Telefónica-Movistar: this is not the society we want

To the Management of 

TELEFÓNICA-MOVISTAR: 

THIS IS NOT THE SOCIETY THAT WE WANT!

After meetings with organized groups of workers, works councils and indirect workers, we share with you the practices of one of the most important Spanish companies of Ibex35: Telefónica-Movistar: a company that indirectly uses the workforce of legions of precarious workers. Telefónica contributes to increase the social breach; rewards corruption and fraud; promotes the revolving door and operates in fiscal havens. 

The alarmingly increasing social gap is, in part, the result of these employment and remuneration policies and the pressure that large multinational companies practise that make the labor market become more and more precarious.

About Telefónica: “We find it a contradiction that top executives apply for themselves remuneration policies that are not compatible with the ‘desired flexibility’ that is being demanded to the governments for the better functioning of the labor market”.  

Posted by El Observatorio de RSC about Telefónica in its Report on he Annual Accounts of Ibex35)

HIGHEST REMUNERATIONS IN IBEX35 COMPANIES

J. Linares: includes a severance pay of € 24,7 million after he quit his executive position (but he continues as non-executive Vicepresident) 

REASONS TO ACT: 

SIGN TO DEMAND THE MANAGEMENT OF TELEFÓNICA A MODEL OF BUSINESS AND SOCIETY MORE FAIR AND BALANCED. 
HERE ARE MANY REASONS:

1.  because telefÓnica is complicit with labour right abuses in the supply chain (according to UN global compact definition), and contributes o increases the social breach: with its outsourcing strategy, in the last decades, Telefónica has executed massive redundancy plans affecting more than 50,000 employees and has replaced them by outsourced personnel whose labor rights are null and earn extremely low salaries for endless working hours and without proper safety equipment. On the contrary, the remunerations of the board and top executives have been significantly increased  (the remuneration of the President of Telefónica, César Alierta, has been triplicated see details below). The relation between the remuneration of the President of Telefónica and the outsourced technical workers is 1:500. 

2.  BECAUSE TELEFÓNICA OPERATES IN TAX havens: in 2011 at least 10 subsidiaries and investees were detected in territories aknowledged by European Authorities as tax havens. The presence in tax havens is directly related to tax fraud. In the Spanish crisis, governments have decided on cutting social services instead of fighting tax fraud. It is calculated that the 71.7% of tax fraud is made by large companies and the rich).

3.  BECAUSE TELEFÓNICA REWARDS CORRUPTION AND FRAUD, AND THE REVOLVING-DOOR BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR: whereas workers are condemned to precariousness, Telefónica enriches exgovernment-related persons who are being investigated for fraud and the missuse of public funds. Rodrigo Rato (former finance ministers): he is being investigated for fraud, price-fixing, and embezzlement in connection with Bankia’s collapse and bailout. In 2011, Bankia announced €309 million profit; but after Rato resigned, Bankia's accounts were restated to a €3 billion loss. Rodrigo Rato was finance minister in the 90s, when Telefónica was a public company and he led its privatization. Iñaki Urdangarín (the King of Spain's son-in-law): his contract was renewed despite he had been called to appear in court over the misuse of public funds at a non-profit entity which he ran. According to the Spanish media, the contract with Telefonica was for €1.5 million/year. The contract renewal led to such a storm of criticism in Spain, that he had to quit. Eduardo Zaplana: as Labor Minister he signed, in 2003, a redundancy plan that affected 15,000 Telefónica workers. Afterwards, he got a job in the company. This vídeo shows more "revolving door cases in Telefónica". 

4.  BECAUSE TELEFÓNICA APPLIES LOCAL LAWS THAT VIOLATE THE INTERNATIONAL LABOR PRINCIPLES ESTABLISHED BY HE INTERNATIONAL LABOR ORGANIZATION (ILO) and which spain haS ratified: Telefónica applies to workers the Article 52d (introduced by the Spanish Law in 2010) which allows objective (low-cost) dismissals due to sick leaves. While this is applied to workers, top executives receive millonnaire severances  (€ 24,7 million: Julio Linares). At least 10 millionaire clauses would benefit Telefónica's top executives.

Clic on the logo below to sign our e-petition to demand Telefónica a model of business more fair and balanced:

Outsourcing and precariousness:

The complex network of "Telefónica and collaborating companies": "trash contracts where only half the hours are accounted for social security payments (consituing a fraud to the Social Security), overextended 11-hours working days 6 days a week, black lists and persecution of trade unionists". This the reality that outsourced workers have to face every day working in the Supply Chain of Telefónica, who, after repeted and constant advice, is clearly complicit of labor abuse in its Supply Chain. 

REVOLVING DOOR: "we work in conditions of "almost slavery" to enrich the corrupt  who steal the Spanish people." 

Direct and Indirect workers get together to denuncing the labor policy that the multinational company has been implementing during the last decades. They stopped considering each other's enemies to feel that only fighting together they could get enough strength to make the company review its way of doing business. 

"Hunger Strike in Telefónica". 

SOURCES: 

Annual Accounts 2012 published by Telefónica de España, 

La RSC en las memorias anuales de las empresas del Ibex35, from El Observatorio de RSC, 

Los Consejeros mejor pagados del Ibex35

SUGGESTED READINGS: 

La transparencia de Telefónica y el futuro, Javier Martín Cavanna en "Compromiso Empresarial"