In 2003, Max Catania, a Foxtel installer was called in to "renegotiate" his contract with Siemens Thiess.
The offer on the table was the same for all techs - instead of being paid $43.93 per job, they would get $35.
Catania could not believe his eyes. He had been doing it tough since being retrenched by Telstra and having to become a contractor.
As part of cost-cutting during the 1990s, Telstra had sacked all its Foxtel installers, who were taken on as subcontractors by companies contracted to do their old work.
As a subbie, Catania found himself paying for his own workers' compensation, public liability insurance, petrol and equipment. Sick leave and annual leave had disappeared.
Now Telstra was demanding cheaper rates from its contractors and they were responding by slashing the earnings of subcontractors.
Catania estimated Siemens Thiess's offer would cut his income by $540 a week.
"We had to decide there and then, accept the contracts and accept the rates," Catania said. "There's always the threat of do it or you don't get any work."
But Catania was not alone. Other subbies were equally outraged.
"We were dying as individuals, it was just one person against these multinational companies," Catania said.
They took their anger to the union. Many had previously been members of the CEPU and now they felt they had no one else to turn to.
Through word of mouth, subcontractors were organised into taking a stand against the rate cut.
In NSW and Victoria, almost 200 subbies went on strike. They used their vans - which they were forced to buy when Telstra dumped them- to mount blockades against the telco.
Catania was amazed by the willingness of the subbies to band together.
"These companies put in a lot of effort making sure we can't contact anyone. They never have meetings where everyone is involved, and they divide us into teams and make sure one team never meets up with another team," he said.
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