Communications Workers

American Telephone & Telegraph Co. and the Communications Workers of America announced Thursday that they had settled their 26-day-old nationwide strike and the union said its 155,000 striking members will return to work today. On June 17, the telecommunications giant and the Communications Workers announced a tentative settlement of the strike subject to resolution of contract issues at six AT&T divisions.

AT&T Inc, the largest U.S phone company, said 20,000 employees represented by the Communications Workers of America have begun a strike on the East and West Coast. The West contract covers more than 17,000 wireline employees in California and Nevada, while the East contract covers more than 3,000 in Connecticut, AT&T said today in a statement. Separately, AT&T reached a tentative agreement with the CWA in contract negotiations for more than 22,000 land-line employees in the southeastern U.S. The company forged a deal with workers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee, according to statement from the carrier today.

Thousands of AT&T workers in California and Nevada have walked off their jobs, the latest development in an acrimonious contract negotiation that has dragged on for months. AT&T landline workers in hundreds of locations gathered to protest what they saw as AT&T's unfair contract demands, which they say include "massive healthcare cost-shifting to workers and their families," as well as reductions in AT&T worker retirement security, according to the Communications Workers of America, the union to which the employees belong.

About 20,000 AT&T Inc. workers in the East and West started striking Tuesday even as the telecommunications giant reached tentative deals with unions in the Southeast. The company's contracts with two major branches of the Communications Workers of America expired in early April, leading to months of acrimonious negotiations . Now, 17,000 wireline employees in California and Nevada and 3,000 employees in Connecticut have decided to strike, AT&T said in a statement . Wireline businesses have slumped in recent years as use of land-based phones falls off amid the rise of mobile devices.

The Communications Workers of America, which represents 262,000 communications workers nationwide, is negotiating at 48 tables around the country with representatives of Southwestern Bell, Nynex, Ameritech, US West, Bell Atlantic and Bell South. Pacific Telesis announced an agreement with the union Monday.

The head of the American Telephone & Telegraph Co.'s largest union said the nationwide strike against the company could end within 24 hours because of progress in contract bargaining. Morton Bahr, president of the striking Communications Workers of America, said on CNN's Moneyline that despite escalating rhetoric and union protests in about 30 major cities, lengthy sessions with a federal mediator had eased negotiations. The union struck AT&T on June 1.

Contract negotiators for the Communications Workers of America said they will not accept a three-year, 5% pay raise proposed by AT&T. Labor and management continued to negotiate a contract to replace the one that expires at midnight Saturday. The union has threatened a strike early Sunday if no settlement can be achieved.

Union Votes to Strike AT&T: Members of American Telephone & Telegraph's largest union voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike if a new contract is not reached by midnight Saturday, the union said as negotiations entered a critical stage. The Communications Workers of America, which represents about 130,000 AT&T workers, did not release a breakdown of its nationwide strike-authorization vote. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which is negotiating jointly with CWA and represents an additional 40,000 employees, is conducting a separate vote.

The news item (Aug. 22), "AT&T Will Cut 24,000 Jobs to Reduce Costs," should have read: "AT&T Will Cut 24,000 Jobs to Increase Profits." How much profit is enough? How much unemployment is too much? This is not an isolated example of corporate greed and its rush to maximize profits without even considering the human costs and the social costs to communities across the United States. We witness the massive layoffs of auto workers, steel workers, miners, rubber workers, and now communications workers.

Ticket agents, gate workers and other service workers at US Airways have won the right to join the Communications Workers of America after a lengthy battle with the Arlington, Va.-based airline, union officials said. Of the 7,806 workers eligible to vote, 5,215 cast ballots in favor of the union, according to the National Mediation Board, which counted ballots. About 10,000 workers will be covered by the union. The vote was ordered in June by the mediation board after two previous votes.

Thousands of AT&T Inc. workers in California and Nevada have walked off their jobs, the latest development in an acrimonious contract negotiation that has dragged on for months. AT&T land-line workers in hundreds of locations protested AT&T's contract demands, which they said included "massive healthcare cost shifting to workers and their families" as well as reductions in AT&T worker retirement security, according to the Communications Workers of America, the union to which the employees belong.

Ticket agents, gate workers and other service workers at US Airways have won the right to join the Communications Workers of America after a lengthy battle with the Arlington, Va.-based airline, union officials said. Of the 7,806 workers eligible to vote, 5,215 cast ballots in favor of the union, according to the National Mediation Board, which counted ballots. About 10,000 workers will be covered by the union. The vote was ordered in June by the mediation board after two previous votes.

It would have taken a solid 10. Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon had been trying to muster 10 council votes in an effort to cancel a contract that will provide $3 million for outside public relations work for the DWP. Alarcon and Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg had objected to the contract, saying that the timing was bad because the DWP is amid layoffs and voluntary buyouts. But a last-minute agreement Tuesday afternoon between the DWP and the Architects and Engineers Assn.

The story "Hot-Wiring Anaheim" (July 24) portrayed a rather glowing picture of Anaheim's joint venture to enter the telecommunications business with San Diego-based SpectraNet. However, there were some major issues not included in the article. First, Anaheim already is served by one of the largest state-of-the-art fiber-optic networks in the world, built by the hard-working men and women of the Communications Workers of America and Pacific Bell. Why spend taxpayers' money and other valuable city resources on high-risk, capital-intensive and speculative ventures that are not needed?

A report Wednesday from the Los Angeles Board of Public Works confirmed that a freak trash truck accident in December might have been prevented with better safety oversight of automated truck parts and better communications among the drivers, mechanics, the sanitation department and the manufacturers. In her interim report to Mayor Richard Riordan, board President J.P.

Hoping to get the City Council to recognize their grievances against shipping companies at Los Angeles Harbor, more than 3,000 truckers drove Downtown from San Pedro on Tuesday in an all-day convoy that stretched 30 miles, police said. In what they called a "Convoy for Justice," cargo haulers looped around City Hall with their diesel trucks and automobiles, hoping to gain council support in their fight to win recognition as members of the Communication Workers of America.

AT&T and Unions Report Progress: AT&T and its unions reported progress in negotiations, but remaining disputes over wages and particularly health benefits left in doubt whether a new contract could be settled before tonight's deadline. "Things have started to heat up," said Francine Zucker, a spokeswoman for the Communications Workers of America. "I think we're going to get very close, and we may reach a settlement--but that can change quickly." AT&T officials said the company offered to limit its use of temporary workers, a key union job-security demand.