Dec 7, 2023 - CWA Passenger Service Agents Reach Tentative Agreement at American Airlines and other news

This week, the CWA-IBT Association Bargaining Committee reached a tentative agreement with American Airlines for a new contract. Initial costing shows that the five-year contract is valued at $1.3 billion dollars. The agreement could not have been reached without the support of local union leaders, mobilization team members, and every member who supported mobilization efforts and informational picketing over the past several months. Those actions made a huge difference at the bargaining table and demonstrated the power of the union.

Full details of the tentative agreement to follow in the coming days.

Today, more than 700 members of NewsGuild-CWA Local 32035 are on strike at the Washington Post. Journalists, production specialists, and drivers are walking out on a one-day strike that is anticipated to be the largest strike in the capital region in recent history.

For 18 months, NewsGuild members have sought to negotiate a fair contract with the Washington Post. But management has refused to bargain in good faith and repeatedly—and illegally—shut down negotiations over key issues, such as pay equity, raises that keep pace with inflation and our competitors, remote work policies, mental health supports, and a buyout package that seeks to reduce the union workforce by 10 percent.

NewsGuild members have asked supporters to respect their picket line by not engaging with any Washington Post content during today’s 24-hour strike. That includes print and online news stories, podcasts, videos, games, and recipes. Instead, send a letter to Post leaders in support of the people who produce the newspaper.

Above: NewsGuild-CWA strikers picket in front of the Washington Post building.

Below: CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. rallied with striking NewsGuild-CWA members at the Washington Post.

In an industry notoriously hostile to unions, bank workers at a Daytona, Fla., Wells Fargo branch who are organizing to join CWA have filed for an election with the National Labor Relations Board. This comes on the heels of November’s dual filings by Wells Fargo workers in Albuquerque, N.M., and Bethel, Ala. According to Axios, currently only approximately 1 percent of all bank employees nationwide enjoy the benefits of union membership.

Bank employees at the Daytona branch cited understaffing, wages which haven't increased in five years, and poor benefits packages as the impetus for unionizing.

The union elections mark a groundbreaking moment for Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA’s nationwide union drive and financial services workers’ rapidly growing fight for a seat at the table.

Last week, CWAers gathered in Dallas, Texas, where President Claude Cummings Jr., Secretary-Treasurer Ameenah Salaam, and other speakers laid out their robust visions for the future of District 6 and CWA as a whole. Members attended various workshops on topics including stewardship, internal organizing, and grievance preparation.

Reinforcing the theme of “Embracing Change and Revitalizing Solidarity,” both President Cummings and Secretary-Treasurer Salaam gave rousing speeches, invoking the past sacrifices of CWA members while calling on current members to do all they can to move our political, financial, and social movements forward.

“We need to expand our reach,” said President Cummings. “We can’t only talk to like-minded voters. We know better than that. We must commit to the task of holding political organizing conversations in every region of this country and every community if we want meaningful change in our country.”

Reinforcing the importance of solidarity, President Cummings remarked, “We must learn from each other. Too many of our best ideas stay locked up in one district or sector. We talk about being one union, but too often we don’t act like it. As your president, I am committed to do more to break down those walls and celebrate our successes.”

Secretary-Treasurer Salaam recommitted her office to supporting locals and called on the assembled leaders to join together in the fight, saying, “Leadership is not just about holding a title; it is about recognizing the needs and aspirations of our members and translating them into action. That means leading with integrity and determination. It means fostering an atmosphere of collaboration and solidarity. Our shared goals can only be accomplished when we stand together, arm in arm, irrespective of our backgrounds.”

CWA District 6 Vice President Derrick Osobase Sr. rallied the crowd, saying, "We plan to fight! We will engage our leaders and activists. I can't promise what the outcome will be, but I will promise our members the opportunity to fight."

CWA attendees also heard from Telecommunications and Technologies Vice President Lisa Bolton; Public, Healthcare and Education Workers Vice President Margaret Cook; CWA District 4 Vice President Linda L. Hinton; and CWA Executive Board Members At-Large Keith Gibbs and Erika White. Chief of Staff Sylvia J. Ramos also participated in the conference.

