  IowaCowboyWant to go back to IowaPremium
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA
 ·Comcast
 ·Verizon Broadban..
| The unions will probably try to take over VZW I am surprised that the IBEW or the CWA has not taken over Comcast or Time Warner (particularly in union friendly states like Massachusetts or Illinois).
I myself am not a big fan of unions (particularly because they negotiate $50,000 salaries for toll collectors on the Mass Pike; who's work is worth minimum wage).
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I wish I still lived in Iowa; Everything there from rent and groceries to Cable TV is much cheaper in Iowa (especially with an overbuilder in town). | |
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 | | | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by IowaCowboy:....I myself am not a big fan of unions (particularly because they negotiate $50,000 salaries for toll collectors on the Mass Pike; who's work is worth minimum wage).
Highway Toll jobs are among the most dangerous to your health, I'd think it would be criminal to pay someone less than 50k. | |
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| | | | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by StuFry :said by IowaCowboy:....I myself am not a big fan of unions (particularly because they negotiate $50,000 salaries for toll collectors on the Mass Pike; who's work is worth minimum wage).
Highway Toll jobs are among the most dangerous to your health, I'd think it would be criminal to pay someone less than 50k. While I'm not a fan of Highway Tolls (have you ever driven the NJ turnpike from D.C. to NY? Delaware practically survives on Tolls alone. Anything else is just bonus), I'm inclined to think the same. | |
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| | Reviews:
 ·Frontier Communi..
| said by StuFry :Highway Toll jobs are among the most dangerous to your health, I'd think it would be criminal to pay someone less than 50k.
I used to climb communication towers for a LOT less than 50k/yr and I'll guarantee you that job is more dangerous than sitting in a toll booth collecting tickets and making change.
The analogy is an apt one though, the CWA used to work for a company with a completely captive market, just as toll collectors do. They could demand whatever they wanted and Ma Bell was happy to oblige because they had a guaranteed source of revenue. The paradigm has since changed and the telephone company actually has to be competitive in order to survive. Of course, like most unions, the CWA doesn't worry about remaining their employer remaining competitive, business reality, or any of the other factors that employers (and employees at non-union shops) need to worry about. All they care about is "more, more, more."
Don't get me wrong, I have many friends who are CWA members and professionally they've pulled my butt out of the fire on numerous occasions. I just can't abide the entitlement complex that unions have, nor do I agree with professions where union membership is mandatory if you want to get/keep a job. I shouldn't be compelled to join an association and tithe my income to it in order to have a livelihood.
BTW, speaking of toll collectors, it's a LOT of fun to drive through the manned toll lane with your E-ZPass and see the look of disappointment on their face when you drive by without needing them. Enjoy the gravy train while it lasts people, you're already obsolete; it's only a matter of time before E-ZPass becomes mandatory or is supplemented with license plate readers to catch the people without tags. | |
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| | |  pnh102Reptiles Are Cuddly And PrettyPremium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by Crookshanks:Enjoy the gravy train while it lasts people, you're already obsolete; it's only a matter of time before E-ZPass becomes mandatory or is supplemented with license plate readers to catch the people without tags. The Intercounty Connector (MD Route 200) in Montgomery and PG counties in Maryland is such a toll road. There are no tollbooths and EZ-Pass is required, and plate-reading technologies automatically bill drivers who do not have an EZ-Pass transponder or a valid EZ-Pass account.
IMO I don't see why EZ-Pass in general still requires transponders... just read the plate number and bill from that.
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Romney 2012 - Put an adult in charge. | |
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| | | | Reviews:
·Frontier Communi..
| Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW I drove on such a route (209 I think?) in Ontario on my way to Toronto. A few months after the fact I received an invoice in the mail (for $45 CAN! They aren't cheap!) for the toll charges that I then paid with a credit card. It was a pretty slick system and worked at full highway speeds without compelling you to slow down as E-ZPass does.
