Imagine going to work to find out that you and 249 fellow union members need to accept $6.6 million in cost cuts and adjustments - and if you don't like that idea, then you are all fired, including the other 250 workers not in the union. As you contemplate that, think of this: You are one of the workers that produced the product that made the company a renewed success in the market place. Nice, huh?

This is what is happening up at Alcatel-Lucent's North Andover, Mass., facility. As you can also imagine, Communications Workers of America Vice President Ralph Maly blasted the company's proposed plan to close unless union-represented workers find and agree to accept the cuts.

"This demand is typical of the new Alcatel Lucent," Maly said. "The company says if 250 union-represented workers bear the brunt of $6.6 million in cuts, it might reconsider keeping the operation open. But Alcatel Lucent seems intent on shutting down its U.S. union-represented facilities and shifting more work overseas." That's a tall-order for a working person to burden - and people should know about- and speak up about- this issue.

Alcatel Lucent said it plans to shift work from North Andover, which employs a total of 500 employees, to Italy. Maly said that it was CWA and local unions at North Andover that made the product lines produced there a success. "Now, Alcatel Lucent is repaying union workers by threatening to take away their jobs and their livelihoods," he said.

Maly said CWA will continue to work to keep the facility open.

The CWA Local 1365 workers in North Andover produce network communications equipment to enable companies to transmit data over fiber optic networks. CWA and the local also were instrumental in building new demand for a long distance data transmission system, Lambda Xtreme, a product Lucent was unable to successfully market.

"This past quarter, we gave Lucent the best financials that it has received over the past four years, with costs coming in below all budget expectations," said Local 1365 President Gary Nilsson, adding, that Lucent's treatment of union workers at North Andover is a disgrace.