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Democrats want T-Mobile to promise not to lay-off workers
Dozens of House Democrats urged the Federal Communications Commission on Monday to force T-Mobile to accept job-protection conditions as part of its purchase of MetroPCS.
In a letter to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, the 62 Democrats said they will not support "another consolidation of two companies that leads to the reduction of American jobs."
They expressed concern over the fact that T-Mobile and MetroPCS have said they expect to achieve $6-7 billion in post-merger "efficiencies" and "transaction-specific savings."
They noted that both MetroPCS and T-Mobile have closed customer call centers and shipped them overseas in recent years.
They said the FCC, which is currently reviewing the deal, should force T-Mobile to commit to "preserving U.S. jobs" to receive approval.
The letter was signed by Democrats including Reps. Ed Markey (Mass.), Jan Schakowsky (Ill.), John Conyers (Mich.) and Elijah Cummings (Md.). The Communications Workers of America, the industry's largest union, also supported the letter.
The merger between T-Mobile, the smallest of the four nationwide carriers, and MetroPCS, which specializes in pre-paid services, has generated little opposition from consumer advocates.
The deal would strengthen T-Mobile's position as it struggles to compete with industry giants AT&T and Verizon.
“The combination of T-Mobile USA and MetroPCS will create a stronger company with the goal of emerging as the country's leading value carrier, providing much needed competition against the larger established players in the wireless business," Timothy O'Regan, a T-Mobile spokesman, said in a statement.
He argued that the evidence before the FCC "clearly demonstrates" that the deal is in the public's interest.
"Importantly, no one opposed our transaction at the FCC on any grounds, and the Commission should move expeditiously to approve our merger,” he said.
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