Unions and their allies in the General Assembly have cleared a first hurdle for legislation setting new rules for how telephone call centers are staffed.


The legislation, which tries to halt job losses, was denounced by phone companies that as an attempt to micromanage their business.

The legislation would require telephone company employees to identify the city, state and country where they work when they call customers for repairs or services or when they are called.

If the employee is not in Connecticut, the customer can be transferred to a call center in the state when possible.

In addition, the state Department of Information Technology, when buying products or services, would be required to give preference to telecommunications companies with a high percentage of service calls directed to in-state call centers.