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Issue: 009 CPU: Working in the Computer Industry 04/12/94 CPU is a moderated forum dedicated to sharing information among workers in the computer industry.

CONTENTS ABOUT BOX

/*COMMENTS*/

MAILBOX

FIRST PERSON: WORK AT IBM

BILLBOARD: A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR

TOOLBOX:

CALENDAR & CALLS FOR PAPERS: PDC'94

LABOR BYTES: MISCELLANEA

EOF



1. ABOUT BOX Online subscriptions to CPU are available at no cost by e-mailing listserv @ cpsr.org , with a single line in the message:

SUBSCRIBE CPSR-CPU

For example:

SUBSCRIBE CPSR-CPU Jean-Bertrand Aristide

CPU back issues can be found via anonymous FTP at either cpsr.org in /cpsr/work or etext.archive.umich.edu in /pub/CPSR/work. Hard copy subscriptions are available for $30 per year.

The moderators may be contacted by voice at (510) 601-6740, by email to stack@starnine.com, or by U.S. mail at:

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PLEASE RE-POST THIS FREELY, especially at work. CPU material may be reprinted for non-profit purposes as long as the source is cited. We welcome submissions and commentary. Mail sent to the editors or to CPU will be treated as a "letter to the editor" and considered printable, unless noted otherwise.

CPU is a project of the "Working in the Computer Industry" working group of Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility / berkeley Chapter.

Editors for this issue: Michael Stack and Jim Davis. We may be contacted by voice at (510) 601-6740, by email to stack@starnine.com, or by USPS at PO Box 3181, Oakland, CA 94609.

CPU is a project of the "Working in the Computer Industry" working group of Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility / Berkeley Chapter (though views expressed herein are not necessarily those of CPSR... and while we're at it, neither may they be those of our employers).

2. /*COMMENTS*/ This issue marks one year of publication for CPU, At last look, our subscriber count was almost 2000. We managed to get out, with many of our readers' help, 8 issues and about 350K of information. Not a bad start.

If you haven't yet signed the Clipper petition, get your signature on. At last count, over 45,000 people have signed CPSR's letter to President Clinton opposing the Clipper chip. To sign onto the letter, send a message to:

Clipper.petition @ cpsr.org

with the message, "I oppose Clipper" (no quotes). You will receive a return message confirming your vote. For more information about Clipper, consult the CPSR Internet Library - FTP/WAIS/Gopher CPSR.ORG /cpsr/privacy/crypto/clipper.

This issue continues the discussion started two issues back on forms of organization for high tech workers. This is an extremeley important discussion, and we would like to hear from more of you.

We also would especially like to hear from students who are hoping to enter the job market after graduation. What are the recruitment prospects like this year? What is the sentiment on campus re: jobs, etc.?

As always, send in your stories, on-the-job observations, scuttlebutt, news items of interest, etc.

jd

3. MAILBOX: MORE ON "VOLUNTARY SEVERANCE" RE: "'Voluntary Severance' at HP Labs" featured in CPU_007 and the comments on the article in CPU_008.

>I would like to offer a perspective on business's
>(mis)treatment of software engineers and probe some of the
>factors underlying the problem.
>
>First is a sense of disappointment in the lack of creativity in
>the ideas put forth to address the issue. Clearly some of our
>brightest and most industrious people are engaged in this
>profession. Hence the United States current position of world
>leadership in software development. The suggestion of
>unionization, a 19th century solution, cannot seriously be
>considered a part of the solution. In fact any solution
>incorporating monolithic, industry wide performance
>specifications would only lead to the decline of this discipline.
>
>Second is a boomer generation phenomena which seeks to find
>blame rather than take responsibility. Choice is the essence of
>life. Computer engineering professionals are not indentured
>servants. The facts are that business is changing more rapidly
>than at any time in history. Computer engineering is only one of
>the disciplines caught up in this cyclone of change. Surviving in
>this climate requires a high degree of flexibility and
>experimentation. The suggestions which make best sense encourage
>free association and continuous skill development. We are not
>talking about plumbing, a very honorable craft, but a highly
>skilled professional discipline.
>
>My last point relates to the barriers that exist between computer
>systems engineering and business management professionals. Few
>companies exist where computer systems engineering exists as
>a means to an end. In the examples cited computer systems
>engineering would not be considered the core competency
>as it would be for a consulting firm. So from a management
>perspective computer systems engineering is a support activity
>that has no direct contribution to the bottom line, little
>strategic value and can be sourced from a variety of suppliers
>on a 'just in time' basis. This suggests that the computer
>systems engineering discipline must evolve and embrace business
>disciplines in order to thrive.
>
>Management will adapt to whatever model best helps achieve
>their business objectives. Today we have two models, full time
>employment and consultants. Neither is perfect but presently it
>is all we have. Build a better mouse trap and business will beat
>a path to your door. If we are seeking models, we need to look at
>what will be required in the 21st century not to what worked a
>hundred years ago. The medical and legal professions may
>provide a more relevant model for developing business
>consortia which leverage professional skills in the market
>place.
>
>
> John O'Connor
> The Faxon Company
> oconnor@faxon.com