Not sure why we need transponders either, other than it's a legacy structure. Was OCR sufficiently advanced when E-ZPass came onto the scene to read license plates reliably? I'm guessing the answer is no? The technology is there now, at least on the NY Thruway, I've been automatically billed the appropriate amount the handful of times my transponder failed to register for whatever reason. | |
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| | | | | | | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by Crookshanks:worked at full highway speeds without compelling you to slow down as E-ZPass does. E-Z Pass doesn't require you to slow down, the narrow lanes with the toll collectors walking between booths and funky traffic patterns is why they force you to slow down. Parts of the NJ Turnpike and a number of the tolls in central VA are "full speed" and do not require you to slow down at all. Even the ones that you are supposed to slow down for will read just fine at 50 mph at 2 am 
/M | |
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| | | | | | IowaCowboyWant to go back to IowaPremium
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA Reviews:
·Comcast
·Verizon Broadban..
| Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by mackey:said by Crookshanks:worked at full highway speeds without compelling you to slow down as E-ZPass does. E-Z Pass doesn't require you to slow down, the narrow lanes with the toll collectors walking between booths and funky traffic patterns is why they force you to slow down. Parts of the NJ Turnpike and a number of the tolls in central VA are "full speed" and do not require you to slow down at all. Even the ones that you are supposed to slow down for will read just fine at 50 mph at 2 am /M New Hampshire put in highway speed tolling on I-95 a few years ago (I think either in 2009 or 2010).
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I wish I still lived in Iowa; Everything there from rent and groceries to Cable TV is much cheaper in Iowa (especially with an overbuilder in town). | |
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| | | | | |  voipguy
join:2006-05-31
Forest Hills, NY | E-470 around Denver: 75 MPH SPEED LIMIT, RIGHT THROUGH THE TOLL PLAZA. No toll booths, all transponders and license plat readers. | |
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| | | | | | patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY
kudos:1 | The EZ Pass readers are programmed to not read above 20 or 5 MPH (the posted speed limit) so you get the $50 OCR License Plate ticket instead of the EZ Pass discount. | |
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| | | | | | | | |  Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW
said by patcat88:The EZ Pass readers are programmed to not read above 20 or 5 MPH (the posted speed limit) so you get the $50 OCR License Plate ticket instead of the EZ Pass discount. Never had that problem. You need to make sure that you have all your vehicles registered with your account. This can be easily done through their website. I believe their drill is as follows: if they could not read the tag, they take a photo. If they can match the plate, make and model of the car to an existing account, they just bill that account for the toll rate at that spot. Otherwise, they pull registered owner's info from DMV and send out a violation. So as long as you correctly list all your cars with your account and remember to update it every time you change cars, you should not be getting these violations. I think there were a few instances with me when it didn't read my tag. When I look at certain items on my statements, they show my plate number instead of tag.
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Ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no lies...
A MESSAGE to the RIAA and the MPAA: You shouldn't wound what you can't kill... | |
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| | | | | | | AluminumPremium
join:2006-01-23
Manassas, VA | Nope, pure conspiracy theory as evidenced by my many many runs through the Dulles EZ pass lanes late at night at >70mph. The speed limit is 35.
hint: put the thing in your window like you're supposed to | |
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| | | | | | | | depends on the state. Ohio has their system set to 5mph where you must do that- and if you do not- you'll hit the gate/arm on the otherside. btw- it is steal. | |
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| | | | | |  Jack_in_VAPremium
join:2007-11-26
Mathews, VA
kudos:1 | said by mackey:said by Crookshanks:worked at full highway speeds without compelling you to slow down as E-ZPass does. E-Z Pass doesn't require you to slow down, the narrow lanes with the toll collectors walking between booths and funky traffic patterns is why they force you to slow down. Parts of the NJ Turnpike and a number of the tolls in central VA are "full speed" and do not require you to slow down at all. Even the ones that you are supposed to slow down for will read just fine at 50 mph at 2 am /M Not only can you "breeze" through at any speed they also have hi-speed cameras to get your license plate if you don't pay. | |
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| | | | | | | | It kills me that all of you typing and responding to these comments are only talking about toll roads. This seems like a waste of Good Forum Talk. Does anyone else know the latest on Verizon and their attempt to kill the Unions and 25,000 jobs? | |
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PA sucks in IL the main lines are all FULL speed EZ-PASS no need to slow down. | |
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| | | | |  xsbell
join:2008-12-22
Canada
kudos:1
·Primus Telecommu..
