PHOTO: CWA members are all smiles as they learn they will return to work June 1 under a new contract. Courtesy of Communications Workers of America
By Michael V. Cusenza
The union representing nearly 40,000 striking Verizon workers announced on Sunday that it has reached an agreement with the company.
Members of the Communications Workers of America that are employees of the telecom giant have been on strike since April 13. According to the CWA, Verizon will add 1,300 new east coast call center jobs, and reverse several other outsourcing initiatives that will create new field technician jobs. The four-year proposed agreement provides 10.9 percent in raises, a $1,250 signing bonus in the Mid-Atlantic; and a $1,000 signing bonus plus a $250 healthcare reimbursement account in the Northeast; $2,800 minimum in profit sharing, pension increases, and a first contract for Verizon Wireless retail store employees in Brooklyn, N.Y. and Everett, MA.
Striking workers returned to their jobs on Wednesday.
Highlights from the proposed agreement, which will be presented to members for a ratification vote after the return to work, include:
- A 10.9 percent raise over the next four years with compounded interest, including 3 percent upon ratification, and 2.5 percent on each anniversary of the contract.
- A minimum of $700 in corporate profit sharing payments in each of the next four years.
- All call centers that had been threatened with closure in the Mid-Atlantic region will remain open. Three of the five threatened call centers in upstate New York will also remain open; the six workers affected in the other two centers will be offered jobs locally in the company.
- The new contract guarantees that an increased percentage of customer service work will be handled by unionized workers. As a result, Verizon will add 1,300 call center jobs, 850 in the Mid-Atlantic region and 450 in the Northeast.
- Several major contracting initiatives will be reversed, sustaining work for union members in their communities and returning a significant amount of pole maintenance work to the unionized workforce in New York State. There will be a 25 percent increase in the number of unionized crews doing pole work in New York.
- Existing Job security language will be preserved, as will existing language on transfer and seniority protections for retirement incentives. All of the company’s proposals on forced interstate transfers of technicians were withdrawn.
- All proposed reductions of pensions were withdrawn by the company, and there will be three 1-percent increases in the defined benefit pensions over the life of the agreement.
- The company agreed to terminate a performance supervisory program in effect in the five boroughs that workers found extremely abusive, and both parties will work with an outside consultant to develop a non-punitive program.
- Proposed cuts in accident and disability benefits were withdrawn. The parties agreed to changes to active and retiree healthcare that generate savings to the company while protecting plan designs for medical care.
“CWA appreciates the persistence and dedication of Secretary Perez, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Director Allison Beck and their entire teams. The addition of good new jobs at Verizon is a huge win not just for striking workers, but for our communities and the country as a whole. This contract is a victory for working families across the country and an affirmation of the power of working people,” said Chris Shelton, president of the Communications Workers of America. “It proves that when we stand together we can raise up working families, improve our communities and advance the interests of America’s working people.”
michael@theforumnewsgroup.com
