Fed: Union will try to see porn that led to Telstra suspensions

AAP General News (Australia)
04-27-2000
Fed: Union will try to see porn that led to Telstra suspensions

CANBERRA, April 27 AAP - The Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union (CEPU) will
attempt to see today what Telstra claimed was pornography downloaded by workers from the
Internet.

The CEPU has suggested Telstra was attempting to avoid redundancy payouts by suspending
27 workers at the Clayton centre in Melbourne and investigating dozens of other workers,
who face the sack for breaching the workplace code of conduct.

Telstra has rejected the claim.

CEPU Victorian assistant secretary Burt Blackburne said the stand-downs were the latest
in a round of allegations against Telstra workers.

"There has been a lot of discipline matters come up since the announcement of 16,000
job cuts ... and we are suspicious," he told the Nine Network.

He said the union had been unable to see the disputed material and the first the CEPU
knew of it was when workers called about their suspensions on Easter eve as Telstra had
not consulted the union.

"We've asked the management (for permission to see the material). We contacted the
management immediately. It was us actually contacting them rather than them coming to
us," Mr Blackburne said.

He said the CEPU had called an arbitration meeting, set down today in the Australian
Industrial Relations Commission, to get Telstra to put its evidence on the table.

Mr Blackburne said one member said Telstra took objection to a picture of his family
as a screensaver.

He said the CEPU withdrawing its support if material turned out to be offensive was hypothetical.

"There must be degrees here and until we see the material we're not in a position to
make any sort of judgment," Mr Blackburne said.

He said workers were not warned, with many phoned at home while on leave or on rostered
days off and were stood down.

Mr Blackburne said the CEPU would not rule out strike action following today's meeting.

AAP fh/as

KEYWORD: TELSTRA CEPU MATERIAL

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