Bargaining Update

Frontier Communications (West Virginia and Ashburn, Va.)

CWA members at Frontier Communications in West Virginia and Ashburn, Va., agreed to continue negotiations with the company and extend the current contract by two weeks to August 19th.

The union’s bargaining team walked into negotiations with management hours before their contract was set to expire, empowered by a strong show of solidarity from workers and supporters across West Virginia and Ashburn. Following their recent overwhelming strike authorization vote, the workers have continued to engage in mobilization actions across their states.

The members want to be on the job, delivering quality service for their customers and providing for their families. This contract extension will give Frontier executives the opportunity to do the right thing and move towards a fair contract so that hard working members can stay focused on providing quality service to customers and building fiber connections to homes and businesses across West Virginia.

CWA members hold an informational picket in Poca, W.Va.

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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Last week at a press conference, Pennsylvania State Representative and Chair of the Allegheny County House Democratic Delegation, Dan Miller, spoke out in strong support of striking NewsGuild-CWA journalists and other CWA members at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Referencing the fact that the Post-Gazette was covering the press conference, Miller said, “[T]his event is being covered by a scab newspaper. We see it, we know it, and so let me give you a quote. Treat your workers fairly, bargain fairly. Don’t come to us for quotes until you do.” In a Twitter post following the press conference, Miller conveyed the support of the whole delegation for the striking workers and vowed that they won’t cross the picket line. The workers, who are responsible for designing, printing, distributing, advertising sales, accounts receivable, and content creation for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, have been on strike since October of last year. They have not had a pay raise in over 15 years and went on strike over the illegal, unilateral cuts to their healthcare made by the Block family – the Toledo-based, millionaire owners of the paper. To make a donation in support of the striking workers, click here.

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TVO Today (Canada)

Last week, members of the Canadian Media Guild (CMG) at TVO overwhelmingly rejected the company’s latest contract offer and indicated they are ready to strike if necessary. CMG is part of CWA|SCA Canada. TVO is a not-for-profit media agency of the Ontario Ministry of Education and Canada’s oldest educational television service.

With over 95 percent of the workers voting against the offer, they sent a clear message to the company and the Ford government that they deserve wage increases that reflect the current economic state, will not waive the rights of education members to a permanent job, and will not compromise the integrity and value of journalism they offer as public servants. The workers are still hoping to negotiate an agreement and avoid a strike. Read more here.

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Delaware State Police (911 and Civilian Workers)

Last month, 911 operators and other civilian workers at the Delaware State Police, members of CWA Local 13101, ratified their new three-year collective bargaining agreement. The contract provides for additional time off, vastly improved scheduling for 911 operators, and historic wage increases across the board for all members.