News

Unions around the world are enjoying success in call centre organising and bargaining during UNI's Action Month 2009 (http://www.callcentreaction.org)



A new union for call centres in Canada

The CEP in Canada has applied for union recognition after a majority of 1,450 call centre workers at the Bell Mobility company signed union cards indicating their support. Bell Mobility is one of Canada’s largest mobile phone companies and operates a number of call centres.

This application comes after many months of hard work by CEP and various union activists, organising around issues such as processes for work scheduling, questions of seniority and sick leave.



CEP Director of Special Projects, Alan Tate, says that “hundreds of Bell Mobility employees have been involved in helping to build a union for their co-workers and we believe a majority of these workers have now decided they need a greater voice in their workplace and real representation to help solve some of their workplace issues.”



The Canada Industrial Labour Relations Board will examine the application and if it determines that a majority of the workers support union representation, it will issue an order recognizing CEP as the bargaining agent for all call centre workers at Bell Mobility in Ontario.



This is a great way to celebrate the end of Call Centre Action Month at UNI, which CEP in Canada also supported by writing to the CEO of Telefonica to demand that the company respect its workers rights to organise.



For more information about CEP's union for call centre workers at Bell Mobility: check out the website:

First collective agreement for call centre workers in the taxi industry in Australia

The Australian Services Union (ASU) and its members have reached a collective agreement for call centre workers at the Black and White Cabs taxi company. The agreement is a breakthrough for call centres in the taxi industry and is the result of many months of hard work by ASU members and activists.

Benefits include:

• Increased pay for Friday and Saturday night work
• Improved processes for rostering
• A grievance procedure including conciliation and arbitration

The ASU has been chosen at the Bargaining Representative and the collective agreement was supported unanimously in a by a ballot of union members. The ASU will continue in its efforts to improve conditions for workers in other taxi industry call centres.



For more information about UNI's Call Centre Action Month and to sign our on-line petition to Telefonica, visit: