September 8, 2015 – RI Future

September 8, 2015September 8, 2015

Rhode Island Labor History Society’s Annual Labor Day Address

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The Rhode Island Labor History Society held their Annual Labor Day Address in Moshassuck Cemetery in Central Falls yesterday. Ryan McIntyre, the society board member who lead the effort to erect a monument in the cemetery to commemorate the Saylesville Massacre, where workers were killed by the National Guard during the General Textile Strike in September of 1934, gave an address entitled, “1915 – A Tumultuous Year That Shaped the American Family.”

In this part of the graveyard one can see the bullet holes that penetrated a tombstone, evidence of the violence that can erupt when working people challenge the capitalist class over the proper allocation of profit.

Rhode Island was first industrialized and the first organized state in the nation, said McIntyre in his presentation (see video below). Both the industrial revolution and the organized labor movement had a genesis here.

The rich history of Rhode Island labor and the important wins of the labor movement that we all take for granted today, such as the forty hour work week, the eight hour day, the abolition of child labor, even Labor Day itself, mark the Labor Movement as deserving of our respect, yet too often, the opposite is true.

The assault on labor over the last three decades has been nonstop and withering. As union participation falls, economic inequality skyrockets to levels never before recorded in history. Today in Rhode Island UNAP, SEIU, Unite Here and the Providence Firefighters, to name just four, are all fighting for fair contracts and fair negotiations. The battle between Verizon and its workers is escalating. Other local labor battles are brewing.

The Labor Movement is not without its problems, like any human institution, it is vulnerable to human foibles and has an ignoble history in regards to issues of race and gender, but the ultimate goal of Labor is liberation and empowerment, and that is a goal always to be embraced and nurtured.

2015-09-07 RI Labor History Society Annual Labor Day Address 005 — Central Falls Mayor James Diossa

2015-09-07 RI Labor History Society Annual Labor Day Address 006 — **Scott Molloy**

2015-09-07 RI Labor History Society Annual Labor Day Address 008 — Mike Araujo

2015-09-07 RI Labor History Society Annual Labor Day Address 009 — James Parisi

2015-09-07 RI Labor History Society Annual Labor Day Address 011 — **Ryan McIntyre**

September 8, 2015

Tuesday to Tuesday arts and entertainment calendar

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RIFuture is a fine institution that has made important contributions to the Rhode Island news culture. It is our hope that this new feature – the ‘Tuesday to Tuesday Arts and Entertainment Calendar’ will bring a lighter side to the fare. As we move beyond the dog days of summer, I’m open to tips and press releases regarding the events you or someone you know may be holding in the next few weeks. Feel free to e-mail data to me at andrew.james.stewart.rhode.island@gmail.com.

MY PICKS
Here is my selection of events that you should definitely consider checking out this week.

9/8
Black Wool, Auvn, The Conversation, and Antonio Forte at AS220 Main Stage, 9:30 pm, $6
Check out some local bands and support one of our favorite venues in Providence.
9/9
Frequency’s Providence Anthology Release at Providence Public Library Ship Room, 6 pm, Free
I’m a bibliophile, so something in me is just yearning to see what happens here.
9/10
Movies on the Block: THE MUPPET MOVIE at Grants Block, 7:30 pm, Free
This is one of my favorite movies of all time and is certainly one for the whole family.
9/11
The Diversity Fellows Present “The 9/11 Show!” at AS220’s Blackbox, 7 pm, $5-10 sliding scale
This is a truly interesting event I highly encourage you to check out, it is intentionally flying in the face of nationalism and faux-sentiment in the name of the unity art gives us.
9/12
Happy hour book party for Cedric de Leon’s new release “Origins of Right To Work” at AS220, 5 pm, Free
This is the event not to miss this week, folks, there’s no two ways about it.
9/13
Free Writer’s Workshop at Annex Room, 4 pm, Free
Consider brushing up on your skills as we head back in to the school year.
9/14
Again, this week was light in terms of events, so please send me press releases and event notices as you come across them
9/15
Hartley C. White Project, CE Schneider Topical, Universal Cell Unlock at Psychic Readings, 9 pm, $6
Again, let’s send some loving to AS220 and support local music!

