Telecom engineers on strike

A nationwide strike by Telecom lines engineers will take place today and tomorrow.

The strike will likely affect commercial, residential and eftpos customers who have problems over the next two days.

EPMU national industry organiser Joe Gallagher said 900 lines engineers who work for contractors Transfield Services and Downer EDI will walk off the job today.

Telecom spokesman Mark Watts said that is about one third of the workforce.

Lines engineers are also planning a march down Queen St. EMPU spokesman Rob Egan said 200 workers are expected to turn out and march past Telecom headquarters in Auckland.

Mr Gallagher said the strike is over a refusal to offer "redundancy protection at a time of uncertainty in the industry".

North Shore lines engineers are on their fifth day of strike action.

"This strike action is a direct result of Telecom's contracting model, which plays contractors off against each other in a race to the bottom on wages and the stability of the network," Mr Gallagher said.

He said lines engineers were being forced into a new contract with Telecom that could see them take a 50 to 65 per cent drop in income.

"Telecom's short-sighted business model is putting not just our members' livelihoods but the entire stability of the network at risk. Forcing lines engineers to do more jobs in less time can only lead to more network failures and the loss of hundreds of highly skilled workers overseas for better conditions and more secure employment," Mr Gallagher said.

The EPMU has said that the strike will not affect customers in areas where there is no cell phone coverage and who are therefore unable to make 111 emergency calls.