News

In a devastating blow to a half-million public workers in New Jersey, including 65,000 CWA members, the state Assembly on Thursday stripped them of their right to collectively bargain health care benefits and voted for steep increases in what workers pay for health care and pensions, while CWA is in contract negotiations with a June 30 expiration.

When volunteers began circulating petitions two months ago, Ohio unions and their allies had an ambitious goal: A half-million signatures by June 30, more than twice the 231,000 valid signatures required to put a repeal of the state's anti-collective bargaining law on November's ballot.

New proposals from the National Labor Relations Board regarding rules for union representation elections are a first, but modest, step toward ending some of the delays workers face when trying to organize, CWA President Larry Cohen said.

Conservatives believe that allowing insurance companies to sell policies across state lines will increase consumer choice and lower costs. In reality, it would allow insurance companies to avoid consumer protection laws and lower health care quality for everyone.