Healthcare workers in CWA District 1 held their first Healthcare Worker Convening over two days last week in Buffalo, N.Y. Approximately 70 workers from New York and New Jersey met to share, heal, and strategize. Attendees noted similar struggles, including burnout, short staffing, a lack of adequate resources, and poor pay and benefits. They share, however, a deep love for their work and the patients under their care. Attendees left with new hope and new allies in the fight for better working conditions.

CWA District 1 Healthcare Workers met in Buffalo, N.Y., for first ever Healthcare Worker Convening.

CWA members and leadership are preparing to leverage the power of union contracts to shape the implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) tools at work and ensure AI’s economic benefits are broadly shared with workers.

The CWA Committee on Artificial Intelligence, composed of members from across the union, has presented the CWA Executive Board with principles and recommendations on how to address the challenges that AI presents through both bargaining strategy and public policy. CWA has taken a member-led approach to AI, harnessing the expertise of CWAers with direct experience working with AI programs from diverse industries, including call centers, telecommunications, journalism, and tech.

The committee’s principles direct CWA bargaining committees and leadership to be proactive in bargaining contract language that protects members against the negative effects AI tools can have in workplaces, including invasive surveillance, unfair automated employment decisions-making (including hiring, discipline, and pay-setting), unsafe and stressful work intensification and speed-up, the reduction of compensation or benefit levels, and the reduction of union members’ work.

New AI systems in the workplace have the potential to create economic gains when they lead to increased productivity. As we have done in the past, CWA members will bargain to capture our fair share of those economic gains, ensuring that working families see a rising standard of living and that these technologies do not contribute to the growth of inequality in this country.

The full report is available at cwa.org/ai-principles.

Last week, CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. surprised an AT&T Collections and Sales Call Center while he was in Nashville, Tenn., for the National Black Caucus of State Legislators Conference. CWA members were delighted to host President Cummings, who spent time speaking with the call center representatives about their concerns and wished them happy holidays. This visit demonstrated his commitment to engaging with members and showing management that he is present, active, and focused on positive change for CWA members.

CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. rang in the holidays and discussed the concerns of call center representatives during a visit to Nashville, Tenn.

Members of IUE-CWA, participating in their mentoring program, visited Washington, D.C., last week to learn why we lobby Congress, what pending legislation will most impact working people, and to advocate for those issues with their elected officials. Through the mentoring program, members learn skills to help strengthen their locals and build the labor movement. These younger workers will carry the torch passed to them by their mentors and become leaders in our union.

IUE-CWA Local 86004 member Heather Murphy said, “Participating in the IUE-CWA mentorship program has significantly enhanced my leadership skills and expanded my knowledge of labor union history. The program has provided me with a deeper understanding of the origin and purpose of unions, as well as the intersection of politics with critical legal decision-making processes.”

To learn more about the program, click here: https://iue-cwa.org/mentorship.

IUE-CWA members visited Capitol Hill last week to lobby members of Congress and build their leadership skills.

For your holiday shopping, check out the AFL-CIO’s roundup of union-made gifts. The list includes gifts produced by CWA members to delight your loved ones this holiday season. From Ray-Ban sunglasses made by IUE-CWA Local 81408 members in Schenectady, N.Y., to Hoopstar basketball hoops manufactured by IUE-CWA Local 84848 in Evanston, Ind., CWA members have the right gift made with union pride.

Other CWA-connected options include tickets to Meow Wolf immersive arts experiences in Las Vegas, Nev.; Santa Fe, N.M.; or Denver, Colo., where staff are represented by the Meow Wolf Workers Collective (MWWC-CWA Local 7055). Or plan a ski trip to Breckenridge, Telluride, Crested Butte Mountain, Park City, Big Sky, Purgatory, Steamboat, Loveland, or Stevens Pass resorts, where more than 700 ski patrollers and lift mechanics are represented by the United Professional Ski Patrols of America (UPSPA) CWA Local 7781.

Give the gift of local news with a subscription to a NewsGuild-staffed newspaper.

If your idea of gifting is giving back, please consider making a donation to a union strike fund like the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette strikers’ holiday fund.