Tally of New CWA Members at Cingular Tops 5,000

More than 5,000 former AT&T Wireless workers at Cingular have opted for CWA representation - most of them just in the past three months, since they became covered by the neutrality and card check organizing agreement on July 1.

The evidence couldn't be clearer, said CWA President Larry Cohen. "When fear is removed from the workplace and workers can make their own decision freely, they choose union representation."

In what is today the labor movement's most active and successful organizing program - especially in the South and Southwestern "right to work" states - CWA so far has helped Cingular Wireless workers in Mississippi, Tennessee, Missouri, Texas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Maryland, Oregon, Virginia, Wisconsin, New York and New England gain a union voice.

Recently, new Cingular workers have won CWA representation:

• In Greensboro, N.C., where 222 customer service representative at one call center and 583 business reps at another received union recognition on Sept. 9. The workers, now represented by Local 3607, started to organize themselves in early 2004 while still part of AT&T, reported District 3 Vice President Noah Savant.
  
• In Oklahoma City, a 52-member inside committee built strong support for CWA among 1,134 workers at two call centers through handbilling, telephoning and ensuring that information got to every worker about the difference a union can make. District 6 Vice President Andy Milburn said Local 6016 was supported by Local 6001 and district staff in leading the campaign.
  
• In Lebanon, Va., working with CWA Local 2204, the inside committee worked hard to contact workers who work over a large geographic area in organizing 418 call center workers; Local 2201 took the lead in working with another 37 network technicians, with the support of Locals 2202 and 2204, and district staff, reported District 2 Vice President Peter Catucci.
  
• In Portland, Ore., Local 7901 worked with a committee of 25 who worked long hours and weekends to help 444 call center workers win their union voice. Said District 7 Vice President Annie Hill, the organizing committee adopted and signed a public mission statement and spread the word about union representation to their co-workers.
  
• In Maryland, 140 employees in retail stores statewide won representation with the assistance of Local 2107 officers and organizers and district staff.
  
• And in Wisconsin, where 14 network technicians won recognition and are now part of Local 4603, reported District 4 Vice President Seth Rosen.

Cingular Wireless, owned by SBC Communications and Bell South, agreed to honor its workers' rights to form a union by agreeing and living up to neutrality and card check recognition provisions in 2000. Since then, more than 27,000 Cingular workers now have chosen CWA representation.

In sharp contrast, AT&T Wireless had been strongly anti-union and systematically intimidated workers who tried to organize. At the recent CWA convention, President Cohen recognized Nate Crouse and Mary Mikan, two Cingular customer service representatives from Austin, Tex., who, a few years ago, were among the first workers to join with CWA Local 6132 organizers in trying to win a union at the then AT&T Wireless facility.

Nate and Mary "refused to back down when interrogated by managers who tried to stop them from talking union. But many of their co-workers were intimidated," Cohen told delegates. "Things changed when Cingular bought AT&T Wireless. Soon, 19 other workers joined Nate and Mary in passing out leaflets and signing up 75 percent of the 783 service reps at this facility, supported all the way by Local 6132 and its president Luz Riley," Cohen said. The unit won recognition on August 15.