| said by Crookshanks:I drove on such a route (209 I think?) in Ontario on my way to Toronto. A few months after the fact I received an invoice in the mail (for $45 CAN! They aren't cheap!) for the toll charges that I then paid with a credit card. It was a pretty slick system and worked at full highway speeds without compelling you to slow down as E-ZPass does.
That would be Highway 407, and yeah, it's a rip off for sure! | |
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| | | | | Jack_in_VAPremium
join:2007-11-26
Mathews, VA
kudos:1 | said by Crookshanks:I drove on such a route (209 I think?) in Ontario on my way to Toronto. A few months after the fact I received an invoice in the mail (for $45 CAN! They aren't cheap!) for the toll charges that I then paid with a credit card. It was a pretty slick system and worked at full highway speeds without compelling you to slow down as E-ZPass does.
Not sure why we need transponders either, other than it's a legacy structure. Was OCR sufficiently advanced when E-ZPass came onto the scene to read license plates reliably? I'm guessing the answer is no? The technology is there now, at least on the NY Thruway, I've been automatically billed the appropriate amount the handful of times my transponder failed to register for whatever reason.
EzPass does not require the vehicle to slow down. It will read the transponders at any speed. | |
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| | | | | | | said by Crookshanks:I drove on such a route (209 I think?) in Ontario on my way to Toronto. A few months after the fact I received an invoice in the mail (for $45 CAN! They aren't cheap!) for the toll charges that I then paid with a credit card. It was a pretty slick system and worked at full highway speeds without compelling you to slow down as E-ZPass does.
Sure it wasn't 407?
That road is privately-owned by Cintra, a Spanish toll-road company. These privately-owned roads tend to be loaded down with debt, so they have to charge very high tolls.
CAD $45 still sounds steep. I don't know about 407, but I do know that a lot of these roads charge higher fees to one-time drivers than to regular commuters. The toll automatically goes down as you drive more. | |
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| | | |  N3OGHYo Soy Col. "Bat" GuanoPremium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
kudos:1 | Saw the same technology down in Florida on vacation in February. Rented a car & drove to the Keys. Love it.
Anyway, I still see a place for the "old" EZ Pass technology. The plate scanning technology is great for people who ocassionaly pass through tolls, but then the tolling agency has to bill the customer. Then you run into collection issues, no pay, fake tags, etc. Sure, all problems you see with EZ PASS, but the EZ PASS is pre paid. The agency is pretty much assured of getting their money for minimal effort, and usually bills in pre paid $35 blocks so they earn interest on your money....
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Petty people are disproportionally corrupted by petty power | |
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| | | | | | We have sunpass and pay-by-plate here. There are alot of unmanned toll booths in some areas. I'm sure that will spread in time. | |
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| | | |  aaronwtPremium
join:2004-11-07
Woodbridge, VA
 ·Verizon FiOS
| said by pnh102:said by Crookshanks:Enjoy the gravy train while it lasts people, you're already obsolete; it's only a matter of time before E-ZPass becomes mandatory or is supplemented with license plate readers to catch the people without tags. The Intercounty Connector (MD Route 200) in Montgomery and PG counties in Maryland is such a toll road. There are no tollbooths and EZ-Pass is required, and plate-reading technologies automatically bill drivers who do not have an EZ-Pass transponder or a valid EZ-Pass account. IMO I don't see why EZ-Pass in general still requires transponders... just read the plate number and bill from that. If you don't have an EZ-Pass you are billed a 50% surcharge. | |
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| | | | | pnh102Reptiles Are Cuddly And PrettyPremium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by aaronwt:If you don't have an EZ-Pass you are billed a 50% surcharge [for the ICC]. The intent there was to give an "incentive" for non EZ-Pass users to drive the road for occasional trips. The ICC itself is primarily a commuter route.
