Labor & Employment Law

11,000 CWA Members Ratify Pact with AT&T?and More Bargaining News

By Belinda Boyce

Some 11,000 CWA members ratify pact with AT&T, and more bargaining news from the “Bargaining Digest Weekly.” The AFL-CIO Collective Bargaining Department delivers daily, bargaining-related news and research resources to more than 1,200 subscribers. Union leaders may register for this service through our website, Bargaining@Work.

SETTLEMENTS
CWA, AT&T Mobility: Members of Communications Workers of America (CWA) District 3 ratified a four-year contract with AT&T Mobility. The agreement covers more than 11,000 workers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

BCTGM, Hershey Co.: Workers at Hershey Co. ratified a new contract that could result in the loss of 600 jobs. The members of Chocolate Workers/BCTGM Local 464 approved the deal to keep the candy maker from moving jobs out of Hershey, Pa. Gov. Ed Rendell is considering financial incentives to save the jobs already slated for layoff.

AFT, Washington, D.C., School District: After more than two years of often tense negotiations, teachers in Washington, D.C., ratified a new five-year contract. The contract provides a 21.6 percent wage increase over the term and incorporates a new teacher evaluation system.

UFCW, UMass Memorial Health Care: Members of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1445 ratified a two-year contract with UMass Memorial Health Care. The contract covers 1,300 lab workers, housekeepers and food service workers at three UMass medical centers.

WORK STOPPAGES
UAW, Boeing Co.: After nearly a month on strike, United Aerospace Workers Local 148, a UAW affiliate, on Friday reached a tentative agreement with Boeing Co. The 1,700 workers at Boeing’s Long Beach, Calif., factory had been on strike since May 11.

TWU, MTA: Calling it “a major victory for safety and security in our subways,” Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 100 applauded a judge’s ruling that New York City’s transit agency violated the law when it laid off more than 250 workers last month. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) failed to hold public hearings as required by state law when wholly or partially closing passenger stations.

Ironworkers, Northwest Indiana Contractors Association: 500 members of Ironworkers Local 395 in Indiana went on strike last Wednesday, halting work on major roads, after their contract with the Northwest Indiana Contractors Association expired. Another 500 workers, members of the Operating Engineers (IUOE) and the Teamsters (IBT) are honoring the picket line.

NEGOTIATIONS

AFT-NEA, Flint School District: In a middle-of-the-night vote on Wednesday, Michigan’s Flint school board approved imposing its “last, best offer” on the district’s 1,000 teachers. The school district and the United Teachers of Flint (AFT-NEA) have been in negotiations for two years.

UWUA, DTE Energy: Just days after members authorized a strike, Utility Workers (UWUA) Local 223 reached a tentative agreement with DTE Energy in Michigan. If ratified, the contract would cover 4,000 workers across the state.

NNU, Multiple: As nurses in California prepare to join nurses in Minnesota for a one-day strike on Thursday, the California Public Employees Relations Board is asking a court to block the walkout. Some 12,000 members of the California Nurses Association (NNU-CNA) and 12,000 members of the Minnesota Nurses Association (NNU-MNA) are fighting for safe staffing ratios at their respective hospitals. Should the strike by the 24,000 nurses go ahead, it will be the largest nurses’ strike in U.S. history.

TWU, American Airlines: The Transport Workers Union (TWU) has suspended the tentative agreement reached with American Airlines for 10,600 ground workers. TWU President James Little said the deal left some issues unresolved. The two sides met this week to try to settle those outstanding issues.

AFT, Pittsburgh Public Schools: The Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers (AFT) has reached a five-year tentative agreement with Pittsburgh Public Schools. The pact would provide annual wage increases and maintain current health benefits for the district’s 3,500 teachers.

USW, Alcoa: United Steelworkers (USW) reached a tentative four-year agreement with Alcoa Inc. that would cover more than 5,000 workers in ten states. No details of the deal will be released until USW members have been briefed.

Multiple, Kaiser Permanente: The Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions, made up of 32 locals, reached a tentative two-year agreement with the managed care provider. The pact calls for an annual 3 percent wage increase and maintains current healthcare benefits for 96,000 workers.

Disclaimer: This information is being provided for your information only.  As it is compiled from published news reports, not from individual unions, we cannot vouch for either its completeness or accuracy; readers who desire further information should directly contact the union involved.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on June 07, 2010 (boomark / email).