AT&T Reaches Deal With Union Workers, Ending Strike

(RTTNews) - Telecom major AT&T Inc. has reached a new tentative agreement with its around 25,500 union members in the Southeast and West regions, ending a 30-day strike in the Southeast by the workers over better contract terms.

In a statement, Members of the Communications Workers of America or CWA said new union contracts were agreed with AT&T Southeast and AT&T West. Its members started reporting to work for their scheduled shifts on Monday, September 16. The contracts were bargained separately.

In the Southeast, the deal ends the strike, which was started in the mid August, becoming the longest telecommunications strike in the region's history. The CWA noted that union members across nine states pressured the company to negotiate in good faith.

At AT&T West, the agreement comes after members rejected a previous tentative agreement on September 6.

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. The contract covers various states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Wages and health care costs were key issues at the bargaining table. The five-year agreement includes across the board wage increases of 19.33 percent, with additional 3 percent 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.

Further, the four-year agreement at AT&T West covers 8,500 workers in California and Nevada. The wage boost will now be retroactive to the contract expiration date, bringing the compounded increase to 15.01 percent. The revamped agreement also includes improvements to overtime and scheduling.

CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. said, "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. 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."