Bell Canada spy cams in tech trucks
p2pnet news view Freedom | P2P:- “Those who are nervous have something to be nervous about. Do you [sic] job and I am sure you have nothing to worry about. I love how union people get all up in arms about someone actually caring if they are safe or not, if they are working or not and trying to opitimize the business.”
So says ‘John’ in a Reader’s Write to the p2pnet story saying Bell Canada has taken to spying on its mobile techs.
“Do your job and you have nothing to worry about,” says John. “Slack off and you get what you deserve, GPS or not.”
“This is more about the camera`s in the vehicles,” says HEH at U in response. ”
“Guess we will find out soon enough. 
”
Indeed.
“Dear Purchasing Manager,” says Charles-CBC, China, in an email »»»
How are you? I am Charles from CBC-CHINA[url]
I got the information and your business email address from internet and know that your company is a leading Importer and Distributor, the purpose of my contact is to see if there are any opportunity to cooperate with you in future. We have good security camera, spy hidden camera with LCD dvr , outdoor products, trial camera. which I think maybe good for your business. are very hot for market! 
Pls see the detail belows.
Unreal. But it’s interesting to see p2pnet reaches China’s manufacturing and marketing sectors.
But that Bell Canada is indeed spying on its mobile techs is real enough.
In a May 4 letter to Paul Robert, Bell Canada director of labour relations, “It has come to the attention of the CEP that Bell has recently engaged in video surveillance of technicians,” p2pnet quotes Sean Howes, National Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada representative, going on »»»
The CEP understands that cameras were secretly installed in the technicians` vehicles and monitored their actions during their working hours.
These actions have been undertaken without any advance notice to the Union or to affected employees. Such a course of contact is morally repugnant. It is also a destructive of labour relations and employee morale.
The actions undertaken by Bell Canada are a violation of the Collective Agreement, contrary to established jurisprudence, and also a violation of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act.
The CEP is now demanding Bell Canada gives details of the extent of its spy operation, who the victims are, why the surveillance was undertaken, and how long it`s been going on for.
“The CEP is considering initiating a complaint with the Privacy Commissioner in connection with this matter, and a failure to respond will certainly encourage the CEP to do so,” says Howes.
Will this lead to industrial action?
Stay tuned.
spying on its mobile techs – Bell Canada: spying on employees, May 8, 2009
Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. It`s really easy! Subscribe to p2pnet.net | | rss feed: http://p2pnet.net/p2p.rss | | Mobile – http://p2pnet.net/index-wml.php
Net access blocked by government restrictions? Use Psiphon from the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto. Go here for details.
May 11th, 2009 at 9:47 am
Hey, thanks for quoting me! I apologise for the “you” instead of “your”. Good catch.
I still have not seen any ACTUAL evidence of cameras in the trucks. Just because the union accuses the company does not mean it is true. I would be disappointed in any company that secretely monitors their employees. I would not expect anything I do at work to be secret from my employer. If I want privacy, I go home and use my own resources. On the other hand, I DO expect my employer to advise me of the measures they are taking such as email filters, proxies, GPS, etc. With the installation of the GPS coming with specific instructions not to disconnect the unit, I would assume the technicians were fully aware of what was going on. IF the camera story is true, I will be very interested in the next steps. There are lots of employers that use cameras in vehicles, but then I would expect that the employees know about them too.
My skepticism with the union is that they like to create their own brand of propaganda and, in my opinion, p2pnet.net tends to have anti-Bell bias at every turn. Essentially, I would like to see people AND companies come forth with balanced, factual stories. The press, which I include this site in, like to sensationalise because that is what draws readership, but crying wolf too many times will turn me off. I went a long time ignoring stories that came from this site. Perhaps this is a turning point that will change my mind.
Thanks for the coverage on this even though it is slightly slanted.
May 11th, 2009 at 9:47 am
Cams have to get DRM, and spycams will be no exception
To turn them off, demonstrate them a protected video of some shitty hollywood movie.
May 11th, 2009 at 10:25 am
John, John, John. Not even a nice try.
May 11th, 2009 at 2:00 pm
“…in my opinion, p2pnet.net tends to have anti-Bell bias at every turn.”
