Ralph Maly's Statement at AT&T Shareholders Meeting

This is the statement made by Ralph Maly, CWA Vice President for Telecommunications and Technologies at the AT&T Annual Meeting, April 27, 2012 in Salt Lake City:

Good morning, Mr. Chairman and Shareholders.  I’m Ralph Maly, Vice President of the Communications Workers of America representing about 150,000 workers at AT&T nationwide.

Today I’d like to address some very serious concerns our members have in our contract bargaining with AT&T.  Right now, about 40,000 workers are bargaining for new contracts at AT&T East, Midwest, West and my own unit, Legacy T.  Other contracts will come up later this year and next.

Negotiations are often difficult.  But what greatly concerns our CWA members about these negotiations is that, despite AT&T’s continued success and profitability, despite its position as the nation’s biggest telecommunications company and the Top 10 ranking among U.S. companies overall, members are being told they must sacrifice more.

AT&T’s bargaining demands have included more and massive health care cost shifting to workers and their families, the loss of workers’ ability to transfer into other parts of the company, cuts in members’ retirement security, and the resistance to discuss Healthcare protections for current retirees who spent their lives helping to build the Company.

We all want AT&T to succeed.  CWA Members and Retirees certainly have a financial investment in AT&T’s success.  We also have the investment of our livelihoods, our families’ well-being, and our communities’ continued growth.  These aren’t small things.  These are the essence of what will sustain our country’s economic recovery.

CWA believes AT&T has a responsibility to be a leader in helping this economic recovery take hold, by continuing to provide good, middle-class jobs that support taxpayers and our communities.

Our economy won’t recover through “dollar store” jobs.  Without good jobs, consumers won’t be able to buy the quality services that AT&T offers.

That speaks to the necessity of AT&T developing strategies to meet today’s competitive and technological challenges head on.  And it speaks to the necessity of AT&T management sustaining a real partnership with CWA and with the union workforce that has made it successful and that will continue to be the basis of its success.

It doesn’t mean following a low road of layoffs, outsourcing, and cost shifting, conditions workers have experienced all too much lately.  It’s clear that quality customer service is a huge selling point in today’s competitive industry.  Our members provide that service.  Let’s acknowledge that in these negotiations.  Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.