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Romney 2012 - Put an adult in charge. | |
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| | | | | | i was in MA 3 weeks ago and paid cash on the turnpike. took the Ez-Pass down and paid cash without a problem. | |
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| | | |  Simba7I Void Warranties
join:2003-03-24
Billings, MT | said by pnh102:IMO I don't see why EZ-Pass in general still requires transponders... just read the plate number and bill from that. Only issue I see is License Plate theft. All they really need is a plate in the rear and they could rip someone off. | |
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| | | | | pnh102Reptiles Are Cuddly And PrettyPremium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by Simba7:Only issue I see is License Plate theft. All they really need is a plate in the rear and they could rip someone off.
Understandable... but they could just steal your transponder now. But one good thing I'd like about using the plate only is that no one can just look at your car and know that you have EZ-Pass.
The best thing though would be not having to worry about having the batteries in the transponder die... that happened when I was driving from Philadelphia to Boston and back once (almost all toll roads and bridges)... it *really* sucked.
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Romney 2012 - Put an adult in charge. | |
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·AT&T U-Verse
| Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW Here in central Texas, we use a TXTag on the windshield of our cars for toll road charges. It is not easy to remove the tag from the inside of the windshield, and it will probably not function, once removed.
I had the misfortune to have a very close encounter with a deer one morning, which required the replacement of my windshield, as well as approx 2k of other damage. Any way the tag did not work when the glass shop transferred it to the new windshield, just as the txtag web site indicated. | |
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| | | | | | | Simba7I Void Warranties
join:2003-03-24
Billings, MT | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by Austinloop:Here in central Texas, we use a TXTag on the windshield of our cars for toll road charges. It is not easy to remove the tag from the inside of the windshield, and it will probably not function, once removed. I still have my wife's (kinda) old PikePass. We got it replaced (her old one died of old age) and got a new one only to find out they replaced it again with those RFID tags. We don't use it much, just to visit her dad and grandparents.
Oh well.
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Bresnan 30M/5M | CenturyLink 5M/896K
MyWS[PnmIIX3@3.3G,8G RAM,500G+1.5T+2T HDDs,Win7]
WifeWS[A64@2G,2G RAM,120G HDD,Win7]
Router[2xP3@1G,2G RAM,18G HDD,Allied Telesyn AT2560FX,2xDigital DE504,Sun X1034A,2xSun X4444A,SMC 8432BTA,Gentoo] | |
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| | |  tc1uscg
join:2005-03-09
Saint Clair Shores, MI | Enjoy the gravy train while it lasts people, you're already obsolete; it's only a matter of time before E-ZPass becomes mandatory or is supplemented with license plate readers to catch the people without tags.
 | |
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| | | | | | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW no replaced part is just the old ones with dieing battery's that need to be swapped out. | |
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| | | | | Crookshanks you need a little history lesson.
"The paradigm has since changed and the telephone company actually has to be competitive in order to survive"
The TPC has to be competive because they themselves lobbied and spent millions of dollars to open themselves up to competition.
They DIDNT have to do that. But they did, and they made deals with the unions (job security, future work) etc so that they would have additional support rather then an opposition to this grand plan of theirs.
The cable companies didnt spend a dime to lobby about telephone service, they sat back and watched the former bell companies do it. In fact Im pretty sure they were nervous at the time (as the phone companies were cash cow postive cash flows and cable in most parts was still paying off their plants).
In fact Verizon and AT&T had to lobby to get into the CABLE business, as cable tv was not and open and competive market (dont count satellite they dont have an outside plant)
So the same companies that spent millions to INVITE competition in, had to spend MILLIONS to create competition with cable.. What an Irony!
Now they want to cry about competition and revenue and such.. I call bullshit. They didnt pay themselves any less after competition came into play, in fact they have gotten much bigger after mergers and the upper management of these companies have done TREMENDOUSLY well for themselves.
