Workers at Aliant, our local [sic] telephone company, have been on strike since April 23. That’s 107 days. Everything I’ve read about the effects of the strike suggests that that managers/scabs who are attempting to keep the company operating are completely consumed with the everyday. In other words, Aliant is either standing still or moving backwards in terms of keeping up with the pace of telecommunications technology.

For example, back in December we had a meeting with Aliant Mobility here in the office. One of the things that came up was the possible availibility of the Treo 600, and we were assured that we would see this available “first quarter 2004.” First quarter has come and gone, and presumably any work on qualifying the Treo 600 for Aliant’s network ground to a halt on April 23.

Look at this sort of thing spread over all of the technologies Aliant deals with, add in the relative technology eternity of 107 days of not paying any attention, and I start to wonder whether the company is digging itself into a hole from which it might never emerge.

If this strike goes on much longer, Aliant is going to be fixing Model T’s while the rest of us are busy driving jet cars. Provided by someone else.

This is a problem for Aliant. But it’s also a problem for us. Like it or not, Aliant has its tentacles deeply embedded in almost every facet of life here in Atlantic Canada. When Aliant falls behind, we all fall behind.