[One of the issues we have been trying to deal with in CPU is that of a rapidly changing computer industry, and how people who work in it can survive. The possibility of lifetime employment, or steady work, which seemed so obvious ten years ago, maybe even five years ago, is not at all obvious today, as readers of CPU's Labor Bytes section must be aware. The cost of this transformation is born unequally -- some get quite rich off of it, some merely tread water, and the majority are sinking (see, e.g., _Business Week_, 11/18/91). So how do we defend our interests, and at the same time recognize that as people who sell our skills, or rent our brains out to a software or hardware company, our interests do not necessarily coincide with the ones renting or buying us?

Unions have been one historical solution. Using the only real weapon available, the threat of withholding labor, unions have been able to win health and safety standards, overtime, pension plans, job-sharing and equitable work distribution, etc. One might argue that in a time when labor demand exceeds the labor supply, unions, or some other form of self-defense, is unnecessary. But one issue that workers in high tech industries will need to assess is whether or not the global labor pool of high tech skills is beginning to exceed the current worldwide demand for it. As the high tech labor pool expands, as low wage, high-skill countries like India, China, the former Soviet Union, Ireland, Mexico etc, come online, are all computer workers assured of a job?

The question before us isn't "are unions good?" but "what do we need?" i.e., what can we take from our historical predecessors, and what can we add of our own? - jd]

4. FIRST PERSON: WORK AT IBM [Mike Lepore edits and writes a thoughtful online journal called ORGANIZED THOUGHTS, "dedicated to the organization of the working class to establish industrial democracy". Recently he wrote to his list of subscribers explaining why the latest issue of OT was behind schedule (To subscribe to OT, write Mike at his address below) -- Ed.]

I work as a design engineer in the IBM plant at Poughkeepsie, New York. We have a group of 800 electrical designers whose job is most accurately described as: we work on projects which get cancelled. The company tells us to develop this or that particular type of logic or memory chip, then we go off for a year or two, designing it, having our prototypes fabricated and tested, improving the performance of the circuits.... and then the company announces that they have decided not to market the machine which they had originally told us to develop, and then we throw all of our work into the garbage can, and begin the cycle all over again. Same thing year after year. Well, a couple weeks ago, the boss called the 800 of us into an auditorium, and informed us of a couple things: First of all, he said, take all the chip designs we have been working on for the past year and throw them into the garbage can (so what else is new), and, secondly, that the company is going to try out an unusual new policy. This time, the company wants to decide what kind of machine they choose to market _BEFORE_ having the workers go off and develop it. As a result of this unprecedented new policy, most of us will be laid off within the next few weeks, and just a couple dozen designers will be kept on to complete that one particular project which is intended to be completed and marketed.

The corporation is treating each department like an independent company for purposes of hiring and firing. A few of us may find ways to save our jobs, but that will require each individual to call each department manager in the company, apply for work there, and schedule interviews. It's kind of hopeless, since they have already decided to lay off more than ninety percent of the local circuit designers, but we have no choice but to go through these motions for the next couple weeks, basically working night and day on that effort.

