Monthly Archives: September 2011

Summary Of NY State Coordinating Council Meeting

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1101 Executive Vice President Angel Feliciano, wearing glasses.

Executive VP Angel Feliciano

Summary Of NY State Coordinating Council Meeting

Bargaining update;

We asked for early bargaining in Oct/Nov time frame, the company refused.

We wanted to start in March and they had no interest.

The company was looking to come in late with all their demands and leave them on the table until August 6th, hoping we would not strike and have to accept them.

It was not until we struck that they realized we would not accept their retrogression, and decided to get serious.

We went out to make them negotiate in earnest.

They have pulled a number of their demands, but the serious issues remain.

They have agreed to negotiate from our current medical plan, not scrap it and develop a whole new plan.

We knew this would be a long process, which could take months, once they agreed to negotiate it did not make sense to make our Members lose several months pay and benefits unnecessarily.

They had refused to extend our contract, we would have been working without a contract. Because of strike they agreed to extend the full contract, everything is in effect.

Clearly we could not have foreseen the hurricane when we made decision, but even if we were out, we would have had to send our people back because of storm damage, or would have lost public support.

They have made it clear they are running negative ads because we are still handbilling their wireless stores. We will not stop, and must intensify, especially with iPhone 5 coming.

We will be announcing a stepped up mobilization and a “CWA Day of Rage” shortly.

Several of our allies, including CWA Local 1180 have agreed to adopt wireless phone stores to handbill.

We will not sign contract without guarantee of arbitration for strike related suspensions.

Other activities discussed, but not to be put in writing.

Stomp Out Bullying

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Make October 3rd the day that bullying and cyberbullying prevention are heard around the world by wearing a BLUE SHIRT in solidarity to STOMP Out Bullying! 

Thousands of schools across the country are participating

Ask your school to participate on 10-3-11 by having the entire school — students and faculty –GO BLUE and wear a Blue Shirt!

Whether it’s our “Limited Edition” Shirt as seen below or your own Blue Shirt we want to see every school in a sea of Blue across the country and throughout the world!us the name and location of your school and we’ll add your school’s name to our BLUE SHIRT DAY™ – WORLD DAY OF BULLYING PREVENTION supporter list on our website.

Take photos of everyone at school wearing blue and EMAIL Jpegs to art.stompoutbullying@gmail.com  and we’ll post your photos on our web site

Communities across the country are participating by asking employees to wear blue shirts to work.

EMAIL us the name and location of your company and we’ll add it to our BLUE SHIRT DAY™ – WORLD DAY OF BULLYING PREVENTION supporter list on our website.

Take photos of everyone at work wearing blue and EMAIL Jpegs to art.stompoutbullying@gmail.com and we’ll post on our web site

We’re Turning Up The Heat In Our Fight For Middle Class Jobs At Verizon And Verizon Wireless

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Verizon and Verizon Wireless – along with millions of tech geeks worldwide – are eagerly anticipating the release of the iPhone 5. Now is the time to ramp up our mobilization for a fair contract! CWA members will picket and rally at Verizon work locations on Thursday, September 29th. On Friday, September 30th and Saturday, October 1st, we head to Verizon Wireless and Apple stores. With your help, we’ll cover those stores with leafleters.

Our two-week strike in August showed Verizon and Verizon Wireless that it could not keep stonewalling us at the bargaining table. We showed management—and all of America—that working people will stand up against corporate greed and keep fighting to defend the American Dream. Now we will be bargaining from CWA’s health care proposals at Verizon and Verizon Wireless. And we are forcing management to focus on our demand to bring thousands of outsourced and off-shored jobs back into the bargaining unit.

To win a fair and just contract, we need to turn up the heat!

If you are a CWA member, talk to your steward or your local to leaflet at a Verizon Wireless or Apple Store near you. Click here for a downloadable copy of an Apple Store leaflet. Click here for a Verizon Wireless store leaflet.

Friends and allies of workers at Verizon and Verizon Wireless: click here to sign our petition. And if you want to “Adopt-a-Store”, and leaflet more than once, click here to sign up.

With the iPhone 5 coming out soon, it’s time to send VeriGreedy a message.

NATIONAL DAYS OF ACTION

SEPT. 29 – OCT. 1
We’re ramping things up with three Days of Action:

SEPT. 29 – OCT. 1
A day of workplace picketing and rallies to show that we are still angry, still strong, and ready to do whatever it takes.

