EXHIBIT 2.3

                               SECOND AMENDMENT TO

                          AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF MERGER


     This SECOND  AMENDMENT TO AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF MERGER dated as of February
23, 1996 ("Second Amendment"), is made by and among Fairchild Industries,  Inc.,
a Delaware corporation ("Fairchild"), RHI Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation
("RHI"), The Fairchild  Corporation,  a Delaware corporation ("TFC"), and Shared
Technologies  Inc., a Delaware  corporation  ("Shared  Technologies"),  amending
certain  provisions  of the Agreement and Plan of Merger dated as of November 9,
1995,  as amended by the First  Amendment  to the  Agreement  and Plan of Merger
dated as of February 2, 1996,  including the exhibits and schedules thereto (the
"Merger  Agreement") by and among Fairchild,  RHI, TFC and Shared  Technologies.
Terms not  otherwise  defined  herein which are defined in the Merger  Agreement
shall have the same respective meanings herein as therein.

     WHEREAS,  Fairchild, RHI, TFC and Shared Technologies have agreed to modify
certain terms and conditions of the Merger  Agreement as specifically  set forth
in this Second Amendment.

     NOW,  THEREFORE,  in  consideration  of the premises and mutual  agreements
contained herein and for other good and valuable consideration,  the receipt and
sufficiency  of which are  hereby  acknowledged,  the  parties  hereto  agree as
follows:

                                    ARTICLE I

                         AMENDMENTS TO MERGER AGREEMENT

     1.1 The  following  shall be added as a new  final  paragraph  to  Schedule
3.1(b) to the Merger Agreement, "Summary of Terms of Special Preferred Stock":


         "The terms of the Special  Preferred Stock will provide,  or Fairchild,
         RHI and  Shared  Technologies  shall  enter into an  agreement  giving,
         Shared  Technologies  the  option to extend the final  maturity  of the
         Special Preferred Stock from March 31, 2007, to March 31, 2008. If such
         option is  exercised,  Shared  Technologies  will pay a dividend to the
         holders of the Special  Preferred Stock at the same rate payable on the
         Senior  Discount  Notes due 2006 to be issued  by a  subsidiary  of the
         Surviving Corporation in connection with the Merger,  calculated on the
         outstanding liquidation preference of the Special Preferred Stock. Such
         dividend  shall  accrue from 





         March 31, 2007,  and be payable  quarterly beginning June 30, 2007."

     1.2  Section  6.7(a) of the Merger  Agreement  is  amended by adding  "(the
'Closing Date Balance  Sheet'),"  after the words  "Effective  Date" on the last
line of such section, such that such line reads as follows:

     "......gies on the Effective Date (the "Closing Date Balance Sheet"), is at
     least $80,000,000);........ ."

     1.3 Section  6.7(b) of the Merger  Agreement  is amended in its entirety to
read as follows:

     "(b)   except as contemplated by Schedule 9.1 and except for the assignment
            to RHI by  Fairchild  of  Fairchild's  receivables  (the  "Permitted
            Receivables Assignment"),  in an amount of $9,000,000, there has not
            been  any  direct  or   indirect   redemption,   purchase  or  other
            acquisition  of any shares of capital  stock of  Fairchild or any of
            its  subsidiaries,  or any declaration,  setting aside or payment of
            any  dividend  or  other  distribution  by  Fairchild  or any of its
            subsidiaries  in respect of their capital  stock;  provided that the
            Permitted  Receivables  Assignment shall not reduce the net worth of
            Fairchild to less than $80,000,000.  Notwithstanding  the foregoing,
            if the  Effective  Time shall not have occurred on or prior to March
            15, 1996, the amount of the Permitted  Receivables  Assignment shall
            be  increased  to the maximum  amount  which would not cause the net
            worth of Fairchild,  as evidenced by the Closing Date Balance Sheet,
            to be less than  $80,000,000.  Within 90 days of the  Closing  Date,
            Arthur Andersen,  L.L.P.  will prepare and deliver to the parties an
            audited  balance  sheet of  Fairchild  as of the  Closing  Date (the
            "Audited  Balance  Sheet").  In the  event  that  the net  worth  of
            Fairchild,  as shown on the Audited Balance Sheet,  (x) is less than
            $80,000,000, Fairchild shall pay to Shared Technologies an amount in
            cash  equal  to such  difference  or (y) is more  than  $80,000,000,
            Shared  Technologies  shall pay to Fairchild an amount in cash equal
            to such difference;  provided that no such cash payment,  when taken
            together with the amount of receivables assigned to RHI by Fairchild
            pursuant to this  paragraph,  shall be required in an amount greater
            than the amount of the Permitted Receivables Assignment."