9/8
Stretch & Strength at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 12-1 pm, $5

Open Life Drawing at AS220, 6 pm-8:30, $6

Intermediate Ballet Class with Danielle Davidson at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 7:15 pm-8:45 pm, $13 per class/$60 for 6 classes

Brian 4 Ever, Mike Mountain, Invisible Robot Hands at Psychic Readings, 9 pm, $5

Black Wool, Auvn, The Conversation, and Antonio Forte at AS220 Main Stage, 9:30 pm, $6

9/9
Vinyasa Yoga with Julie Shore at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, Noon-1 pm, $5

Open Level Modern Dance at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 6:30-8 pm, $13 per class/$60 for 6 classes

Frequency’s Providence Anthology Release at Providence Public Library Ship Room, 6 pm, Free

Providence Student Union’s Back to School Bash! at AS220 Main Stage, 5:30, Free

Lulz! Comedy Night at AS220 Main Stage, 9 pm, $6

The Florists, Feng Shui Police, Speechcraft and The Woods at Psychic Readings, 9 pm, $6

9/10
Evening Yoga at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 6:15 pm, $13 per class; $60 for 6 classes

Movies on the Block: THE MUPPET MOVIE at Grants Block, 7:30 pm, Free

LAST SHOW! 2015 Burnside Music Series: Mark Cutler and Men of Great Courage + DJ LaRochelle at Kennedy Plaza, 4:30 pm, Free

Live@RWU: Quincy Jones Presents the Justin Kauflin Trio at RWU Global Heritage Hall Auditorium, 7:30 pm, Free

newportFILM Outdoors! THE MASK YOU LIVE IN at Great Friends Meeting House Lawn, 7:15 pm, Free

Counter-Productions Theatre Company presents a staged reading of AMERICA’S FAVORITE PASTIME by Dennis A. Allen II at AS220’s Blackbox, 7 pm, Free

Songwriters In The Round @ AS220, 7 pm, $5

Jesse Holstein (violin) and Clara Yang (cello), and Sun Speak at AS220 Main Stage, 9 pm, $6

9/11
ART OPENING! Creative Compassion & The Art of Kindness at New Urban Arts, 5 pm, Free

The Diversity Fellows Present “The 9/11 Show!” at AS220’s Blackbox, 7 pm, $5-10 sliding scale

Pixels, Aloud, Cat Has Claws, and Food Court at AS220 Main Stage, 9 pm, $6

9/12
Traditional Irish Music Session at AS220 Bar & FOO(D), 4 pm, Free

Collage Creators at Providence Children’s Museum, 10 am, Free with Museum admission of $9.00 per person

Blackletter, Leiko, and Seven Hats Parade at Parlor Bar & Kitchen, 10 pm, $5 (21+)

Happy hour book party for Cedric de Leon’s new release “Origins of Right To Work” at AS220, 5 pm, Free

Saturday Switch Series Masterclasses at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 10 am, $15 per class; $60 for 6 class package

AS220 Residents’ Open House at AS220 Empire Fl. 3/Dreyfus Bldg./Mercantile Block, 2:30, Free

AS220 Industries Open House at AS220 Industries, 5 pm, Free

September Gallery Openings at AS220, 5 pm, Free

All About Buttons, Treehouse Live, Rat Ruckus at AS220 Main Stage, 9 pm, $6

9/13
Core Workout with Daniel Shea at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 9 am, $5

Beginner Ballet at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 10:30, $13 per class/$60 for 6 classes

Intermediate Ballet w/ Stephanie Albanese at 95 Empire Dance Studio, Noon, $13 per class/$60 for 6 classes

Happy Grandparents Day! at Providence Children’s Museum, 9 am, Free with Museum admission of $9.00 per person

Stacey Peasley Band at Governor Henry Lippitt House Museum, 3 pm, Free

Hann Cassady, Dan Dodd, Bill Bartholomew, and Alexandra Dutremble at Dusk, 8 pm, $5 (18+)

Arduino For Total Newbies With Mitch Altman at AS220 Labs, 1 pm, $35

Free Writer’s Workshop at Annex Room, 4 pm, Free

Math The Bland The Bland, Slingshot Dakota, Twin Foxes, and Honest Living @ Psychic Readings, 9 pm, $6

9/14
Intermediate/Advanced Modern Dance at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 6:30 pm, $13 per class/$60 for 6 classes

9/15
Stretch & Strength at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, Noon, $5

Open Life Drawing at AS220, 6 pm, $6

Intermediate Ballet Class with Danielle Davidson at AS220 Live Arts Dance Studio, 7:15 pm, $13 per class/$60 for 6 classes

Hartley C. White Project, CE Schneider Topical, Universal Cell Unlock at Psychic Readings, 9 pm, $6

Vana Mazi, Orion Rigel Dommisse and Wolf Hongos at AS220 Main Stage, 9:30 pm, $6

September 8, 2015May 7, 2016

The Verizon, union standoff and the future of customer service

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Previously I posted a story regarding the current standoff between the IBEW and CWA with Verizon in regards to its impact on the labor movement. This post will discuss how a strong unionized workforce impacts the customer service of subscribers.

