AT&T, Southeast wireline unions strike tentative agreement

After failing to seal the deal in December [1] with union wireline workers in its Southeast region, AT&T has gone back to the negotiation table and reached a new tentative agreement with Communications Workers of America (CWA) District 3.

The proposed three-year contract, which will be given to the district's membership for a vote this week, encompasses about 30,000 wireline workers throughout the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Similar to the previous agreement, this proposed contract will provide pay and pension band increases during every year of the agreement. What's different about the latest agreement is that this one includes healthcare premiums for the second year of the agreement versus a health reimbursement account (HRA), and a reward program AT&T says is "keyed to the company's financial performance paid in cash rather than being paid into the HRA."  

To date, AT&T has reached either tentative or ratified agreements with six of seven bargaining units that represent its wireline worker base. However, AT&T has yet to reach an agreement with CWA District 1-the company's East Region.

For more:
- see the release here [2]

Related articles
AT&T, CWA Southeast hammer out a tentative contract agreement [1]
AT&T Southeast union contract set to expire [3]
AT&T, Northeast union negotiations remain in a standstill [4]