By the way, assuming that I'll be laid off within the next couple weeks, here is a description of the fabulous, generous "Buy-Out Package" I'll be getting. This will be my reward for working for one company for 17 and a half years: (1) As a severence pay, I get a single check of about $10,000***; (2) I lose my entire retirement pension.

That's great, huh? It's so good to know that I have to start all over again, and that I can never retire unless I work an additional 30 years for another company. Of course, if I'm trying to do that and then I keep getting laid off again, I'll just have to keep starting over. The usual policy in the industry is - no retirement with a pension unless the worker stays with a single employer for 30 consecutive years. Otherwise, you have to work right up until you die.

(This is the fabulous system of which the 'Libertarian' kooks say, "All working conditions are completely voluntary, because the workers always have the right to quit their jobs.")

Oh, I almost forgot the funniest part. That measly check they'll pay out - the severence pay - in order to get it, each of us will be forced to sign a paper which says something along the general lines of, "In the event that I'm being fired out of discrimination or harassment, I hereby waive my legal right to sue." If you don't sign it, your severence pay will be zero.

It's a tough decision for me to sign that paper, because age discrimination is definitely part of the motivation behind the layoffs. Everyone knows that business is cyclical, and, while IBM is laying off now, the company will at some point be hiring again. Most of the new hires will be much younger than the employees who have been fired. So the company is effectively firing hundreds of 50-year-olds and replacing then with hundreds of 25-year-olds, who will receive lower salaries. In addition, these younger workers are further away from retirement, so the stockholders get to keep all the money that was already deducted from the wages of the laid off workers, which would have gone to their pensions had they been able to complete thirty years of service. See, I told you this was a funny story.

But a lawyer-friend has shown me how the law for New York is written - as long as the company can simply show documentation that they have decided to shrink the business, then they can fire anyone at any time without giving a specific reason for selecting certain individuals. Some states aren't like that, but I had to go and be born and raised in New York. So I guess it's all my parents' fault :-)

Mike Lepore
mlepore@mcimail.com
February 26, 1994

FOOTNOTE:
*** Correspondents have since complained that I had neglected to consider vested rights. More precisely, I'll be able to start collecting vested rights, about $6,600 per year (before taxes), starting in the year 2009. The company reserves the right to reduce this annual amount, at any time, for any reason.

5. CPU BILLBOARD: A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR [CPU started out and continues as a CPSR project. We encourage readers to join. -Ed.]

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COMPUTER PROFESSIONALS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
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The mission of CPSR is to provide the public and policymakers with realistic assessments of the power, promise, and problems of information technology. As concerned citizens, CPSR members work to direct public attention to critical choices concerning the applications of information technology and how those choices affect society. Founded in 1981 by a group of computer scientists concerned about the use of computers in nuclear weapons systems, CPSR has grown into a national public-interest alliance of information technology professionals and other people. Currently, CPSR has 22 chapters in the U.S. and affiliations with similar groups worldwide. In addition to our National Office in Palo Alto, California, we maintain an office in Washington, D.C.

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As a member of CPSR, you are joining a nationwide network of concerned people who are committed to bringing a public interest perspective to all aspects of information technology. CPSR's work covers a wide variety of issues including the proposed National Information Infrastructure, privacy and freedom of information, the demilitarization of national technology policy, cryptography, participatory design approaches to system development, and more. CPSR has a reputation for being on the forefront of issues pertaining to the impact of information technology on society, taking action to implement positive examples of the use of information technology such as local community networks as well as participating in regional and national policy discussions.

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A quarterly newsletter containing in-depth analysis of major issues as well as updates on CPSR activities and action alerts.

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Make check out to CPSR and mail to: CPSR P.O. Box 717 Palo Alto, CA 94301 6. TOOLBOX: INFOSYS is an electronic newsletter for faculty, students, and practitioners in the field of Information Systems. INFOSYS publishes news items, requests for assistance, announcements of professional meetings and conferences, position notices, a calendar of upcoming events, comments on recent publications, abstracts of papers that authors are willing to share, and other items of interest to the Information Systems community. INFOSYS is published biweekly, more frequently if volume requires it. The editor is Dennis W. Viehland (d.viehland@massey.ac.nz).

