The company is playing chess while CWA is playing checkers. The union sounds defeated in their last update, employees are already whining about not having any money, and the house of cards is falling. We knew AT&T didn’t care about its customers or its workers well in advance of this round of bargaining. The problem is that CWA thought they were immune to the ruthless lies and mo--nic decisions being made at the highest levels of leadership. CWA laughed about RTO and constant management surplus, but the script has flipped and the company now has you in its crosshairs. How does that make you feel? Do your stewards really believe cookouts and dance parties are helping matters or are they simply trying to keep everyone brainwashed so they hold the line? You are witnessing the systematic dismantling of the CWA at the hands of corporate tyrants he-l bent on destroying AT&T. You are no different than the “management trolls” you reference in your posts. The problem is that your union made you believe that you were untouchable, and that was a lie. CWA only cares about collecting your dues, just as the company only cares about reducing its debt. Nothing else matters, and the union is late to the party. Collect your strike pay, use your emergency benefits, and we will see how long you hold the line. CWA isn’t the Teamsters run by Jimmy Hoffa. It is nothing more than a piggy bank you feed from every paycheck, lining the pockets of people who can’t even be bothered to mention you when given the national spotlight. You are “human capital”.
CWA thought they were invincible and had convinced the membership that they could handle this round of collective bargaining. Their lies and corruption are now on full display. You are dollar signs to CWA brass, just as you are nothing but a burden to the company. Welcome to the AT&T that management has dealt with for the last several years. Nothing has changed except for your perception. It’s the equivalent of waking up and realizing you exist in the matrix. The sooner you come to terms with it, the easier it will get.
You will turn on one another. The dam will break. It already is, and CWA is in damage control and panic mode. They don’t know what to do, and that is exactly what the company wants. Just as you’ve always told managers: “If you don’t like it, quit. You are useless anyway.” Take your own advice. Contingency workers may be miserable, but they are getting paid. You aren’t.