn a living. A quality approach would have served everyone better then the quantity only manta of Visionstream. There simply will not be any "betterment" with this network management style.
Telecom's reputation as a contracting employer is severely tainted. Certainly their media releases have a distinct smell of "bulls*it". Others are sure they smell a rotting corpse. Perhaps its a case of a "dead man walking"?
Lost its way
Telecom has lost its way. It has not learnt it cannot bully people to gets its way as it tried with Visionstream. Any organization stands or falls on its people. Telecom's line engineers ALL AGREE on one thing, whether they joined up or not with Visionstream.
Telecom does not care about the people who look after their network or for that matter the actual infrastructure. One only has to look at the shabby and decaying buildings dotted all around New Zealand that house their equipment.
Visionstream
Don't blame Visionstream - they won the contract fair and square (based upon the requirements of Telecom.)
Visionstream
By most accounts Visionstream only tended initially for the Auckland CBD. To be fair, this is probably the only place in NZ where the dependent contractor model could possibly work. Especially at the piece rates Telecom wa willing to fund it. It was Telecom that came to them asking them to take on the whole of Auckland and Northland.Sadly the potential 1 billion dollars on offer blinded them. Despite what they say Visionstream NZ is more like a labour broker then a fair dinkum telecommunications company. They arrived here with only a few recuiters. Talking to these peple you soon realised they lacked any real understanding of how things worked here. They hired a few flaky managers from Transfield and Downers who were the first to jump ship. One of many, many bad decisions that was to follow. I think Telecom has tried its best to prop them up, especially in dealing with the media. However even the corporate might of Telecom could not hide the fact that the wheels of Visionstream are about to fall off.
Visionstream lead the market for customer service.
Telecom CEO says "Visionstream lead the market for customer service." Where does he get such rubbish from?
The following link gives another more realistic point of view from Australia : http://www.rtirc.gov.au/Report/submissions_to_the_committee/pdfs/Communi....
No need to read it all . Paragraph 2 sums it up:
There has been a widespread degradation of the CustomerAccess Network (CAN) as a result of cost-cutting on maintenance (both capex and opex) and poor work practices. The latter are encouraged by the conditions of employment now common in the industry."
Ask for Paul
When you Telecom service craps out be sure to ask for Paul Reynolds. He apparently "takes every complaint personally"
For home lines the number to ring is 120.
If you are a business the number is 125.
Good luck with that.
Mr Reynolds said the move was for the betterment of the company,
"Mr Reynolds said the move was for the betterment of the company, and therefore shareholders, and for all New Zealanders who depended on Telecom to deliver worldclass telecommunication services." I had to laugh when i read the aforementioned sentence from Mr Reynolds. Telecom never have and never will deliver world class customer service. Its the people on the front lines working for Transfield and Downers who have delivered that service, nothing to do with Telecom. Anyone who has tried ringing a telecom customer service center can attest to that. Especially when they are telling people that they dont have a fault when their phone is quite obviously noisy, great customer service telecom, good on you Mr Reynolds you are a real winner
Lights on but no one home
“The difference between Telecom today and Telecom a year ago, is the difference between night and day,” he (Paul Reynolds) said.
REALLY? How can they tell? The exchanges have no windows. Maybe it was the lines engineer turning off the lights as he exited the industry.
lol
Lights on but no-one home
“The difference between Telecom today and Telecom a year ago, is the difference between night and day,” he (Paul Reynolds) said.
REALLY? How can they tell? The exchanges have no windows. Maybe it was just the lines engineer turning off the lights as he exited the industry.
lol
Its great
Hey guys, quit your moaning, i signed up to vision stream and i dont regret it, I make about 600-900 a day, work close to 15hrs, but hey, its worth it! I just hope the work flow keeps coming, Im glad you lazy guys left, we dont need you all anyway!
visionstream contractor
V/S contractor i bet you haven't got that $600 - $900 payment from V/S yet.comes next month does'nt it or when ever you get around to invoicing them.don't forget your tax obligations including your incorperated company taxes etc and your provisioning tax.did i mention to say while your out working 15 hrs a day, your taxes are paying my now new wage. thanks mate got to go, off fishing now!!!!!
its great
visionstream contractor, i have been offered a job .i have been offered $35 per hr on week days and $50 per hr on weekends.no capital out lay or lease to commit to everything supplied van, materials etc.apparently the new dependant owner-operators are not up to expectations and the company needs to bring in the "moaning, lazy guys" you mention to help you out, because you can't cope. who needs who now?
