Hello Suzanne:

I stand corrected re SERCO's salary offerings.  I was quoting numbers that
appeared in the Globe and Mail around the time of the proposal for take-over
and which are still on the Internet if you do a search.

With respect to the fact that the facility is cleaner - I'm not surprised
as, if you look at SERCO's prospectus and list of contracts, that's where
their expertise is - facilities management, removing garbage, maintaining
elevators, etc.  The concern I have is that someone, be it SERCO or their
clients, thinks that ability to run a facility efficiently translates into
ability to run ANY facility, regardless of the nature of that facility. It's
just too simplistic a solution.

I agree with you about tax dollars - however, the contract which our Council
endorsed with SERCO will end up costing the taxpayers here an estimated $2
million in unforseen costs in the next five years.  And the level of service
is lousy as they've reduced full-time management staff to 3, who so far,
spend most of their time whining about how busy they are!

Yes, I'm bitter.

Ann Gonneau


-----Original Message-----
From: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.museum-l
To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Date: June 26, 1998 12:37 PM
Subject: Re: more ramblings...


>In article <01bd9eb3$cd987fe0$2fb2acce@ann-s>,
>  Ann Gonneau <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>
>.  SERCO's been making the headlines in Canada recently as
>> the Ministry of National Defense handed them a contract to take over the
>> operation of the air traffic control facility at Goose Bay, Labrador.
>> Without the protective legislation, transitioned employees found
themselves
>> offered salaries 25% on average below their previous pay scale as the
'scope
>> of  work' had been altered - if anything like Cumberland's experience
it's
>> increased!  Cumberland went from 5 full-time staff to 4 and from 7
>> interpreters to 3, while increasing opening hours by an additional day.
>>
>
>Hi Ann,  Just thought I'd offer a slight correction here.  SERCo is taking
>over ATC in Goose Bay as of August 1/98.  But the salary they are offering
>controllers  is only a few dollars a year less than that of a full
incentive
>captain in the CF  ( a very good salary indeed).  Despite that they've only
>managed to hold on to 3 of the 18 controllers who worked here with the
>Forces.  (Many  factors other than salary influenced that:  time in the
>forces, pension penalties etc.  You don't give up a pension or take a
>10-40%cut in pension to go to a job that may only last 4 years)  It is in
the
>other services that SERCo has been taking over since April 1 that the
salary
>changes were drastic:  food services, janitorial, carpentry, painting  etc.
>The kicker was when they offered clerical staff jobs as cleaners at about
40%
>less pay.  On the other hand everyone agrees that service has improved
>dramatically since they have taken over...much to everyone's surprise.  No
>one waits in line to be served lunch while staff sit at nearby tables
smoking
> (an all too common occurence when staff worked for DND).  And everyone
>comments on how clean everything is now.  True staff has been cut by about
>30%, but if the work is being done better by fewer what does that say about
>the situation before?  As a taxpayer, I like to see my tax dollar used in
the
>best way possible.  There is talk now of forming a Union but not everyone
if
>jumping at the chance to sign on.  I'm anxious to see what things will be
>like next April when SERCo has been handling things for a year.  The one
>place they have been having a high turnover of staff is in food services
and
>that will probably settle down soon.
>
>Suzanne Mealey
>
>
>
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