They have also moved into new lines of business and generate more revenue streams.
These moves they are doing now is union busting, thats it.
They see a chance to grab more money for themselves and they are making their play.
All this is happening when they have LESS employees then they have ever had.. They kept the unions out of wireless despite a nuetrality agreement that they failed to honor thru backdoor channels.
In fact, I bet they could give EACH union employee 1 million dollars to leave tomorrow and still be a money making cash cow fortune 100 company. | |
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| | rradina
join:2000-08-08
Chesterfield, MO | I've never heard this. Why is this job particularly dangerous? Poor quality air from vehicle exhaust? Risk of being attacked by an angry motorist? Repetitive stress from making change (how is this different from any retail cashier)? UV skin/eye damage?
I'm completely serious. Why is this occupation dangerous to your health? | |
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| pnh102Reptiles Are Cuddly And PrettyPremium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD | said by IowaCowboy:I myself am not a big fan of unions (particularly because they negotiate $50,000 salaries for toll collectors on the Mass Pike; who's work is worth minimum wage).
In this day and age I see no reason why any human should be paid to collect tolls. License plate reading technology and EZ-Pass should have made this job obsolete years ago.
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Romney 2012 - Put an adult in charge. | |
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See 6 replies to this post |
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| Reviews:
·Verizon FiOS
| Verizon wants to partner with the Cable industry? Sure, expand FiOS to 95% of your footprint. Whether there be television franchises or not.
The unions want to deploy FiOS everywhere, which you people always seem to want. But then you start screaming this anti-worker BS, and side with a company that wants to kill off jobs and give you LTE everywhere which will destroy your wallet.
Im tired of hearing people judge the worth of others. If you think being a toll collector is an overpaid, awesome job, take your BA and Masters, and fill out an application.
So many hypocrits and turds on this website, it truly is sickening. | |
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| | | | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW I totally agree | |
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1 edit | This is a snowball effect. If Verizon gets what they want, YES prices for wireless will go up, Yes unemployment will go up, YES other industrial sectors will do the same thing if Verizon get their way. Outsourcing is a prime example of this same idea where if one company can do it why cant we!!!
Unions are where BENEFITS for working at a company came from as well as being off on the weekend. Unions have been a major part of this country and its development.
If Verizon get their way, you might as well get a second job just to pay your cable and wireless bill. I also feel bad for the cable companies as well because with Verizon this will not be the end. This deal will be the beginning of another trick they have up their sleeves. Why create a product that is superior in every way to your competition then kill it off to become partners with the enemy??? | |
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| cferro
join:2003-07-27
Jersey City, NJ | Toll collectors need a decent living wage. Many jobs are being lost to E-Z Pass. | |
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| | Reviews:
·Frontier Communi..
| Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by cferro:Toll collectors need a decent living wage. Many jobs are being lost to E-Z Pass.
Telephone operators need a decent living wage. Many jobs have been lost since the introduction of the Strowger switch. | |
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| | | | The biggest losers may be the politicos, who will have less patronage jobs to distribute, which means fewer campaign workers come election time.
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"My hat, my cane, Jeeves". | |
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|  CabalPremium
join:2007-01-21
Austin, TX | Before the last round of culling, some toll collectors were making in excess of $100K. Plenty of Boston.com articles about it. Sickening.
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If you can't open it, you don't own it. | |
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| | | CWA actually has tried to take over CellCo Partnership. And as far as the Mass Turnpike- you must not have seen that the Ez-Pass Partner network is consiering and working towards getting rid of the toll collectors and moving to 100% remote/automated via ez-pass/i-pass | |
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| | Reviews:
·Verizon FiOS
| Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW quote:
CWA actually has tried to take over CellCo Partnership.
Until they spin the company off, separate its stock, and come up with a new name for advertising, call it what it is VERIZON WIRELESS | |
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| | | said by IowaCowboy:I am surprised that the IBEW or the CWA has not taken over Comcast or Time Warner (particularly in union friendly states like Massachusetts or Illinois).
