Mountain Satellites, Inc.
Workers Vote IBEW

Workers at Mountain Satellites, Inc. in California voted for IBEW representation following a brisk organizing drive marked by enthusiasm on the part of employees. The 44 satellite installation technicians who work out of Mountain Satellites Carson, California, office voted for Local 11, Los Angeles, in a National Labor Relations Board election held July 18, said Business Manager Marvin Kropke.

Local 11 Organizing Director Robert Corona (right) met with employees of Mountain Satellites, Inc. just before the group made a "march on the boss" to present authorization-for-representation cards signed by a majority of workers.

Mountain Satellites, Inc., is the major provider in California for installation of DirecTV, Inc. digital satellite television equipment. The newly organized unit is the first group at Mountain Satellites to gain IBEW representation.

"This win represents a foot in the door for the IBEW at Mountain Satellites and within the broader industry," said IBEW Ninth District International Representative Brian F. Ahakuelo. "It opens up the opportunity to organize the other 550 employees at Mountain Satellites, Inc."

Mountain Satellites employs 600 workers in California and operates four offices in the state. Its main office in Apple Valley is located just outside Los Angeles County.

Organizing initiatives are underway at other Mountain Satellites offices, said Robert Corona, Local 11s organizing director, who was instrumental in the successful Carson drive. "Since the NLRB election, Local 11 also has received calls from employees at other major satellite TV providers" expressing an interest in the IBEW, Corona said.

The campaign at Mountain Satellites Carson office began in May and moved forward rapidly. "Employees were eager to sign authorization cards," Ahakuelo said. "They were really motivated to organize and gain union representation."

Corona received a call in late April from a worker who described employee dissatisfactions with the companys treatment of workers. Initially, Corona and Organizer Kevin Norton met with four employees. Turnout grew at subsequent meetings, with up to 25 workers attending. Employees said the company failed to treat workers with respect and did not pay them for all time worked.

"We let the workers know exactly what the employer was going to do before they did it," "Corona said. So, when the company launched efforts to thwart the drive-it held a "workers appreciation" dinner, offered positions to various people and threatened that the company would have to close if the workers chose a union-employees knew in advance to anticipate these typical maneuvers. Management also brought in a union-busting law firm, organizers said.

"Employees were very enthusiastic about following through with the process," Corona said. "Soon we had 27 cards signed. Workers were enthusiastic about the union, about the possibility of getting representation-and standing up as one."

Keys to the drives success were "keeping an open line of communication with the workers, keeping them informed, and always being absolutely up front and honest" about what the union could do, Corona said. "This gave workers more gumption to want to follow through" with securing union representation.

El Segundo, California-based DirecTV, Inc. is a subsidiary of Hughes Electronics Corp. DirecTV has approximately 11 million customers nationwide and provides local channel service to more than 50 U.S. markets. DirecTV employs more than 3,000 workers nationwide.

The company filed an objection to the July 28 election and a hearing was scheduled for September 4. The outcome will be reported in a future issue.

ORGANIZINGWIRE

October 2003 IBEW Journal

IBEW LU 11