RIMOUSKI, Que. – Telus Communications has reached a tentative agreement with its nearly 1,000 employees in Quebec, members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees.
Meetings will be held throughout the company’s territory in late August so members can hear details of the agreement and express their views. The union’s leadership will be recommending that members sign the deal, which would expire on Dec. 31, 2009.
Negotiations began in October 2005 and this agreement was reached in 29 days.
The new contract maintains the “bumping” procedure for technological change and abolishing positions. It also implements an on-call program to…
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TORONTO – XM Canada said this morning it plans to bump its rates up by $2 a month (matching rival Sirius Canada) while reporting solid growth through its third quarter, ended May 31st.
Canadian Satellite Radio, which operates as XM Canada, reports 80,000 subscribers since service launch, however, 64,000 are paid while 16,000 are OEM trial subscribers (mostly in-car listeners who are not paying monthly fees during various trial periods, thanks to the deals signed by XM where in order to have the receivers installed in Hondas, Toyotas and others, XM has promised the car companies which install their…
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VANCOUVER – Telus has expanded its wireless high speed service to Kamloops and Kelowna, B.C., the company announced Wednesday.
Clients can get mobile access to the Internet, e-mail and other multimedia applications "at broadband-like download speeds similar to desktop Internet access at home," says the Telus release.
However, with typical download speeds of approximately 400 to 700 kilobits per second, and maximum possible speeds of more than 2 megabits per second, the service really falls short of most at home broadband performance.
Telus wireless high speed is delivered via the company’s CDMA 1xEVDO standard, the newest 3G wireless data technology…
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CALGARY and TORONTO – Menkes Developments and Telus announced today they will build a 30-storey office tower in downtown Toronto.
"Telus is putting down deeper roots in Ontario," said Joseph Natale, president, Telus Business Solutions. "It is an important growth market for us and our decision to invest in a new building in the heart of downtown Toronto demonstrates our long-term commitment to Toronto and the province.
"The new Telus tower will be the most advanced technology-equipped facility in Canada, allowing us to showcase our leadership in innovation in a signature building that will become part of Toronto’s cityscape,"…
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VANCOUVER – In a move that will likely send more shivers through the traditional radio community, Telus and XM Canada today announced the exclusive availability of Telus Mobile Radio – powered by XM Canada.
It’s the first service to offer Canadians access to real-time streaming satellite radio programming, including music, comedy, talk and entertainment – all from their mobile phones.
"This is another fantastic ‘first’ for XM Canada. The launch today represents the first time that satellite radio will be distributed in partnership with a wireless provider in Canada," said Stephen Tapp, president and COO of XM Canada.
Operating…
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MONTREAL – Bell Canada announced Wednesday that Robert Odendaal, president of Bell Mobility and BDI (Bell Canada’s sales and distribution business), has decided to leave the company after three years to pursue other interests.
Odendaal was shifted over to Mobility from Bell Video/ExpressVu only in September of 2005 to help lead the wireless unit out from under a lingering storm of bad publicity and operational difficulties which stemmed from a billing system overhaul gone bad in 2004.
After not even a year in the role though, his departure could be seen as a bit of a surprise, but it…
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MONTREAL – The opening of a new Telus call centre will create at least 150 new jobs in the heart of Montreal by the end of June 2007, Telus announced Wednesday.
"The fact that a high-performing and thriving company like Telus chose to set up a call centre dedicated to businesses in the Montreal region shows once again that the province of Québec is a highly competitive place for companies that wish to expand their business," said Québec Minister of Economic Development, Innovation and Export, Raymond Bachand.
That’s not the only reason why Telus is setting up there. The Government…
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OTTAWA – Mayor Bob Chiarelli will join Telus executives Thursday as the telecom company turns the sod for its new Nation’s Capital home.
Slated for completion in 2007, this state-of-the-art "’green’ building will bring together some 300 Telus employees who are currently located in various buildings across the city," says the company.
With sleek lines and strong features, the Telus Building (at the corner of Bank and Slater Streets) "will showcase leading edge technology and is destined to become an Ottawa landmark," says the release.
It will provide approximately 105,000 square feet on eight floors, with two floors of…
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TORONTO – The little talent show that could is showing that it definitely can. Canadian Idol has signed on five sponsors for season four, the most so far.
Kraft is returning for a third year, while the show welcomes newcomers General Mills Whole Grain Cereals, Procter and Gamble, TD Canada Trust, and TELUS. All will have product integration with the series.
Canadian Idol enters its three-week “Top 22” stage next Monday, June 26 with back-to-back special live 90-minute performance episodes at 8 p.m. ET on June 26 and 27 on CTV.
TELUS has been named the official wireless sponsor….
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OTTAWA – As CRTC chair Charles Dalfen mentioned in his speech to the Canadian Telecom Summit on Wednesday, the Commission has put out a call for comments to figure out whether or not wireless service should be factored into the local phone deregulation calculation.
When the CRTC set out its rules surrounding the deregulation of local telephone service, it did not include the so-called "wireless substitution" phenomena in the framework. Wireless substitution happens when a telephony customer abandons a wired line altogether in favour of wireless only, something Industry Minister Maxime Bernier says he has done already.
Telus CEO…
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