Yes, well, it's a lot easier to fight off a union trying to organize, than to get rid of a union that's already in-place.
Compare, e.g., Verizon Wireless with Verizon landline. Two divisions of the same company, but VZW has managed to fight off the union organizers.
This is part of the reason why companies are so aggressive at fighting off unions. Once they have a union, it's much harder to get rid of it. They would rather get taken to court for blocking union organizing activity, because the cost of any penalty will be far less than the cost of having a union in-place for the rest of time. | |
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| | IowaCowboyWant to go back to IowaPremium
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA Reviews:
·Comcast
·Verizon Broadban..
| Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW said by tanzam75:said by IowaCowboy:I am surprised that the IBEW or the CWA has not taken over Comcast or Time Warner (particularly in union friendly states like Massachusetts or Illinois).
Yes, well, it's a lot easier to fight off a union trying to organize, than to get rid of a union that's already in-place. Compare, e.g., Verizon Wireless with Verizon landline. Two divisions of the same company, but VZW has managed to fight off the union organizers. This is part of the reason why companies are so aggressive at fighting off unions. Once they have a union, it's much harder to get rid of it. They would rather get taken to court for blocking union organizing activity, because the cost of any penalty will be far less than the cost of having a union in-place for the rest of time. If Verizon wants to get rid of the unions, then they should outsource their line workers to a subcontractor like Comcast does with their installers. They could outsource their call centers to a company like Convergys or Startek.
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I wish I still lived in Iowa; Everything there from rent and groceries to Cable TV is much cheaper in Iowa (especially with an overbuilder in town). | |
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| | | | | Re: The unions will probably try to take over VZW Wow, youre so smart. Hopefully the CEO doesnt come across this idea.. SHHHHHHHHH.
Soooooooooooooo easy. | |
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| | unions Unions didnt see this coming? Are they that BLIND?
Yep take your unions dues and go here. | |
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| | | Re: unions said by yep :Unions didnt see this coming? Are they that BLIND?
quote:
...the CWA is concerned that Verizon Wireless' marketing deal with cable companies like Time Warner Cable will curtail Verizon Communication's plans to expand its own high-speed FiOS fiber-optic TV, data and voice network.
There's no way you're telling me that unions are just catching on to what we have known for the better part of 2 years if not more. | |
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| | CXM_SplicerLooking at the bigger picturePremium
join:2011-08-11
NYC
kudos:1 Reviews:
·Verizon FiOS
| Re: unions There's no way you're telling me that unions are just catching on to what we have known for the better part of 2 years if not more.
When McAdam took over (the former VZW CEO) and started to completely neglect the copper customers, we knew they were serious about becoming 'all wireless'. Then the news of the cable deal came out and this:
»Goldman Sachs Wants Verizon to Sell All Landline Assets
and we knew the end was a lot closer than anyone expected. The union has been telling people for a while now to take advantage of the Tuition Assistance Program and go to school. They have even made deals with some schools on specific programs, custom tailored courses, etc. So yes, the union has known for quite some time that the phone company was disappearing.
FWIW, I think we have one contract left. They have a deadline they are trying to meet in NYC for FIOS rollout (2014). Right now, they have too many POTS customers on neglected copper to handle without us (they proved that a year ago). When the roll out is done and enough customers have been moved from regulated copper to practically unregulated FIOS, they will simply let the next contract expire and fire everyone. Contractors will have to do the FIOS work, the buildout may even resume. (God help low-bid contractor FIOS! HAHA) Copper will be abandoned here in NYC, other areas fixed LTE maybe? I don't know who they will get to do the business fiber, but I doubt it will be me anymore. | |
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| | businesses The problem is they are losing business customers also. At work we have a lot of copper lines. It's now taking verizon 2 weeks to fix a dead line. How can verizon possibly make money if businesses move to other providers? | |
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| patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY
kudos:1 | Re: businesses Yep, 3 weeks for a residential copper POTS line in Queens NY. TWC will install Cable VOIP faster. VZ must have gotten a bill passed in Albany removing all trouble resolution times from wireline. Soon India will have faster telco copper repair times than VZ. | |
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Reviews:
 ·ooma
·Optimum Online
·Verizon FiOS
| shrug.. What is Verizon to do with all that cost savings? Dump that into wireless upgrades too?!?!? Where (or to WHO) will this extra cash go when they dump the unions and hire part-time labor.. just in time for the health care law to subsidize millions of low wage earners.. in health care exchanges.. After raising prices across the board, that's one hefty chunk of ROI...
