NYSEG sees a ghost from the past

A NYSEG former human resource manager who has alleged that NYSEG waged a war against the customer has been granted "active party status" in discussions Energy East is having with the regulators to solve the stalemate that has developed with the PSC on approval of the Iberdrola merger.

This comes against the vigorous objections of Energy East.

Corbett claims officials at New York State Electric & Gas Corp. and its parent, Energy East, called an initiative to drive down employee wages and benefits “operation rape and pillage,” and said they wanted to avoid sharing any excess earnings with customers.

NYSEG has labeled the allegations as “baseless and without merit.”

The charges were contained in a four-page statement submitted to the Public Service Commission in 2006 by Corbett, who was NYSEG human resources director until April 2005.

Two people in charge of the company's initiative to trim benefits and salaries were given the nicknames of “shock” and “awe” in a direct reference to the Iraq war, Corbett alleges in his statement. Despite pleas from employees, Corbett said NYSEG refused to divulge the reasons for its actions on wages and benefits to the work force.