CWA Members Push AT&T for Work from Home after Call Center COVID-19 Outbreak

Despite 30 employees at an AT&T call center in Tustin, Calif. testing positive for COVID-19 and a probable fatality from the disease, AT&T has not agreed to allow all employees at the center to work from home.

While AT&T management at the facility initially claimed that the outbreak was not a result of exposure at work, CWA members worked together to trace contacts and map the workplace to show the pattern of cases. Confronted with this clear evidence, and a CWA rally outside of the call center which increased public awareness of the situation, AT&T closed the building for two weeks and the workers will receive paid leave.

“Indoor spaces put workers at higher risk for exposure to COVID-19, especially if they are inside for a long period of time,” said CWA District 9 Vice President Frank Arce. “AT&T is one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies. Why are they dragging their feet figuring out how to put systems in place so that their own employees can work from home during the pandemic? It’s unacceptable and we are demanding that the company immediately implement additional measures to protect their workers and the communities they serve.”

Representatives Katie Porter and Lou Correa, who represent the area in Congress, have contacted AT&T management to demand that AT&T do more to protect workers from exposure to the coronavirus.