AT&T, CWA reach three-year tentative contract for 2K internet workers

AT&T and the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union have reached three-year tentative agreement covering 2,200 workers covered by the telco’s National Internet Contract.

Following months of negotiations, the new agreements provide a series of benefits that address wage increases, health care benefits, and job security.

Under the terms of the tentative agreement, AT&T will offer a number of general wage increases, including significant increases in the current wage schedules for workers in the two lowest paid job titles. These wage increases will have a large impact especially in higher cost areas like Las Vegas.

These lower paid workers, which include Internet Assistants and Customer Assistants, will see an overall pay raise of $5,000 to $8,100 over the life of the three-year contract. Workers in all other titles will receive a compounded wage increase of 7.7 percent over the contract term.

"This tentative agreement is a huge victory for our members who fought hard and mobilized for a fair deal," said Lisa Bolton, CWA VP of Telecommunications & Technologies, in a statement. "Not only will this new contract provide significant wage increases, but it will also protect health care benefits and provide improvements in job security, scheduling, and other working conditions."

Getting to this point was anything but easy. In August, these same CWA-represented employees voted 92 percent to authorize a strike if a new contract couldn't be worked out. At that time, AT&T said strike votes are routine in the negotiation process and that the two sides would eventually settle their differences. CWA and AT&T began negotiating a new agreement in June.

For more:
- see this CWA post

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