Communications Workers of America
CWA members have reached strong tentative agreements with AT&T Southeast and AT&T West for new union contracts. The contracts were bargained separately.
The agreement in the Southeast ends the 30 day strike – the longest telecommunications strike in the region’s history – with union members across nine states pressuring the company to negotiate in good faith. CWA members will report to work for their scheduled shifts on Monday, September 16.
The agreement at AT&T West comes after members rejected a previous tentative agreement on September 6.
“I believe in the power of unity, and the unity our members and retirees have shown during these contract negotiations has been outstanding and gave our bargaining teams the backing they needed to deliver strong contracts,” said CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. “I’m not just talking about AT&T members in the Southeast and West, although the determination of our striking AT&T Southeast members was remarkable. CWA members and retirees from every region and sector of our union mobilized in support of our bargaining teams, including by distributing flyers with information about the strike at AT&T Wireless stores.”
The new contract in the Southeast covers 17,000 workers technicians, customer service representatives and others who install, maintain and support AT&T’s residential and business wireline telecommunications network in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Wages and health care costs were key issues at the bargaining table, and the five-year agreement includes across the board wage increases of 19.33%, with additional 3% increases for Wire Technicians and Utility Operations. The health care agreement holds health care premiums steady in the first year and lowers them in the second and third years, with modest monthly increases in the final two years.
See also: https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/att-southeast-strike-ends