Oct. 3, 2002 – As unionized Innovative Telephone and Innovative Cable TV workers returned to picket lines across three islands for the second day on Thursday and the phone company reported incidents of vandalism on St. Croix, the territory's top labor official stepped into the fray.
In a letter to Samuel Ebbesen, president of Innovative Telephone, and Frederick Joseph, sub-district director of the United Steelworkers of America, Labor Commissioner Cecil Benjamin conveyed to the two men "a formal request to attend an informal meeting" with him on Friday morning to discuss the strike.
Calling the job action a "crisis in our community," he set the meeting for 10 a.m. in the Public Employees Relations Board conference room at Nisky Mall on St. Thomas.
Benjamin, who headed the St. Croix teachers union for years before being appointed to his present position, said the meeting is "for the Department of Labor to engage in a fact-finding mission to ascertain if the parties can return to the bargaining table in an effort to resolve the current dispute expeditiously and peacefully."
And in case either side might be inclined pass up the opportunity, Benjamin quoted from the V.I. Code: "In the event of a strike or work stoppage of any kind, the commissioner [of Labor] or his representative may intervene, using such means as may be necessary, in his discretion to resolve said dispute."
With about 310 workers on strike, picketing throughout the territory was reported to be peaceful both Wednesday and Thursday. But on Thursday afternoon Innovative Telephone put out a release stating that phone cables had been cut at two locations on St. Croix and that there had been an attempt to set fire to a "cross box" that feeds the Frederiksted area.
In the release, Ebbesen said "these outrageous acts of vandalism and destructive criminal behavior" disrupted phone service to 108 customers in the Betty Jewel area and 48 others in the Sprat Hall area, but that the company hoped to have service back by late afternoon.
On Thursday morning, Steelworkers international negotiator Randolph Allen said the union had received a letter from Innovative's chief negotiator, Jeffrey Fraser, calling for a return to the bargaining table — but with unacceptable strings attached. The union membership rejected Innovative's final contract offer on Tuesday. The company is offering to go back to the table, but with the same offer, he said, adding that the union is willing to resume talks, but not to rehash the same issues.
For a further report, see "Phone/cable TV strike moves into second day".
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