'Telstra-Behind the profit.'

Date: 12 August 2004

Telstra's announcement today of it's 4.1billion profit comes with a high toll for it's customers and it's employees says CEPU Victorian Secretary Len Cooper. The company has presided over the declining morale of it's workforce, destructive mass redundancies and the continued decline of the telecommunications network, evidenced today by the major outage of it's Broadband ADSL network and the recent leaked report showing a major decline in the mobile network service standards.

Telstra employees, whose numbers have been slashed to the bone, have borne the brunt of the companies demand for consecutive record profit results, despite poor management and spectacular losses on failed overseas ventures.

Telstra employees are subject to destructive performance regimes, requiring more work out of fewer people while the executives responsible for massive losses sit back with impunity. Telstra employees are also witnessing a complete disregard for their work/family balance in many areas.

In the meantime, Telstra customers have been subject to higher rental charges making the phone a luxury item for many. Regional and rural customers cannot get access to broadband internet services, isolation of areas through exchange failures and continued poor quality service. Having to put up with pair gain systems and other stop gap methods.

What is unfolding is the real story of privatisation on telecommunications. Starve the necessary investment, slash staff, have service standards deteriorate and concentrate on dividends for the big institutional shareholders, and provide the best service for the biggest spending corporate city based customers.

For further information

Contact:	Len Cooper
Union:	CEPU Victorian branch
Phone:	03 9387 3703
Contact Mobile:	0438 389302
Email:	lencoop@au.gateway.net
WWW:	http://www.cepu.asn.au

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