Verizon Reports Unusually High Number of Vandalism Cases Since Union Strike Began

Thousands of Verizon employees belonging to two workers’ unions went on strike last week amid a contract dispute.

Members of the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers from Connecticut, Delaware, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. united in the protests — around 39,000 people total.

Image source: KDKA-TV

Verizon has recently begun voicing some serious allegations amid several reports of vandalism that seem to be concentrated in the various states where the protests are taking place.

The wireless and cable company submitted photos to KDKA of fiber cables that they claimed had been cut — the sort of vandalism Verizon officials claim rarely happens.

“You can typically count on one hand the amount of times we see things like this vandalized,” Raymond McConville of Verzion told Pittsburgh’s KDKA-TV Friday, which marked day nine of the strike. “So, it is very odd that all the sudden, once this [strike] begins, we start to see this happening several times a day.”

Image source: KDKA-TV

A spokesman for CWA, one of the two unions conducting the protests, told KDKA that Verizon’s claims are simply a tactic the company has employed to incriminate outspoken workers.

“We would never condone our members to do anything in destroying the network, and we know our members don’t do that,” CWA District Vice President Ed Mooney said Friday. “In our opinion, this is another ploy by the company to put information out there to discredit the unions.”

According to KDKA, similar accusations of vandalism were made by the company when Verizon workers went on strike back in 2011.

It is uncertain how long the protests will continue. Striking workers have entered into their tenth day, with no negotiating sessions planned.

When the protests began last week, Verizon announced that it had trained non-union workers ready to fill in during the strike.

KDKA reported that 10 percent of striking workers are based in the Pittsburgh area.

The strike affects the company’s landline and Internet service, but not wireless.

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