Why telephone rates are so high

THE EDITOR: To listen to union leaders in this country, one would conclude that all workers are overworked, underpaid and called upon to work out of their normal category and that employers are slave drivers and beasts who are taking unfair advantage of their workers. Although local unions will claim they recognise and subscribe to all the rules and agreements contained in the International Labour Organisation’s book of rules, I can safely say that that is not the case and that more than half the workers in this country cannot meet the requirements for the particular category of job that they are employed and paid to do.

There are many workers who do not even meet the attendance and punctuality standards set out by the ILO. Way back in the 1970’s when TELCO contracted a Canadian firm to run a new cable network in this country, it was customary to see one single worker drive up in a van, remove the ladder and extend it up the pole, secure his tool belt around his waist and with umbrella in hand proceed to make the many connections in each overhead cluster connection. Many moons later when single connections were to be made to the individual houses in the same area by TELCO workers, you would see a van pull up with several workers, the driver would switch off the engine and remain seated in the van, two men would remove the ladder from the rack on top of the van, place it against the pole and extend it to the desired height, the technician would climb the pole empty handed except for a length of thin rope and another one of the crew would tie the required tool one at a time to the technician at the top of the pole after which the tool would be lowered to the ground and another one passed up in like manner.

Meanwhile, the two men who put the ladder in place would remain there to see that the ladder was kept safely in place. In short, it took four or five men to make one single connection whereas it only took one man to make a cluster of cable connections on one pole. Are members of the public still wondering why telephone rates are so high in this country? Along with all other costs I may add.

MARTIN KAVANAGH
La Romaine

PS Anyone in doubt can acquire a copy of the ILO job specification manual and pick any particular job specification and compare it with the worker’s actual capability. You would be quite surprised and enlightened.