From today’s The Guardian:
Labor conditions and collective bargaining rights have worsened in the large US wireless carrier industry now that big telecommunications firms are increasingly outsourcing their retail sales and customer service operations from company-owned stores.
The sector, dominated by AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile, which together reported $337.1bn in revenue in 2022, is now plagued by wage theft, security issues, overworked staff and health and safety problems, according to a new report.
The study, by the Communications Workers of America and National Employment Law Project, found the three largest wireless carriers in the US have increasingly outsourced retail operations to authorized dealers and sellers. That has undermined collective bargaining rights for these workers and resulted in degraded working conditions in comparison with corporate owned and operated retail stores.
In the report, a survey of more than 200 workers at authorized retailers in 43 states found nine out of 10 workers reported experiencing wage theft. Three out of four workers reported having to rely on at least 25% of their wages through sales commissions. Nearly two in three workers reported they were unable to take breaks during their shifts.
Read the complete story here.