The issue of customer service is fundamentally an issue of unionized labor. If the call centers are unionized, then the customers will get quality service. Furthermore, if the service is union-certified, it carries with it a level of insurance that can be the difference between life and death. That might strike some as a bit hyperbolic, but anyone who has ever dialed 911 knows exactly what I mean.

The company has engaged in a series of practices intentionally meant to break the union, including the roll-out of automation tools that have hindered the ability of unionized workers and shortened shifts. For readers who are Verizon customers, they probably have begun to experience instances when they 4 out of 5 times have quality customer service, but then 1 out of 5 times they have had awful service. This is not an accident, it is because the company has been redirecting calls to non-union contractor offices either at vendor centers within the US or in Latin America where the labor force has no access to the services they are supporting. This is particularly gruesome because these laborers are subjected to brutal work regimens for little money and can be disciplined if calls last longer than a few minutes.

One source told me “If Verizon really cared about working families, they wouldn’t be paying basically what equates to slave wages in South America and minimum wages to folks in other vendor centers.” Should Verizon break the unions, customer service, which they do not care about, would drop significantly and it would be equivalent to Time Warner or Comcast, who have totally non-union help lines. A source told me that s/he sees the work of non-union customer service reps in the files of people s/he works with. S/he said there are problem-solving steps skipped, wrong answers, and a lack of literacy in the products being serviced because these workers are so poor they do not have access to these first-world niceties.

But there are other issues to consider. Currently, our internet and cable in America is the highest-priced for the lowest-quality service in the developed world. In comparison to South Korea, a nation that only exists because of the American military presence in the Pacific, we are a joke. Even Google Fiber and municipally-owned internet services embarrass Verizon. This lack of quality can be attributed to what is labelled by many as the ‘oligopoly’. In essence, the major cable companies have conspired to fix the prices and speeds of the utilities so to maximize profits and minimize user satisfaction. Our existing infrastructure is capable of much higher capacities but is intentionally prevented from reaching full potential by the corporations’ collusion and greed. A unionized workforce helps serve as a final barrier to complete corporate hegemony and consumer robbery.

But also consider the aforementioned copper cable. Currently, Verizon is allowing the existing lines, some of which are literally wrapped in paper, to rot. This is so they can roll out a wireless service that would cut back the necessary unionized workers significantly. The proposed method would be Verizon installs on every house an LTE X antennae that receives the broadcast video and data signals. Leaving aside the obvious health concerns to be raised by flooding the area with that many electro-magnetic bursts of energy, there is the issue of quality of service. Wireless phone service is inferior to copper cable, with higher wait times and fewer amenities. Also, important health and safety services, such as LifeAlert and 911, do not always work with wireless in the same fashion they do with copper cable. And when you are in a health emergency where seconds can mean life or death, a little bit of lag can result in a lot of grief.

Some of the infrastructure for wireless calling that would end copper cable as we know it has already been put in place. For example, in New York, Verizon Voice Link has already begun the roll-out of wireless-based landline phone service in certain circumstances. The Verizon Quantum TV set-top boxes contain chips that are unactivated but would serve as wireless IP set-tops and contain technology that could be used by the cellular network. Verizon claims this is about everything from customer satisfaction to environmental concerns. But the bottom line is simply busting the union and maximizing profits from the established LTE-X network.

As previously mentioned, it is vital that both customers and non-customers reach out to both Verizon and the unions to express solidarity. If you are a member of a faith community, consider both offering prayers and raising funds for the union should they strike. If you are a community leader, express public solidarity. Write your local newspaper, post on social networks, make a public show of solidarity. This is a winnable battle if the people unite.

Read the first part in this series here.

Visit the Stand Up To Verizon website by clicking here.

The CWA can be reached at 401-275-0760.

The IBEW can be reached at 401-946-9900.