To AB,you get the information for starting off Visionstream,don't know where you'll get the knowledge and experience from though

$40,000 - $70,000 start-up costs? Even Andrew Little (on TVNZ this morning) said it was only $10,000 (minus $3,000 cash grant from Visionstream).

it is going to be hard for them to get the numbers. with the work force getting on in age there isnt going to be that many people wanting to pay all that money to start up a business and then have to retire in a few years. not like they can sell the business on to many people if any

I think this is a great opportunity. Who can I contact to get more info about being an owner operator?

I asked in my one on one meeting,YES,codes can come down every year[confirmed by IAN SMEATON in the meeting]ANY additional work at prem is on you[eg extra jackpoints as the $60 for a line installation covers any amount of jackpoints,so you end up paying because its your stock,thirdly according to visionstream FULL MINEX is tobe carried out[a resi fault pays $60,but the new v3 enclosure[the silver foil type] cost $70,jokes on you you justlost $10 on the fault so you are in the red.WAKEUP GUYS read the contract carefully,it says also any verbal agreement is non envoyed,so the full letter of the contract applies,fourthly when the workload dies down you starve,you still have to pay your overheads.SAY NO TO VISIONSTREAM,they are acting as brokers only.Once again the AUSSIES are screwing over the KIWIS

AS confirmed by visionstream ,monthly meetingsis on you as [its worked into the code allready[joke]Cpr courses,any new technology training you pay for it,jobs that are screwed up[wrong addresses,no contact info,cancellations,etc you wear it]PROVISIONING STAFF any adapters,patch cords,isdn unit.rj45 plates you pay for it,compare this to the value of the code and you will notice you are running at at lost,FLEXIBLE WORKING HOURS,confirmed by IAN SMEATON,you will be on a 7 day roster,yes working on a SUNDAY,and they can flick you between provisioning and faults as per CHORUS[TELECOM]WISH.TAX on there one one one wasnt openly explained,what ever figure they showed you was befoer tax,minus 30% work out now what your hourly wage is and you just went backward 7 years,and the AUSSIES are running back home with the profit

i think it it just a beat up to say that visionstream
has drawen first blood six people out of six hundred is not even a bruise

When I first started for a year or two I made good coin ($380 ave/day)then after being told I was "too pricey and others will do it a lot cheaper" I had no choice if I wanted a contract renewal so lowered my rates to ($300 ave/day). Another year passed and yet again I was to greedy so $250 it became. After all costs were taken out I was earning minimum wage so I left and the government paid me to train as a teacher gave me some cash and now I work 30hrs a week for three times the minimum. Don't make yourself a victim.

great to see the real truth is getting out their go back to australia visonstream these workers have been ripped off for the last twenty enough is enough
no more.

People, before signing any contracts, make sure you take it to your legal adviser and accountant for their scrutiny.
Also look at the overheads before setting the contract rate for work.
Remember things like GST, ACC, Compliance costs, book keeping, public liability insurance, general insurance, health insurance, ever changing vehicle costs etc. It goes on and on.
Also ask, are your really classified as a "Contractor" if you accept a contract to work exclusively for one Company that’s sets the contract rate and hours of work, then you might not be classified as one, check with the IRD.
Talk to someone independent who is involved in advising in setting up small businesses.

We are at war with Chorus (Telecoms NZ Ltd ), to defend our present terms&conditions of employment against their 'Dependant Contracting" model. Our strategy plan is in place from now untill Oct 1st( 'D' Day) which will involve various types/forms of industrial action. Not only do we have the support of union members we also have support from non-union members, National & International industry unions, Downer/Transfield subbies and political party members. This industry is different to other owner/operator trades such as plumbing, electrical, building as we have 1 Corporation that has control over our country's 2nd most vital infrastructure and who need qualified/skilled people to work on our degenerating telecommunications network. We say 'No to Dependant Contracting'!!

Please note, I have already asked vision stream and they have confirmed, they will NOT give you a loan for a vehicle, doesnt matter if its new or used. All they will do is try to bring down the price by a k or 2.
Interest free loans are ONLY for tools and testing gear.
If you have come here from overseas with your own tools, they will not accept it. They want you to source your tools from them.

The proposed contract for owner operators does not;
(i) require the Company to issue any Purchase Orders(i.e issue work) to the Contractor;
(ii) guarantee the Contractor any minimum amount of Services;

Therefore you could spend a minimum $10,500 on set up costs (Visionstream's example) and have no guarantee that you will ever earn a single cent .
You are locked into the contract for 15 months so they have the ability to prevent you from getting work elsewhere.
Initially many jobs will be at a loss as you pay off specialist tools that are not included in the start up costs.

Don’t believe what you read, its pure propaganda to make you feel as if you need to sign up, Why do you think your manager at Transfield/Downers are trying to encourage you to sign, (does the words backhander and Telecom pressure ring a bell) I’ve heard that about 12 people have signed up and they are contractors already, who have a van and equipment (and half a brain) because the codes are less for them than at present. Your manager has probably got a nice cushy job lined up at visionstream and needs you.
Hold tight and don’t sign anything, only believe what you here from the union, they are the ones on your side.
Visionstream are nothing without you, they are hoping that with the pressure and the threat of redundancy, you will cave in.
Dont be bullied.
And we can send Visionstream back to Aussie empty-handed and a failed company in NZ.