My husband has been off work
My husband has been off work for 5 weeks. From 1st October he has no job, van or cellphone. We are lucky in that we were a dual income family, others are not, but also chose to strike. We chose for him to strike against the Visionstream independent contractor model. I am an accountant. The figures didnt add up. My husband has been described by management as a good productive worker. Even his figures plotted into the 'model' equated to a $15000 paycut without debt servicing of the van he would have had to buy. His basic salary before disestablishment was only based on around $21 an hour - he was not overpaid. Since the start of the strike action the rates offered to independent contractors have been increased twice. We are now able to roll the dice to see if he can make it under the model so are in the throws of looking harder at the figures. Has Chorus been fully informed of the progress and disorganisation of Vision Streams attempts to recruit contractors>? Maybe Telecom wont fly like an eagle with their boeing when they are working with turkeys...
unprecedented bollocks
So it has taken telecom 5 weeks to realise there is a problem? Is that what they call worldclass service?
Perhaps they will eventually come to the realisation that the major delays are due to the fact that they have dismissed the contractors who achieved over the past year what was unprecedented of any telecommunications company in the world, and their replacement, visionstream is unable to recruit staff. Industrial action has nothing to do with it.
Telecom surely is changing (for the worse) and New Zealand surely is taking notice.
Reynolds greed
Around 200 engineers lost their jobs two weeks ago...
...causing huge union unrest and customer delays...
...customers have been without a phone line for several weeks...
How on earth does Mr Reynolds see this as being for the betterment of the company, and for all New Zealanders?
What about the 200 New Zealanders who are now jobless thanks to his personal greed? What about the hundreds of children of these workers who will suffer hardship as a result of his personal greed? Reynolds is the only person who is better off and he is not a New Zealander.
Telecom needs to get it right, yes, but they never will with this lunatic at the helm. The changes the company have implemented
will cause it to crash, just like changing the wings of a Boeing in mid flight. Hell, he can't even touch up the paint of an exchange building.
Reynolds Greed
Way, way more than 200 hundred jobless - more like 700 i would think !
My husband has been off work ....
You've hit the nail on the head girl.
Just keep sitting tight, things are not good at VS and Telecom and Chorus are going to have to take notice pretty soon me thinks
Buying their way out of the mess
No doubt Telecom is in mess. They underestimated the backlash and resolve from betrayed line engineers. They have a solution though and it has often got them out of a pickle in the past. They wait a bit and then chuck money at the problem. Telecom know quite well the line engineers are running out of resources. After all, as the dominant player they have been able to suppress wages and conditions for some time. Contracting out is such a wonderful tool you know. In reserve they have the immigrant workers who can be forced to go anywhere or else be be deported.
At present Telecom/Visionstream are chucking money at whatever line engineer they can enlist to tackle the mounting faults. This can be more then double the engineers previous employers wage rate. Be interested to know if the hourly rates apply to the early adopters of Visionstream's dependent operator model.
Telecom's strategy will probably work in the short term. What to do after the fault count becomes more managable and falls below the concerns of the public? Will they try again with the owner operator model? Their arrogant behaviour to date would suggest so.
Perhaps it may dawned on some in Telecom that they may have gone a little too far. Their public profile has taken a thrashing. Large numbers of engineers have left the industry. Their skills are a scare commodity. Perhaps the fault levels achieved six months ago will never be seen again.
Mr Reynolds said the move was for the betterment of the company, and therefore shareholders, and for all New Zealanders who depended on Telecom to deliver worldclass telecommunication services.
REALLY? Looking back in a few years the scorecard will read no, no and nope on all three accounts.
wages
According to the northern advocate website telecom are offering wages temporary and permanent to the protesters.Reynolds with the usual spin that the door was always open and talks could have been,dribble dribble dribble......
good one guys it was a long war.
Owner Operator fiasco
The owner operator model Telecom/Visionstream introduced into the telecommunications industry is a powerful TOOL. It allows industries which virtually have a monopoly control of the contract work an ability to seriously undermine the rights, entitlements and income of people who are dependent on that source of work from one particular company or alliance. eg Telecom and its service contractor Visionstream.
The great tragedies of this debacle is that a great deal of skill and experience has been lost to the industry, because a lot of people have been so set back by the experience that they are going onto other things. The telecommunications industry may not recover for many years. The timing could not be poorer..... a time when ultra-fast broadband services was starting to roll out throughout the country.
utter contempt
If telecom and visionstream think they can still dig their way out of this mess they have already left it too late. They can throw out the carrot of big wages for 4 weeks and some of the guys will take the money, but some have already got other jobs lined up and others will just use this cash to bide them over till they can get another job. That doesn't leave enough qualified techs to do the job even if we all went back to work in 4 weeks time.
They have treated us with utter contempt and that is all they can expect in return.
All the people I know are changing their service provider as a protest against telecoms arrogant profiteering and lack of humanity, and they are getting a better deal as well!
its great
how many jobs are you doing i bet you cant be doing them proply you must be putting faults on in exchange so you will get paid to clear them they will catch up with dog like you with fainchel penalty
I smell a rat!!!
Looks as though these VS scabs are creating faults! There's the likes of Craig Nelson cutting service leads on fault jobs to claim the higher fault code, and I'm guessing someone is pulling jumpers in the exchanges.....my phone has been dead for a week now, but the broadband is still working! Oh well, another months free rental from Telescum.
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