Big Blue getting smaller

COMMUNICATIONS WORKERS UNION ALLIANCE is reporting that IBM has quietly told 2,686 workers that they will be collecting their P45s in the near future.

The job cuts – 1,419 of which are from the Software Group, with the remaining 1,449 made up of sales and distribution staff – have been reported to a site set up to protect workers.

Rumours that up to 16,000 IBM workers could be left out in the cold have been doing the rounds for some time now but this is the first time any concrete evidence has been found to support the speculation.

The figures are reportedly based on postings from IBM employees who have already received termination notices.

The union is calling on IBM to halt job cuts and to stop offshoring US workers' jobs by suspending its stock buy-back programme which has cost the company $26 billion since it began in 2007.

Alliance is also calling for transparency on company policy as regards redundancies and is demanding that management divulge the exact number of job cuts, which departments the cuts are being made in, and whether any positions which are made redundent will be moved offshore.

The union is also pushing for a policy whereby management positions within departments which have been axed will also be removed, and that fatcat bonuses and perks should be slashed.

According to the organisation's mission statement, Alliance CWA Local 1701 is, "an IBM employee organisation that is dedicated to preserving and improving our rights and benefits at IBM. We also strive towards restoring management's respect for the individual and the value we bring to the company as employees. Our mission is to make our voice heard with IBM management, shareholders, government and the media. While our ultimate goal is collective bargaining rights with IBM, we will build our union now and challenge IBM on the many issues facing employees from off-shoring and job security to working conditions and company policy." µ