Wait, you didn't see that one coming?
I'm glad I dumped Verizon this year.. If I wasn't distracted with other aspects of my life I'd have done it sooner.
BTW, I bet AT&T dumps their unions first.. Verizon will have one hella fight on their hands, particularly in NY Metro... unions don't die quietly here.. but I predict it will happen by 2015/16.
Maybe a band of union workers can go out into the country and start some 3rd party telco/isps and give Verizon a run for their saved money.. Afterall, small business will be the savior of this economy, not big business. | |
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See 26 replies to this post |
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| | ? Weren't they in favor of the AT&T purchased of T-Mobile, which would have killed more union jobs? | |
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nonymousPremium
join:2003-09-08
Glendale, AZ | Not just unions dumping customers also No competition anymore so cable will charge what they like for HSI. LTE most likely will have caps with overages. Maybe not as bad as cell plans but probably worse than most we see for regular cable or DSL now. | |
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| | | Re: Not just unions dumping customers also i dont see why they just dont split the company completely or sell off the whole land line business. | |
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| | CXM_SplicerLooking at the bigger picturePremium
join:2011-08-11
NYC
kudos:1 | Re: Not just unions dumping customers also Because Land line does not equal POTS | |
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| | fire everyone reading these post makes me think their is no hope for america . when stores replaced checkouts with automated ones did any one see any savings , did grocery store prices go down? ,prices at home depot go down? , get rid of toll booths and see if any of the savings comes to you , what happens is real people get put on the street ,but the cost stays the same to operate. so it is possible to get rid of jobs with technology but if the cost don't change why is everyone so eager to fire everyone if i go to a store i am not using self checkout its not saving me anything just a few extra minutes of my time ,but i do it so people in my neighborhood can have a job, and same goes for tolls a few minutes at a toll so someone can have a job not a big deal. has taxes gone down since easypass ? tolls keep going up. i have never seen a company make any cuts and pass them on to the consumer and they don't have to ,but how long can this mentality go one for? when the savings just go straight to the ceo of a company. people aren't getting fired so a company can survive the get fired to make the bottom line look good and the ceo gets a bonus for the same amount that the company save on the employees and middle class gets killed ,verizon could be an industry leader and bring america into the future with union labor and still make billions, | |
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| | | Re: fire everyone Prices only come down with competition. Reducing back-end costs will only bring down prices if reducing those costs are a competitive advantage. | |
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| | maikii
join:2012-08-08
Pacific Palisades, CA | Re: fire everyone And competition is being killed, as companies are allowed to swallow one another. What ever happened to antitrust in this country?
I am glad they stopped ATT from buying up T-Mobile, but in general there is far too little regulation these days, with politicians reeking in contributions from the telcos.
Wasn't the breakup of ATT in the 1980s, breaking off the baby bells, supposed to add competition? Why did they allow ATT and one other company, Verizon, to buy those baby bells back up. At one time they introduced competition in local landline service. Why was that stopped?
So now there are two monopolies (ATT and VZ) that control all landline and DSL nationwide. They are not in competition with each other at all. (not discussing wireless here, but landline and DSL).
There used to be many television cable companies, but now they seem to have been all bought up by Comcast and Time-Warner--similar to the ATT-VZ monoploy. They provide the only competition for internet service to the telcos. If Vz is now allowed to partner with the telcos, ATT will of course do the same,. and no competition at all!
