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Members at BellSouth, U S West Ratify
CWA members at two more major telecommunications companies - BellSouth and US West - have now ratified contracts, wrapping up 1998's largest set of negotiations.
CWA Vice President James E. Smith of District 3 reports that union members voted to ratify new contracts with BellSouth in the nine southeastern states where the company operates. CWA represents some 48,000 workers at BellSouth.
CWA Vice President Sue Pisha of District 7 says that union members employed in 13 states in the Midwest and northwest covered by US West voted overwhelmingly to ratify their contracts, achieved only after a bitter 15-day strike in late August. CWA represents some 35,000 workers at US West.
The ratification results include 400 utility workers at BellSouth who initially rejected the agreement, but not 1,900 sales, operations and customer service employees at US West Dex, Inc., whose contract expired later. A tentative agreement was reached Oct. 14 and balloting is now underway, Pisha said.
Earlier, CWA had achieved new contracts with AT&T and Lucent; at Bell Atlantic, which includes workers at the former NYNEX, after a 34-hour strike; at the SBC companies Southwestern Bell and Pacific Telesis, at Ameritech, which is in the latter stages of a merger with SBC and at GTE of the Southwest. CWA members at Southern New England Telephone Co. in Connecticut - also a merger partner with SBC - and organized earlier this year by CWA - have also ratified a new contract, following a 26-day strike.
All together, CWA has negotiated new contracts on behalf of nearly 400,000 telecommunications industry workers in 1998, making the talks the largest in a single industry this year.
CWA Vice President James E. Smith of District 3 reports that union members voted to ratify new contracts with BellSouth in the nine southeastern states where the company operates. CWA represents some 48,000 workers at BellSouth.
CWA Vice President Sue Pisha of District 7 says that union members employed in 13 states in the Midwest and northwest covered by US West voted overwhelmingly to ratify their contracts, achieved only after a bitter 15-day strike in late August. CWA represents some 35,000 workers at US West.
The ratification results include 400 utility workers at BellSouth who initially rejected the agreement, but not 1,900 sales, operations and customer service employees at US West Dex, Inc., whose contract expired later. A tentative agreement was reached Oct. 14 and balloting is now underway, Pisha said.
Earlier, CWA had achieved new contracts with AT&T and Lucent; at Bell Atlantic, which includes workers at the former NYNEX, after a 34-hour strike; at the SBC companies Southwestern Bell and Pacific Telesis, at Ameritech, which is in the latter stages of a merger with SBC and at GTE of the Southwest. CWA members at Southern New England Telephone Co. in Connecticut - also a merger partner with SBC - and organized earlier this year by CWA - have also ratified a new contract, following a 26-day strike.
All together, CWA has negotiated new contracts on behalf of nearly 400,000 telecommunications industry workers in 1998, making the talks the largest in a single industry this year.