Attention: New Bargaining Report Below ALERT!
ALERT! ALERT! Regional Bargaining Report # 68 Monday, May 7, 2012 Last week, the CWA District 1/IBEW Local 2213 and IBEW New England Regional Committees and the CWA District 2-13/ IBEW Mid Atlantic Regional Committees met with the Company together to discuss issues in a new approach to bargaining. For the past 11 months the two committees have been meeting separately with the company. The Union committees decided on this approach and also decided to give the company an aggressive comprehensive package to be used for discussion purposes to help jump start these negotiations. The Union presented a ‘what if” scenario and offered “what if” the Union proposed a phase in to premiums to help offset the cost of Health Benefits. In this “what if” scenario the union proposed that the company would withdraw their retrogressive demands on pensions, job security, disability benefits, retiree medical benefits and other retrogressive demands and the union would agree to some cost sharing of Health benefits which would include a phase in level of employee contributions. The Company spent little or no time evaluating the Union’s comprehensive package. The Company rejected the Union’s comprehensive package and responded with a new proposal which included minor changes to their last proposal. The Company’s new proposal lowered some deductibles and out of pocket maximums for individual and family plans. It is important to note that the company’s initial proposal would drastically change our Benefit Plans by changing components of the Benefit Plan. These components are: Deductibles; Co-Pays; Co-Insurance; Out-Of-Pocket Maximums and they added contributions as a component. The Company’s earlier proposals had higher deductibles, higher co-pays, higher co-insurance and higher out of pocket maximums plus the new component - high employee contributions. The earlier company proposals would add thousands of dollars a year to what our members would have to pay for benefits by adding these higher components. In addition, the company wants each employee to pay excessive premiums (contributions) for these benefits. It is not just about premiums
(contributions). So, when they make a proposal which slightly lowers the deductibles and out of pocket maximums from a point that was too high in the first place and only slightly decrease contributions for only one plan and not the others– they are not making a serious counter proposal to the Union. The Company’s proposal would add
$4,000 to $5,000 for the cost of health care to
our members for each year of the contract with
only small increases in wages. The Company wants you to pay
more. They want you to feel it in your wallet.
They want you to think twice about visiting the
doctor or seeking medical attention.
Eliminate
Pensions: Eliminate Job
Security: The Company has many other issues
that are still on the bargaining table and some
of them are: Every member must tell every manager - every day - that we will not allow Verizon to destroy our benefits and to destroy the middle class jobs that CWA and IBEW have fought so hard to create over the last 50 years of collective bargaining. It is more important than ever that our members continue to mobilize and that EVERY member commit to spending at least 4 hours per week participating in mobilization activities. There are new mobilization activities planned for this week and every member must be involved in every activity If you have not got involved it
is time to IT IS TIME TO GET ANGRY IT IS TIME TO GET INVOLVED IT’S TIME TO FIGHT BACK
Mobilize! – Mobilize! – Mobilize! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- VCS Bargaining Report 45 May 7, 2012 Your VCS Bargaining Team met with
the Company again last week and we still have
not resolved any of the major issues.
Your Committee presented to the Company a “what
if” scenario concerning health care.
I realize that this will come as a surprise to everyone but the Company said NO. We will continue to try and find a way to resolve our negotiations with the Company in a satisfactory fashion but we need each of you to get involved because without each of you this task will be even more difficult than it already is at this time. We need each of you to tell the Company on a daily basis that we will not allow the Company to destroy your benefits and to destroy the middle class jobs that CWA and IBEW have fought so hard to create since the inception of VCSI in 1995. We need your help so we can prevail in this crucial battle. The future is on the line so if you haven’t started yet begin to mobilize today and contact your Local office to find out what you can do. As our overall numbers in VCS continue to dwindle we must all carry our weight in this fight and each of us must clearly let the Company know that we expect more than what they are currently offering to the individuals that helped them generate the profits they are enjoying. We must stay strong and let this corporation know that we will fight to secure our future and the future of our family’s. CORPORATE GREED can be their only motivation because this is a very profitable corporation and they can afford to treat all of us FAIRLY. We must continue to MOBILIZE
everyday because together we can prevail.
One of our main targets must continue to be
every Verizon Wireless Store throughout our
areas, coordinated with your Local, as well as
our other activities on the job and in our
communities. In order for all of us to be
successful, your assistance is essential to
accomplish our goals in this round of
negotiations. Thanks for your support in
the past and now more than ever we need your
continued support so we can all win this
FIGHT!!
IT’S TIME TO TAKE BACK THE MIDDLE
CLASS!!
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The Return To Work Agreement is below, great job to all who participated in the strike!
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CWA Supporters Help Keep the Heat on Verizon, Verizon Wireless
Three-time Grammy winner Steve Earle last week called out Verizon Communications for hitting up workers for another $20,000 a year in compensation cuts while posting another record earnings quarter this year.
· Unity@Verizon · May 18, 2012
Grammy Award Winning Musician, Actor, Writer Steve Earle Boosts WorkersÂ’ Fight at Verizon
Thousands of Verizon employees heard a message from Steve Earle last week calling out Verizon Communications for hitting up workers for another $20,000 a year in compensation cuts while posting another record earnings quarter this year. As part of Shareholder Spring, nearly 1,000 workers,...
· Unity@Verizon · May 18, 2012
Activists Rally Against VeriGreedy Verizon
Hundreds of CWA members, activists and allies descended on Verizon's annual shareholders meeting on Thursday, protesting the company's excessive corporate greed and war against the middle class.
· Unity@Verizon · May 18, 2012

