Beginning in late 2008, Verizon New England, Inc. (VNE) began requiring its field technicians to carry company-issued cell phones, containing a global positioning system (GPS) during work. Prior to adopting this policy, VNE issued its technicians pagers so that their supervisors could communicate with them. The technician would then have to locate a phone to return the call. Obviously, in emergency situations, this was a less than optimum arrangement. As a result, VNE, relying on the management rights provision in the collective bargaining agreement between it and the technicians unit, adopted the disputed policy.Continue Reading First Circuit Dismisses Verizon Union Employees’ Privacy Claims Based On Federal Labor Law Pre-Emption