Where are the regulators in all this?
And yes, sad how they are allowed to bust unions as well. Without unions, this country would have a MUCH smaller middle class.
said by paulcarlucci:Prices only come down with competition. Reducing back-end costs will only bring down prices if reducing those costs are a competitive advantage.
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| | | | | Re: fire everyone said by maikii:Wasn't the breakup of ATT in the 1980s, breaking off the baby bells, supposed to add competition? Why did they allow ATT and one other company, Verizon, to buy those baby bells back up. At one time they introduced competition in local landline service. Why was that stopped?
Under the terms of the 1984 breakup, AT&T was prohibited from purchasing its former subsidiaries.
But AT&T did not buy the Baby Bells. It was actually one of the Baby Bells, SBC, that bought its former parent and adopted the better-known brand name. Similarly, Verizon was also a Baby Bell.
Competition in local phone service was not stopped. For example, Sonic out in the Bay Area is doing exactly what the 1996 Act envisioned CLECs to do. AT&T does not help them, but nor do they hinder them. They give them the access that they are required to do, and no more.
The main problem is that the coax plant is not subject to open-access rules. Once VOIP allowed the cable company to offer triple plays, it was game over for the telephone plant. The cable companies have already rendered the landline divisions of the big telecoms marginally-profitable. How do you expect a small CLEC to compete against the much better-funded cable company? | |
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| | yeah, i got this '72 dodge dart i drive for my job So figuratively Vz wants the union emplyees to drive economical cars, but the union says we've got a fleet of 1972 dodge darts that get anywhere from 6 to 14 miles per gallon. Why should we have to drive a new ford fusion? Vz, you got enough money to fill the tanks of the dodge darts, and we've got enough employees to drive them and waste gas. Hell, we've event got folks who will reline the drum brake shoes...why do we need to drive these for fusions? Furthermore, Vz intends to drive out Americas middle class (which apparently is comprised of 45,000 union employyes from cwa and ibew). What are we to do??? We'll have no more dodge darts and no more middle class. The unions should take the deal of emploment and having a job and those folks who drive the new ford fusions into the ground should get merited based on their actions and if need be, let go just like any other employee who doesn't perform with good intent. $40 -$75k +OT??? There are plenty of folks out there who'd gladly pay for health insurance and get raises based on performance, along with getting a 401k match at that salary. Tell your union leaders that you want the deal and you'd have a job that you have to work at. | |
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| | . Why not just sell the networks to AT&T? Let them deal with it. AT&T converts it to u-verse and done. | |
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| | | Re: . said by Confused att :Why not just sell the networks to AT&T? Let them deal with it. AT&T converts it to u-verse and done.
If Verizon doesn't want then, then why would AT&T want them? They have their own phone lines that they'd like to get rid of: »AT&T May Sell Off Many DSL Markets | |
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| | | Better yet. Why not break up these major conglomerates and MAKE them start over as smaller companies?
Not that I'd like to see anyone lose their job, but these major Bells and cable companies, just to name a couple, are complete monopolies that DESERVE just that!
--
The Firefox alternative.
»www.mozilla.org/projects/seamonkey/ | |
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1 edit | It's kind of hard to feel sorry My ex wife, a Verizon Central Office tech has brought pillows to "work" when she is on the 4-12 or 12-8 shift for many many years. It's hard to feel sorry for someone who earned 70-80k with FULL benefits PLUS OVERTIME (Why were they needed for overtime if they slept 2/3's of the time???) for sleeping 2/3's of the time. I had to WORK for a living. | |
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| | | Re: It's kind of hard to feel sorry Thats exactly the proplem, people like your wife that take advantage of good paying job. | |
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| | unions are the best If we did not have unions, we would be working 16 to 20 hours a day for whatever we could get, .50 a hour like China.......you would be living in one room with your family and your mother and father, while the CEOs and exes live it up , making millions....so if you do not like unions, be thankful we have them because they do all the fighting for us, study labor history sometime, like in the 1800s and early 1900s in America.... | |
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