Virtual forum for ASL Interpreters to share their experience of deteriorating working conditions in the VRS industry to follow April 30 at 8:30 pm ET

Register to attend Zoom events below

On April 22 at 8:30 pm ET, the ASL Interpreters Union–OPEIU (ASLIU) and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX) will host a first-of-its-kind public forum for users of Video Relay Service (VRS), featuring Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Anna M. Gomez. VRS users will share their experiences and concerns with VRS, an essential service regulated by the FCC and funded by American consumers of telecommunications products.

The VRS user forum will be followed by a forum for ASL Interpreters to share their experience of deteriorating working conditions in the VRS industry on April 30 at 8:30 pm ET. Members of the media are encouraged to attend both events:

Register here for April 22 VRS User Town Hall: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/MnaahlBaRhe_WIBKpLofsw#/registration

Register here for April 30 VRS Interpreter Town Hall: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/yY-g3uANTSOlFBC0Vl2elw#/registration

BACKGROUND:

In January, Rep. Greg Casar sent a letter to the FCC urging the agency to act on its duty to regulate VRS. On Feb. 27, Rep. Greg Casar and the ASLIU held a joint press conference outside of the FCC in Washington, DC, reinforcing this demand. 

ASLIU’s organizing efforts have brought the struggles and stories of Deaf and Hard of-Hearing VRS users closer to FCC officials than at any point in the history of the VRS industry at large. 

VRS interpreters and Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing VRS users have been speaking out about the poor working conditions, low pay and inadequate service quality in the VRS industry for years. The two largest providers of VRS, Sorenson and ZP/ Better Together (recently acquired by Teleperformance) have prioritized a profit over people model that has had a disastrous impact on interpreter working conditions and service quality for users over recent years. Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing VRS users are an integral part of the ASLIU’s unprecedented efforts to improve both services for millions of VRS users and working conditions for VRS interpreters across the country.

Rep. Casar represents Texas’ 35th congressional district, which extends from San Antonio to Austin. ZP Better Together is headquartered in Austin, and a considerable number of VRS interpreters reside in Congressman Casar’s district.