To subscribe to INFOSYS send the following one-line e-mail message to listserv@american.edu:

subscribe infosys

(e.g., subscribe infosys john smith).

You will receive a welcome letter that will tell you more about INFOSYS and listserv.

THE SOFTWARE PRACTITIONER is a hardcopy newsletter billing itself as "The journal by and for software professionals". _SP_ has software book and conference reviews (including a section "Books We Decided NOT to Review"), articles by "professionals" and "academics" on "Management Science", Software Maintenance and Accounting. An article on "Lying to Management", responses and a summary occupied one of the issues sent to CPU. A sample copy may be obtained by sending $5 dollars to Computing Trends, PO Box 213, State College, PA 16804.

7. CALENDAR & CALLS FOR PAPERS: PDC'94 Third Biennial Conference on Participatory Design Chapel Hill, North Carolina October 27-28, 1994 Sponsored by Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility

CALL FOR PARTICIPATION

In the last few years, participatory approaches to design have gained adherents around the world. Participatory design approaches have at their core the involvement of workers in the design and development of new technologies and work practices that have the potential of improving their work lives. Collaborative design projects combine the skills and knowledge of workers who will use or are using the technology, with the technological and organizational expertise of those involved in its development.

The first Participatory Design conference explored the historical roots of this way of working, by bringing European practitioners together with American researchers and industry developers. By the second conference, PDC'92, participatory approaches to design had taken root in the US, not only in research environments, but also at several commercial firms. The goal at that time was to take a further step towards defining and nurturing participatory design.

In PDC `94, we would like both to consider our ways of working and to foster a substantial dialog among practitioners. The conference is an international forum where this emerging community can meet, exchange ideas and experiences, and investigate the incorporation of participatory design approaches in new areas such as: product development, long-term system maintenance and redesign, and settings in the developing world.

We encourage the participation of all those interested in learning about participatory design and in trying it in their own settings, as well as those currently employing participatory approaches to design (possibly under other names).

We welcome paper submissions, proposals for panels and workshops, and submissions for our "artifacts" room. Wherever possible, we urge you to draw on your own experience from concrete situations.

Topics include, but are not limited to:

Experiences and lessons learned from projects incorporating participatory design approaches;

Continuing participation of users in the post-prototyping "down stream" work of product development, assessment, installation and maintenance;

The ethics of participation, e.g. obligations to management versus workers, and designers' responsibility for what happens "down stream";

The politics of participatory design, e.g. identifying "stakeholders" over the course of a project;

Relations of participatory design approaches to the labor movement, e.g. to labor unions' own technology development and analysis efforts;

Frameworks for understanding and analyzing participatory design, and models for its incorporation in system development practice;

The theoretical roots of participatory approaches to design, e.g. connections to Action Research.



SUBMISSIONS AND INFO REQUESTS

Paper submissions Send requests for information to: trigg@parc.xerox.com or anderson.henr801c@xerox.com

Panel submissions Send requests for information to: clement@flis.utoronto.ca

Workshop submissions Send submissions and requests for information to: kensing@dat.ruc.dk

Artifacts submissions (including posters and demonstrations) Send submissions and requests for information to: michael@advtech.uswest.com

IMPORTANT DATES (in 1994)

April 15: Paper, panel and workshop submissions received
June 7: Acceptance notifications to authors
July 15: Artifacts proposals received
August 1: Final versions of papers/panels/workshops received
for proceedings
August 15 Acceptance notifications to artifact presenters
8. LABOR BYTES: MISCELLANEA Greg Dunkel writes:

I caught this in _Liberation_ (p.11 2/18/94):

IBM France, along with the standard gamut of attacks on its employees -- early retirement, working from home over telecommunication lines, cuts in hours and buyouts -- has come up with an unusual plan. The standard bonus that it gives, about a months pay which averages 21,000 ff (about $4,000 US), is going to be adjusted depending on sales.

While the bonus is only paid once a year, the results will be posted on your pay packet once a month (the normal pay period in France). The sales target, and the profit target will be calculated and set by the executives of IBM/France.