     1.4 The  following  shall  be  added as a new  Section  8.12 of the  Merger
Agreement:

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     "8.12  Post-Merger Sale of Shared  Technologies  Cellular,  Inc. RHI agrees
     that if, within 150 days of the Effective  Time, the Surviving  Corporation
     shall receive cash proceeds from the sale of its interest, as of this date,
     in STCI,  then RHI shall  contribute  to the Surviving  Corporation,  a sum
     equal to 40% of such cash proceeds  received by the Surviving  Corporation,
     up to a maximum contribution of $1,600,000."

     1.5 Section  10.1(c) of the Merger  Agreement is hereby amended by deleting
the date  "March 8,  1996," and  inserting  the date  "March 15,  1996," in lieu
thereof.

     1.6 Section  10.1(d)  shall be amended by deleting  the words "...,  at the
Special Meeting of (including any  adjournment  thereof)," and adding at the end
of such section the words "on or before March 4, 1996".

                                   ARTICLE II

                     AMENDMENTS TO THE TAX SHARING AGREEMENT
                                   (EXHIBIT E)

         2.1 The parties hereto agree to amend The Tax Sharing  Agreement as set
forth  as  Exhibit  E to the  Merger  Agreement  to  provide  for the  following
language:

     (i) Notwithstanding any other  representation in the Merger Agreement or in
the Tax Sharing Agreement,  TFC and RHI make no representation or warranty as to
(i) the  amount  of any net  operating  loss and tax  credits  of the TFC  Group
allocable to FII or VSI at the Effective  Date as a result of the  operations of
FII and VSI prior to the Effective Date; and (ii) the amount of any reduction in
tax payable by Shared  Technologies due to utilization of any net operating loss
or tax  credit  of the TFC  Group  allocable  to FII and VSI as a result  of the
operations of FII and VSI prior to the Effective Date.

     (ii)  Notwithstanding  any other  provision  of the Tax Sharing  Agreement,
Shared  Technologies  shall not share with TFC and RHI any  reduction in the tax
payment of Shared Technologies as a result of Shared Technologies  utilizing any
net operating  losses or tax credits of the TFC Group allocable to FII or VSI at
the  Effective  Date or as a result  of  operations  of FII and VSI prior to the
Effective Date.

                                   ARTICLE III

                        PROVISIONS OF GENERAL APPLICATION

     3.1 Except as otherwise expressly provided by this Second Amendment, all of
the terms,  conditions and provisions to the Merger Agreement remain  unaltered.

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The Merger  Agreement and this Second  Amendment  shall be read and construed as
one agreement.

     3.2 If any of the terms of this  Second  Amendment  shall  conflict  in any
respect with any of the terms of the Merger Agreement,  the terms of this Second
Amendment shall be controlling.


     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Second Amendment to
be executed by their duly authorized officers,  all as of the day and year first
above written.

SHARED TECHNOLOGIES INC.                               THE FAIRCHILD CORPORATION


By:/s/Anthony D. Autorino                              By:/s/Donald E. Miller
   Anthony D. Autorino                                    Donald E. Miller
   Chief Executive Officer                                Senior Vice President

FAIRCHILD INDUSTRIES, INC.                             RHI HOLDINGS, INC.


By:/s/Donald E. Miller                                  By:/s/Donald E. Miller
   Donald E. Miller                                        Donald E. Miller
   Vice President                                          Vice President


ACCEPTED AND AGREED TO BY:

FAIRCHILD HOLDING CORP.


By:/s/Donald E. Miller
   Donald E. Miller
   Vice President



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