The most annoying thing about this is Visionstream have been given enough money to pay the workers a decent wage, but they are wanting to load up the pockets first and reservedly give the remainder out in low priced jobs to a debt ridden workforce.
Q. What can visionstream offer you ?
A. Absolutely nothing, apart from low wages,debt,they cant even guarantee you work in the summer.

next question

Q. what can Mcdonalds offer you for flipping burgers
A. A fixed wage (so you know you can pay your morgage / rent)
free burgers or at a reduced rate
no $60,000 to pay out, to work for them
no digging , climbing poles or crawling under houses
nice insde job in bad weather
a company that cares about its workforce
chance of promotion
work guaranteed

need i say more

( Stick with me on this one and you will see )

England 1066 - 1492 ( the middle ages ) THE FEUDAL SYSTEM

The Normans brought the ' feudal system' with them. The king was at the top of the heap and the peasants at the bottom.they paid for everything - they worked in his fields,worked in his castle,repaired his roads.....all for free.The peasant then worked on a small patch of his own land in his spare tiime - not alot odf that. If the peasant made any moneythen he paid taxes to his lord.He paid the lord for grinding his corn,pressing his apples or baking his bread in the lords oven

Hey guys, obviously most of us have had a look at the visionstream proposal and know that it sucks! Bottom line is that if visionstream can't attract workers then Telecom will have to ask Downer/Transfield to carry on the contract.
We need to send visionstream the clear message that they have insulted our intelligence and we reject them totally.

The only people who have signed up (if any) would be managers or office staff. Nobody else has had the time to fully read the contract, get legal / financial / business advice, obtain insurances, tools and vehicles, register as a company and otherwise comply with all the rest of visionstreams' ridiculous demands that must be met before you can sign up.
Once again they have been caught in a lie.
Those of us who attended the meetings and have read the contracts are now aware that visionstream will tell you one thing but the actual contract tells you something else.
Dishonesty seems to be their motto.

Many of the most skilled & experienced cable jointers/faultmen have boycotted Visionstream 6on1 focus meetings held in Northland. I'd say they're in trouble to find replacements with the skills/experience needed to locate & repair the 60 -80 year old cables that are still used across the country. Our time is here to change the way contracting is been forced upon us. Beware Telecom (Chorus), Visionstream, Downer & Transfield you have a war on you hands so unless you start listening to us you may find that no-one will be working for you.

YOU HEARD HOW TO MAKE A DONKEY MOVE HANG A CARROT IN FRONT OF HIM THEN SLOWLY TAKE IT AWAY I SPENT 7 YEARS ON CODES I WAS ALWAYS TOLD THEY BASED IT ON YOUR HOURLY RATE VISONSCAM HOURLY RATE IS $17.50 WHAT A RIP OF

They estimate your production will double once you are an owner operator. (By cutting corners I guess)

Where is this extra work going to come from?
There is only so much work in the bucket.

If you are already on codes doing 8 to 10 faults a day, expect maybe only 6 jobs drip-fed to you over a 10 hour period in the Visionstream model (because of this increased demand for jobs). It will be even more fun when summer arrives!

A solution to this could be to work on Sundays and Public Holidays or to work 6-7 days a week but this also increases your overheads.

I doubt if any Jointers will sign either.
What's to stop Vision loading you up with cable gear and training (at your expense). It has been tried before... remember 1st time fix?
I recall one Kevin Smith being a great advocate of it ... yes ... the same man sitting in on the focus group sessions.

Wheres your first blood now visionstream ,Fridays strike action is just the beginning you better leave while the going is still good cause there's more to come and chorus and telecom is a bit worried what they got themselves into.This is not australia you not going to make huge profits off our backs .We the workers here are not interested in your devious little plan to get us to sign a contract so you have no responsibility. GO HOME AND TAKE THE MESSAGE OF FAILURE BACK TO AUS

A LETTER FROM A SUBBY (OWNER OPERATOR IN OZ)
“I'm a Subby on the Telephony side. I'm 100% up for a national blockade or whatever it
takes to get us more pay and fairer independent contractor law/s.
I've been in the industry a long time and I have seen it go from a respectable job with a
respectable pay to nothing more than terrible pay and a job people refuse to do
because they will go broke.
You went to work and were happy knowing that you have repaired a customer’s
telephone line to the best of your ability providing the best possible service because
you were proud to have a good respectable job.
It has become so bad now that some subbies are refusing IP services and any job that
is more that 3 ks from the pillar, (unless the job is a rural), and should the job have
second or third faults on it - forget it. Telstra gets what it pays for: 1 fault 1 pay.
We cannot possibly provide the same quality workmanship, and provide that excellent
customer service anymore. I'm currently completing 10 faults a day, sometimes 12, just
to keep myself afloat. To complete that many jobs a day I have to have each and every
job completed in 1 hour or less, and if it is not I have to simply get the dial tone to
socket and not even worry about completing a fast test from the socket. 90% of the
time the line will fail due to Telstra's lack of maintenance on the copper network, such
as bagged joints and sometimes up to 25 cni re reports in 1 joint alone.
Many subbies have stopped re reporting cni as Telstra are clearly not interested
anymore and every few months Telstra withdraw cni' from the system so you then have
to sit on the phone and start a new cni with the same details that you originally lodged
only weeks ago.
In a nutshell, I'm tired of being screwed into the ground as an independent contractor
and the Govt really needs to do something before things get so bad the skills shortage
in this area will get worse forcing us to find other work in industries that do not interest
us nor would we have the expertise as I do in the Telecommunications industry.
Whatever it takes, my company is certainly interested in joining whatever rally you
organise, and will travel for the event.”

With Vision stream trying to get the workers to signed over everyone has forgotten that both contracts from Downer and Transfield has EXPIRED so for the first time the workers have the power to finally tell the IDIOTS that we have been abused, down troded and we will tolerate this any more and hopefully we can finally be payed what we are TRUELY WORTH. So hang in there brothers as we are all finally on the same page and we will support you as much as we can down here as we did on friday by walking of the job.