Unions say utilities put profits before customers in Irene response

The CT Mirror ^

[matt04]

Union representing electric and phone utility repair crews charged Monday that profit-driven cutbacks significantly hampered the response to Tropical Storm Irene in the week following the Aug. 27-28 tempest.

And as state legislators concluded their two-part hearing on the Irene response, they also heard a wide array of ideas for improving Connecticut's readiness for future storms, including a launching statewide assault on invasive vine species to hiring retired local repairmen to help out-of-state emergency crews find their way.

"Money is clearly a motivator," Frank Cirillo, business manager for Local 420 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, told a panel comprising members of four legislative committees.

Cirillo, whose local represents line crews assigned to the western half of the state by Connecticut Light & Power Co., said the company's decision to limit emergency crews to no more than 16 hours of work per day was designed to control costs more than to promote safety.

"When our people are exhausted, they'll say they want to go home," Cirillio said, adding that many workers would have been comfortable, over the short-term working a few extra hours per day. Even adding two hours to a shift could have accelerated restorations in some cases by several hundred customers per day, he said.

CL&P officials have said the 16-hour per day limit is intended to prevent fatigue-related injuries, Cirillio testified that of 37 fatalities suffered by Connecticut electrical crew members since 1950, only one was fatigue-related.

...

Old Lyme First Selectman Tim Griswold told lawmakers his community and others near the nuclear power station at Millstone Point in Waterford had a tremendous advantage over most other Connecticut towns, since federal law compels those near that nuclear plant to participate in regular disaster response drills.

[matt04]

Coincidentally, I also have a bridge for sale. I'm sure some Union workers worked really hard, however, based on experience some probably did 8 hours of work in a 16 hour day.

[Cicero]

I’d be curious what the pay agreement is. Presumably time and a half for the second 8 hours, and I would suspect double time for anything beyond that.

16 hours is more than enough time for anyone to work.

[headstamp 2]

I worked for a local utility in NY some years back. What the Moe Thacker type is pissed off about is a four man crew (two trucks) can’t have two sleeping while the others work with everybody still on the clock. They are now clocked out and sent home to sleep.

The other cost cutting measures are all related to the boondoggle of deregulation. My company for instance used to own generating stations and made out very well selling power to other utilities. They produced a product sold on the market. With deregulation, they were forced to divest all their generation and become just a “Energy Delivery Company”. As a consequence, the income isn’t there to upgrade systems and equipment nor staff at the levels they once did. My company now has what are called “Gypsy Crews” that are basically used wherever needed in the state for emergency outages.

[Zeppo]

"Money is clearly a motivator," Frank Cirillo, business manager for Local 420 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, told a panel comprising members of four legislative committees.

Whereas, the IBEW union is never motivated by money. Yeah, right.

hiring retired local repairmen to help out-of-state emergency crews find their way

So, out-of-state line crews have not yet discovered the GPS?