XEROX CEO SAYS UNDERPAID AS SHE TELLS EMPLOYEES OF CUTS

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Xerox CEO Says Underpaid as She Tells Employees of Cuts to Benefits
Xerox Workers Appeal To Company’s CEO During Visit
The CEO of Xerox visited the company’s Willsonville offices Thursday afternoon.  As Kristian Foden-Vencil reports several workers used the event to ask her not to outsource their jobs.About 150 Xerox employees, who put together ink jet cartridges, have been working without a contract since July.

They’re represented by SEIU local 49.
The union says the company’s latest offer is to eliminate the worker’s five sick-days a year; reduce wages for half of the union employees; and make about half of their jobs temporary.

Union member Gary Daniels is a married 31-year-old with four kids.
Gary Daniels: "The cuts are unacceptable I mean I wouldn’t be able to survive with my family with what they’re proposing. I mean I just can’t do it. It’s going to be almost impossible."

To welcome CEO Ursula Burns, Xerox held a company-only ‘tropical’ themed picnic at its Willsonville offices.

Daniels says Burns answered questions and one worker asked how she justified the proposed cuts with her multi-million dollar paycheck.Gary Daniels: "She even actually said that she was underpaid. People’s reaction to that was very negative."

Kristian: "What did they do? Did they shout?"

Gary Daniels: "There was some booing. Not much. I think a lot of people were nervous. She doesn’t come out here that often."

Xerox spokesman, Carl Langsenkamp, didn’t want to talk on tape, but says the company is negotiating the new contract in a fair and equitable way.

In June, Xerox notified 120 local employees that it had signed a deal to transfer their jobs to an Indian company.Some workers, like 15-year-veteran Chris Singrey, think the CEO’s salary is a red herring.

Chris Singrey: "I understand that corporate executives need to make a decent wage and sometimes they look exorbitant. But I can’t really worry about her wage. I’ve really got to worry about the people down here who aren’t making a decent wage."Xerox acquired the Willsonville color printer facility from Tektronix in 2000. It has about 1500 employees locally and 130,000 worldwide.

http://www.oregonlive.com/silicon-forest/index.ssf/2011/08/union_targets_xerox_during_ceos_visit_to_wilsonvil.html
Union targets Xerox during CEO’s visit to Wilsonville
Xerox CEO Ursula Burns was in Wilsonville today for a town-hall meeting with the 1,400 employees at the company’s campus east of I-5.

The company is currently negotiating a new contract for about 150 manufacturing workers in its solid ink production facility in Wilsonville, and union leaders are pressing the company during Burns’ visit over what they say are proposed cuts in employees’ pay and benefits.

Service Employees International Union Local 49 will be at the campus this afternoon for a press conference on contract negotiations. The union says Xerox "is attempting to eliminate workers sick days, reduce pay for long term employees by up to fifty percent and roll back retirement benefits for workers."

The union argues that the cuts are inappropriate given Xerox’s rising sales ($21.6 billion last year) and profits ($606 million).Union members working at Xerox make $14 to $15 an hour, according to SEIU’s Maggie Long, director of property services.

She contrasts that with Burns’ pay, which Xerox valued at $13.2 million last year (up from $11.2 million in 2009.)The union does not represent Xerox engineers, some of whom transferred to an Indian contractor called HCL Technologies last month as part of a broader shift in Xerox’s operations. But Long said that change is concerning.Citing the ongoing negotiations, Xerox declined to respond directly to the union’s charges. In a statement, it said "Xerox has always maintained cooperative and effective relationships with unions."

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August 15, 2011 at 12:17 PM