The unions involved are very upset -- "distrustful" and "outspoken" are the words the reporter (Nicole Penicaut) used. According to her, the employees of IBM were so upset that they **HAD A DEMONSTRATION.** [600 employees held up traffic for hours, according to _Resistor: IBM Workers United_ #41 2/94, PO Box 634 Johnson City, NY, NY 13790 -- Ed.]

Only one of the unions involved has signed off on the company's proposal but the others admit that they are unlikely to be able to stop its adoption. Very many other companies are extremely interested in this kind of "salary flexibility."

In this country, we have seen flexible hours and flexible employment become the norm in many areas of computing; perhaps we will see "flexible" pay become more and more common. Of course, we all realize that "flexibility in pay" won't involve changes in our expenses -- the landlord or the bank are still going to want their full payments.

Our European correspondent reports:

BULL: Even more "restructuring" at Bull. In CPU.007 we wrote about a 2,500 job loss in 1993 and 1,500 for 1994. The new re- organization effort will cut 6,500 jobs over the rest of 1994 and 1995.

OLIVETTI: The Italian company will lay-off 1,932 people of its 37,000 work force. That is part of the restructuring program, which also includes part-time jobs replacing full-time jobs and a decrease in salaries. Five years ago Olivetti employed 55,000 people. The unions agreed to the plan.

SIEMENS: SIEMENS will lay-off more then 10,000 people in 1994. In 1993 13,000 jobs vanished. Further cutting of costs are planned. SIEMENS-NIXDORF, Austria will let go 30 of its 790.

DEC: DEC Europe will reduce its work force over the next 12 to 18 months by 5,000 to 6,000 people [Also reported in _NYT_ 3/8/94 - Ed.].

AT&T: The American telecom giant is planning to lighten its workforce by 15,000 over the next two years. Only a few of these will be from the 53,000 AT&T workers outside the US, said US- speaker Jim Byrnes.

UNISYS Austria: 3% higher turnover and 22% less personal in 1993.

European Managers: though expecting recovery of the economic situation, European managers are still cutting personnel costs. More then 40% are thinking of letting people go, only 12% are thinking on creating new jobs. Even worse is the situation in Germany and the Netherlands, where 60% resp. 57% of the managers are expecting further lay-offs. IBM Germany alone will cut 6,000 jobs in 1994.

Electronic Banking: electronic banking will help German banks to cut up to 50,000 jobs in the next years. You do the work and they lose their jobs.

(These items from engagierte Computer ExpertInnen Austria, Postfach 168, A-1015 Vienna) ------------------------------------------------------------------ MISCELLANEA: CIGARETTES DON'T CAUSE CANCER: A jury in Houston has found that COMPAQ COMPUTER did not know its computers could cause wrist injuries and was not obligated to warn users. "There is no scientific or medical evidence to show that a keyboard causes carpal tunnel syndrome," said Compaq's attorney (_WSJ_ 2/22/94) Many gay employees do not participate in domestic-partner programs because they are afraid that by declaring their sexual orientation at work, they may jeopardize their careers. Only 20 of LOTUS's 3,200 U.S. workers are currently signed up for domestic-partner benefits. At VIACOM, only 18 out of 5,000 U.S. employees have signed on, and at MCA, it's 15 out of 15,000 employees (_WSJ_ 3/18/94)

INTERMEDIA's project to develop a CD-ROM version of Lovejoy's College Guide enhanced by video clips of the various colleges was accomplished for less than $70K and in just 6 months by hiring 4 full-time programmers in Bombay, India, who worked for $1000 a month each (_Forbes_ 4/11/94)

Meanwhile, back home, we find out that last march, the compensation committee at IBM awarded John Akers a $3 million-plus severance in addition to the annual pension of $1.2 million as well as $1 million dollars worth of stock options. I bet he's pissed off though; new CEO Gerstner is to get at least $6 million severance should he "someday get forced out" (_WSJ_ 3/10/94)

