Speak up. It's your right.

AT&T tried to silence us. We wouldn’t let them.

In Portland, Ore., AT&T placed ridiculous restrictions on what employees could or could not talk about on the job. Specifically, when any employee was under investigation by human resources, they were told they could not speak with their colleagues outside of a “need to know circle.”

Restricting union members’ speech about HR issues is violation of our workplace rights, and we wouldn’t stand for it. Jeanette Turner, President of Local 7901 in Portland, immediately filed a charge with the National Labor Relations Board — and the NLRB sided with CWA members.

With this victory, AT&T can no longer limit employees’ speech regarding HR investigations. What’s more, in the weeks to come, AT&T is now required to post a notice about your rights to discuss these issues in all job sites across the country.

If you haven’t seen this notice yet, here’s the bottom line: You have the right to talk with your co-workers about AT&T’s investigations into employee behavior. The only time the company can limit this right is when there is a reasonable need to keep things secret.

(Remember, the company is required to post this notice in your workplace. So check your respective Mobility job sites for this posting, and make sure to tell your Local if it isn’t posted.)

This story is yet another reminder that AT&T won’t just hand us our rights. As CWA mobility members, it is up to all of us to speak up and fight for the rights we deserve. Congratulations to Local 7901 for this NLRB victory!

And if this story has you fired up to keep fighting, take the next step in securing workplace rights across our industry — tell T-Mobile to shape up and end illegal policies that prevent workers there from talking to one another on the job at all.