Optus CEO under union fire for attacking workers

The Optus CEO has been criticised for threatening that staff would be sacked if customers were unhappy.

The union representing Optus workers said CEO Allen Lew’s threat is completely out of line and a sign of how out of touch he is with the real issues impacting the telco.

CEPU Communications Union National President Shane Murphy said the comments were absurd and concerning.

“To threaten the workers who are simply trying to do their jobs is outrageous,” Murphy said.

“These workers are on the frontline, dealing every day with customers irate over their billing issues and the chronic underinvestment in the Optus network.

“Optus workers are just as frustrated as customers are with how the telco is currently being run.

“Perhaps if Allen Lew focused more on ensuring Optus is actually delivering the service customers are paying for rather than sacking chunks of the workforce every few months, the telco might be doing a little better.

“If it weren’t so serious, it would be laughable. How Allen Lew can think it’s acceptable to beam his face onto screens across the country and threaten workers like this beggars belief.

“Optus workers are just trying to do their jobs under very difficult circumstances. Of course customers are unhappy — they’re unhappy because rather than improving Optus services, management at the telco is more focused on axing jobs and threatening staff.”

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Tyler Olson

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