Sept. 30 – Oct. 1
Working with our allies inside and outside the labor movement, massive leafleting at Wireless stores and Apple stores.

Download the District One flyer here.

We’re Turning Up The Heat!

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It’s time to ramp things up. Join the National Days of Action, including workplace mobilization, leafleting at Wireless stores, and leafleting at Apple stores as the iPhone 5 release approaches.

Our two-week strike in August showed Verizon and Verizon Wireless that it could not keep stonewalling us at the bargaining table. Several concessionary demands have been removed from the table, including their demands to slash MLK’s Birthday and Veterans Day as holidays and to eliminate the special city allowance.

Now we are bargaining from CWA’s proposals to save money on health care and prevent unilateral management changes in health care at Verizon Wireless. And we will force management to focus on our demand to bring thousands of outsourced and offshored jobs back into the bargaining unit.

We’ve made progress, but Verizon is still insisting on hundreds of millions in concessions.

It’s time to step up the pressure.

The fight against Verizon and Verizon Wireless corporate greed continues. Let management know that we are prepared to do whatever it takes to get a good contract.

Join the Mobilization!

NATIONAL DAYS OF ACTION

SEPT. 29 – OCT. 1
We’re ramping things up with three Days of Action:

Sept. 29, 2011
A day of workplace picketing and rallies to show that we are
still angry, still strong, and ready to do whatever it takes.

Sept. 30 and Oct. 1
Working with our allies inside and outside the labor movement,
massive leafleting at Wireless stores and Apple stores. 

Download the flyer here.

Unions’ Intense Lobbying Stops Republicans From Crippling NLRB

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CWA and other unions Wednesday defeated an effort by Republicans on the Senate Appropriations Committee to prevent the National Labor Relations Board from carrying out its mission to protect workers against employers’ unfair labor practices.

The fight will continue on the Senate floor where Republicans want to strip the agency of its legal power and responsibilities to protect union workers from employers’ retaliation.

The fight stems from an amendment introduced by Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.) to bar the NLRB from pursuing a case against Boeing, which is charged with retaliating against union employees by moving work from Washington state to a new, non-union production line in South Carolina.

The amendment was defeated in a 14-14 tie. While it focused on Boeing, it would have prevented the NLRB from pursuing any cases involving companies that move work from a union to a non-union plant to retaliate for lawful union activity.

Hundreds of union members’ calls to the offices of two wavering Democrats persuaded Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska to join with 13 other Democrats in voting against the measure. Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas voted with Republicans.

“The actions the NLRB has taken under both Republican and Democratic majorities against employers that have engaged in blatant violation of human rights protected in law would no longer be possible if this amendment were to pass,” CWA Legislative Director Shane Larson said in a letter to Nelson and other members of Congress.

He warned that the amendment “would set back decades of labor law and was an attack on all working people, their rights and their jobs.”

The campaign to stop the Senate from weakening the NLRB is essential because the House already has passed legislation to prevent the agency from acting to defend workers in cases such as Boeing’s.

But efforts by CWA and other unions did make a difference. Despite the fact that House Republican leaders have effectively declared war on the NLRB, the lobbying campaign persuaded seven GOP representatives to join House Democrats in voting against the bill.

Story from CWA-Union

Member update call, Thursday, September 29 @ 7:00 PM EDT

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The next member update call with national and district leadership will be Thursday, September 29, at 7:00 pm EDT.

  1. Register for the call by texting VZCALL to 69866 or at www.cwa-union.org/verizoncall
  2. You can listen on the web at www.cwa-union.org/verizoncall
  3. Your local may be hosting a call at the union hall. Check with your local for information.

Please join us Thursday, September 29 at 7:00 p.m.

If you’d like to submit a question before the call, use the online sign-up form even if you’ve registered previously.

You can sign up for the call now by texting VZCALL to 69866.

1101 Local Elections

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To All Members

The process to determine our future union Local Officers has begun. Petitions to have candidates placed on the ballot will be available in your facility. The signing of a petition only enables a candidate to be placed on the ballot. All eligible members may sign as many petitions as they want to.

The American Arbitration Association will be conducting the official election in October. Every member will receive a secret ballot at their home.

We encourage all members to participate in their democratic right to be involved in the nomination and election of all union officers.

If you have any questions please call the Election Committee at 212-633-2666. Ask to speak to someone on the Election Committee.

Steward and Chief Steward Elections

Election and Nomination for Stewards must be completed during the week of September 26 – 30. Chief Steward Elections must be completed during the week of October 24-28.