Vermont Business Magazine Coming on the heels of several dropped 911 calls last week, the Department of Public Service announced Monday that it has filed a petition with the Public Service Board requesting that the Board open an investigation into the adequacy of FairPoint’s Service Quality. Over the past several months the Department had twice advised FairPoint by letter that if the complaints regarding service quality did not decrease significantly by the end of November, a request for an investigation would be requested. The PSD advocates on behalf of the public before the Public Service Board, which is the regulator. FairPoint has been mired in a strike involving about 1,700 unionized workers in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine since October 17, with no end in sight.
"The number of complaints we have received regarding FairPoint service outages and length of time for repair has remained unacceptably high for too many months, and spiked precipitously in the last two months,” said Christopher Recchia, Commissioner of the Department. “Last Friday's network outage, which resulted in Vermonters’ inability to reach 911 for a period of 5 1/2 hours, endangered public safety and welfare. I believe the FairPoint systems in place and the company’s response was inadequate for E-911 in Vermont to properly do its job during and immediately after this outage,” Recchia added.
While the Department retains the right to seek penalties, the primary purpose of this investigation will be to determine the root cause and proposed solution for FairPoint’s service outages and delays in repair.
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Meanwhile, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) applauded the VPSD request for an investigation.
A FairPoint equipment failure prevented 45 Vermonters from reaching emergency dispatchers at the Montpelier Police Department and the Vermont State Police in Williston, St Albans and Middlesex. “That is simply unacceptable,” Sanders said. “FairPoint’s history of bankruptcy and poor service should be cause for real concern in terms of the company’s ability to deliver the emergency services Vermonters need, deserve and are paying for.”
Altogether, some 400 Vermonters have made formal complaints to the Public Service Department since September 4 regarding poor service.
“FairPoint is clearly putting the interests of the multi-billion-dollar hedge funds, which own the company, ahead of its workers and ahead of its Vermont customers. The company’s plan to freeze pensions, eliminate future retiree health benefits, force workers to pay hundreds of dollars more a month for health care and outsource jobs will only result in worse customer service,” Sanders said.
Sanders urged the company to return to the bargaining table.
“The best way for FairPoint to improve its customer service right now is to agree to a contract that is fair to the workers so they can return to their jobs and provide quality service for Vermonters,” he said.
Source: Vermont PSD, Sanders office. 12.1.2014