Verizon union employees in New England protested a company e-mail...
Verizon union employees in New England protested a company e-mail cautioning employees not to speculate publicly about the impacts on business operations of the proposed $2.7 billion spinoff of the Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont operations to FairPoint Communications.…
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The June 18 message said Verizon had entered a “quiet period” required by the SEC in merger and acquisition transactions, which will last until the end of July. But the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) council representing 11,000 Verizon New England workers termed the e-mail “an attempt by Verizon to place a gag order on its employees” in violation of their free speech rights. The union said quiet periods didn’t totally preclude public discussion of transactions. It demanded that Verizon either rescind the e-mail or immediately send a follow-up message stating exactly what information is restricted during the quiet period. IBEW and Communications Workers of America members in the three states have been vocal opponents of the FairPoint transaction. Union members quoted the message as saying Verizon employees “should not make public statements which speculate about either the operations of northern New England before or after the FairPoint transaction, or the success or future performance of FairPoint.” At our deadline, Verizon hadn’t returned calls seeking comment.