Interesting article on the front page of the NYT (3/18/94): "Prompted largely by fears that Federal juries will grant large monetary awards in bias cases, more and more companies are requiring their employees to submit claims of discrimination, including sexual harassment, to binding arbitration... Some companies are unilaterally imposing the restriction on their nonunion employees, while others are insisting that job applicants forfeit their right to sue as a condition of employment. Still other companies are making such an agreement a condition for promotion, stock options or other benefits." The article goes on to describe arbitration cases (guess which way the rulings went) and that civil rights lawyers describe it as companies "opting out of the law"

Finally, remember the "Justice for Janitors" campaigns reported in past CPUs? Their innovative tactics at APPLE and ORACLE earned a favorable write-up on the front page of the _WSJ_ reporting the success the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has had up and down the country gaining benefits, higher- raises and union representation for janitors. "Guillermo Barroso, a 37-year-old janitor who cleans buildings at Hewlett-Packard Co., says that in the 15 months he has worked for a union contractor, his hourly wage has jumped to $6.50 from $5.50; he also now gets medical and dental benefits..."

LAYOFFS: BORLAND laid off about 10% of its work force mostly at the expense of sales, customer support and administration letting go 200 of its 1,350 U.S. workers. The company said it will lay off an unspecified number of its 700 overseas workers soon (_WSJ_ 4/1/94)... SOFTWARE PUBLISHING, the makers of Harvard Graphics, is to layoff half of its 480 employees over the next 90 days. Chairman Fred Gibbons bemoaned the rise of two forces in software: sharply lower prices and the practice of bundling different programs together as a single "suite." (_WSJ_ 4/7/94)... EO, the personal communicator subsidiary of AT&T Co., has quietly laid off 100 of its 200 employees (_SFC_ 3/10/94)... In the past 16 months American phone companies have announced plans to eliminate 85,100 jobs by shedding management layers and adopting computerized network technology. Workers skilled in running pre-digital telephone technology are having trouble finding equivalent jobs, even though the overall telecommunications industry is rapidly growing. (_NYT_ 2/15/94, reported in EDUPAGE)...Ameritech, the midwest regional Bell operating company, will cut 6,000 nonmanagement jobs (12.5 %) from its payroll "to make Ameritech more efficient and customer-responsive." (_NYT_ 3/26/94, reported in EDUPAGE 3/27/94)... A 3rd-Party Mac Developer Newsletter had a column ("On The Lighter Side") describing a new Macintosh system software suite, the "Layoff Manager."

(Thanks to Jeff Johnson for miscellany. EDUPAGE is a summary of news items on information technology sent several times a week, To subscribe to this free service, send e-mail to:

listproc@educom.edu.

In the body of the message type:

sub edupage

9. EOF [No, the following newsletter is NOT one of the recent net flood of April fool jokes announcing legislation against drunk-driving on the InfoBahn and Apple's new Newton (paper) note-pad. This newsletter exists...I didn't see any articles on cancer or what to do when a fellow employee suddenly appears in the doorway dressed in khaki's sporting heavy-metal -- Ed]

ON LINE JOB STRESS NEWSLETTER

"For high performance people under pressure to produce."

Topics Covered Include:

Advice to the Jobworn Article: "Invasion of the Intruders"

How to handle interruptions plus many other helpful tips on handling job stress and conflict at work.



Managing Job Stress


Article: "Too Much To Do, Too Little Time"



Settling Jobwars - Conflict Resolution


Article: "Battle of The Gender Gap" * Surviving Reorganization and Downsizing Article: "How to Survive Rightsizing and Downsizing without Capsizing" * Stress and Health Article: "Eating the Blues Away" Why people nurture themselves with food when they are under stress.





Newsletter authors Mary H. Dempcy, MSW and Rene Tihista, MSW, are internationally known experts on job stress since 1977. They are authors of STRESS PERSONALITIES, A LOOK INSIDE OUR SELVES, published by Focal Point Press. To bring your company on line with the Stress Personalities Job Stress Newsletter: E-Mail Focal Point at wk03255@worldlink.com, for ONE FREE COPY of the On Line Job Stress Newsletter or telephone voice\fax (415) 868.1158, or leave your phone number and a Focal Point representative will contact you. CPSR is a nationwide public-interest organization that examines the impact of technology on society. CPSR

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