Verizon Update !! Support our Brothers & Sisters in The IBEW and CWA

A Letter from CWA to the Rockland County Central Trades Unions on an update of their negotiations.  keep our brothers and sisters in mind.  verizon is stating that they want to reduce things because of industry standards not that they can not afford.  We are at   the table in 11 months                        

 

Communications Workers of America

Local 1107

3 E. Evergreen Road

New City, N.Y 10956

Robert E. Milone

Secretary/Treasurer

Legislative and Political Coordinator

Verizon at the Bargaining Table:

Tens of Billions in Profits, a Quarter-Billion in Executive Compensation, Intent on Destroying Middle-Class Jobs

DATE: August 5, 2011

President RCCLC Gil Heim

8 Taylor Lane

New City, N.Y 10956

Dear Gil,

We are writing to update you on the very serious situation currently taking place in our collective bargaining with Verizon Communications.

CWA’s contract with Verizon—covering 16,000 workers in New York, approximately 800 here in Rockland (and a total of 45,000 CWA and IBEW members from Massachusetts to Virginia)—expires on August 6^th.

The short story is this: 

Despite over $19 billion in profits and $258 million in compensation to its top five executives over the last four years, Verizon seems hell-bent on destroying the middle class jobs CWA has fought so hard to create over the last 50 years of collective bargaining.

In the first several days of negotiations, Verizon has put on the table demands to:

·        Eliminate all job security provisions of the contract.

·        Vastly increase contracting out of work to low-wage contractors, including outsourcing jobs overseas.

·        Freeze pensions for current workers and eliminate them for future employees.

·        Replace the current high-quality health care plan with a high-deductible plan requiring thousands of dollars in premium cost-sharing.

·        Eliminate accident disability benefits, and slash sickness disability benefits.

·        Eliminate long-standing subsidies for employee child care.

·        Slash paid holidays to seven.

·        Reduce annual paid sick days to no more than 5, with none at all for employees with fewer than 2 years of seniority.

·        Even eliminate the half-day off that was historically granted on Christmas Eve.

There is little question that the telecommunications industry is rapidly evolving.  New technologies like FiOS, cable telephony, and wireless 4G are surging.  Many young consumers are switching to wireless only.  But all these technologies continue to depend on a robust land line network maintained and serviced by skilled workers.  And millions of consumers remain dependent on landlines, no matter how eager the company may be to abandon them

Despite the rapid changes in the industry, and despite the worst economic environment in 75 years, Verizon has managed to remain enormously profitable.  Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg alone pocketed $80.8 million in the last four years.  Even more outrageous, Verizon actually managed to squeeze a $1.3 billion tax rebate out of the U.S. government despite its billions in profits.  And in New York alone, Verizon has cut its workforce in half in the last decade —almost entirely through attrition and buyouts—a reduction of 15,000 workers.

At a time like this, corporations like Verizon should not be destroying middle class jobs. They should be helping to rebuild the American economy and sharing their success with the workforce that made it possible.  And they should not be “redlining” America by refusing to build out FiOS in our upstate cities like Buffalo, Syracuse, Utica, Albany and Binghamton.

Instead, Verizon should be working with its unions to provide high quality service to the public and building out FiOS as broadly as possible.  It should be ensuring that the unionized workforce—with good family-supporting jobs—grows with them.  It should not be slashing living standards and contracting out work to low-wage contractors or to overseas companies.

If Verizon refuses to modify its outrageous demands at the bargaining table, there could well be a costly and economically damaging strike beginning on August 6^th.

We ask you to write Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg and President Lowell McAdam today and urge them not to destroy middle-class jobs across the Northeast.  Urge them to moderate their bargaining demands and work cooperatively with their unions.

Thank you in advance for your support and we will keep you posted as the situation develops.

In Solidarity,

R. E Milone

Robert E. Milone

Legislative and Political Coordinator

CWA Local 1107

Chris Shelton                                                                Bob Master

Vice President, CWA District One                                Legislative and Political Director

                                                                                    CWA District One