Well, then, it’s a good thing when John comes around.
His constant, and automatic, but baseless defense of this company always helps reinforce why a wide-spread “anti-Bell bias” does exist in the first place.
___
“I love how union people get all up in arms about someone actually caring if they are safe or not, if they are working or not and trying to opitimize the business.”
This statement would seem to have come straight out of one of Dubya’s speeches.
I’m surprised the word “terrorist” wasn’t included somewhere in there as well.
This is always the spin we get from those promoting the use of surveillance all over the place.
Bell is a communications company. Their techs are all issued multiple resources to communicate problems. I sincerely doubt “concern for their safety” would be any primary motivation to install surveillance.
And, since when is an employee’s performance not directly reflected by its results??
If a company needs to watch and/or record an employee’s actions, then that’s a sad statement on the validity of their whole H/R process.
___
“I still have not seen any ACTUAL evidence of cameras in the trucks. Just because the union accuses the company does not mean it is true.”
What I’d like to know is, what position “John” has at Bell, that he would be talking as if he SHOULD see such evidence, should it be there.
Why would such a theory be the “automatic” response to this?
Just because we haven’t seen evidence to the contrary, doesn’t mean we’re going to assume the union is making this stuff up. That theory would seem to be less plausible. Why would a union launch such a propaganda campaign against a behemoth like Bell, based on some bare-faced lie?? The resulting repercussions alone would be costly.
___
“Essentially, I would like to see people AND companies come forth with balanced, factual stories.”
So would I.
Let’s start with John, since he made the statement…
One fact he repeatedly denied in Bell’s honour:
NO DNCL CHARGES TO DATE
http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/news/article/660834
- Average 20,000 complaints per month.
- Bell “disqualifies” virtually every one of them.
- CRTC yet to charge even 1 violator.
That one’s “all over the place” now.
What’s the point in rehashing that one?
One word: CREDIBILITY.
John wants us to qualify why Bell has none with many of us.
Bell just seems to excel in discrediting itself.
The above demonstrates how John does the same.
If Bell treats customers and the public that way, it’s not too much of a stretch to believe they’d spy on their workers. Such an act is just an extension of the “bean counter” mentality Bell has already effectively demonstrated on so many fronts.
May 11th, 2009 at 2:41 pm
@John,
All unions and all companies (and most all individuals) have an agenda. ”
John said: “p2pnet.net tends to have anti-Bell bias at every turn.”.
Well Bell puts out a lot of spin and atrocities at every turn.
They probably do a lot of good sometimes, like rent out their hockey arena to charities for free, organize charity events, pay for employee’s who want to play hockey (hockey isn’t a cheap sport), and other things. Yeah, I bet they do all sorts of community good stuff that’s good for a tax write off (except employ from the community and instead turn to India, not that the quality of either is any great, die to their training).
But, feel free to post us a good story. Maybe a good story on how they treat or lower cost for their customers for starters. Or how they fixed something they wronged at in the past?
Its not a matter of being anti-Bell. Bell is doing it all on their own. No twists, no slants.
As for the Camera thing, we will just have to wait on what the Union finds out after Bell deals with them on the issue, orif they file with the privacy commissioner, and they decide to put the finding, story online for us to see.
Its not like p2pnet wrote that Union paper addressed to Bell that they put online for all to see.
May 11th, 2009 at 2:47 pm
“p2pnet.net tends to have anti-Bell bias at every turn”
I don’t ‘tend’ to have an anti-Bell bias. It’s an absolute, and it’ll stay that way until the idiots who run the company figure out in this day and digital age, it’s not only really stupid to treat the people who keep it alive as having similarly limited intelligence(s), it’s also awesomely terrible business practice.
Cheers!
May 11th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
I think people should be installing these cheap china micro-camera’s in their bell place of work. IN their bosses picture frame. everywhere.
Play the same game.
How about having an ad from a china micro-cam shop here?
We too can install them places…
May 11th, 2009 at 11:37 pm
Guess John had nothing good to say about Bell either after the challenge give.
Surprise, surprise. not.