Two AFA-CWA Flight Attendants, Ian Epstein and Danasia Elder, were among those lost when American Airlines/PSA Flight 5342 collided with an Army helicopter in Washington, D.C., last week.

Our thoughts and prayers remain with their friends, families, and co-workers and with all those who were affected by this disaster.

Online donations to AFA-CWA’s Disaster Relief Fund (processed through Sunday, February 9) will be directed to Ian and Danasia’s families. The donation link is https://unionly.io/o/afadrf/relieffund.

You may also send a check to:

AFA-CWA Disaster Relief Fund
Re: AA/PSA 5342 Crash Victims
501 3rd Street, NW
Washington, DC  20001

Members of IUE-CWA Local 83761 voted last week to accept a new four-year contract with GE Appliances at the Haier worksite in Louisville, Ky. Over 5,000 IUE-CWA-represented workers there produce washers, dryers, dishwashers, and refrigerators.

The new contract includes more affordable healthcare, which would reduce deductibles by approximately 60%. It also contains a clearer career progression system with annual wage increases at career milestones, as well as additional holidays including Juneteenth. The new wage tier system will see approximately 1,800 workers boosted to the highest tier based on their seniority compared to the current 300 at that tier, a major victory for members.

IUE-CWA Local 83761 President Dino Driskell told the Courier Journal, “Trying to equally distribute what we can negotiate is hard…but everybody is getting contractual wage increases every year, and that's something we can continue to build on.” A major concern was high worker turnover due to a lack of clarity on career progression and underwhelming pay. The new contract is an attempt by both the members and the company to attract and retain workers.

Take a look back at the start of bargaining here.

Last week, workers at the Harris Center for Mental Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) won recognition for their union with CWA. The Harris Center, a government agency in Houston, Texas, employs approximately 2,600 workers with a mission to assist those with behavioral health and developmental needs so that they can live productive, connected lives.

The Harris Center Board of Trustees unanimously granted the union official recognition and established critical workplace rights, including payroll deduction for union dues, the right to hold union events in the workplace, union representation in disciplinary hearings, regular CEO meetings with union leaders, and direct union presentations to the Board. Since public employees in Texas do not have collective bargaining rights, this framework is the strongest possible legal structure for unionization in the state.

This victory comes after two years of dedicated organizing and mobilizing by the workers’ organizing committee and District 6 Staff. The campaign was led by District 6 Senior Campaign Lead Seth Hutchinson and Assistant Campaign Lead Sheronica Watson.

With this win, Harris Center employees will now be eligible to join CWA Local 6154, which already represents workers at Integral Care in Austin. This marks the second public agency in Texas to join CWA, strengthening our collective power in the state.

In January, members of CWA Local 7250 working for ADT in Shoreview, Minn., approved a first contract, winning overtime pay for ADT technicians after eight hours and better sick time standards. The new standard will be based on the 2023 Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Leave Act signed into law by Governor Tim Walz.

These gains were made possible by strong, creative mobilization tactics. In August, members arrived at an appreciation breakfast hosted by management with over 30 empty coffee mugs, each with the name of a coworker who had left the job. This simple yet effective gesture set the tone for bargaining, demonstrating the members’ solidarity and commitment to improving working conditions.

Members of CWA Local 7250 were assisted by CWA District 7 Staff Marvin Wells and the members from other ADT-CWA units from around the country, particularly those from Salt Lake City.

Take a look back at the start of the campaign.

Last week, two members of the CWA National Artificial Intelligence Committee, with support from CWA Director of Research Nell Geiser and Assistant Director of Research Dan Reynolds, spoke on a webinar aimed at providing insight into the many iterations of AI and their varied impacts on workers.

Audience members learned about CWA’s AI Principles and explored findings from worker surveys and CWA members' workplaces demonstrating how AI tools have been used by employers in harmful ways that worsen stress and do not improve service quality. Benjamin Harnett, Principal Data Engineer at the New York Times and steward for the New York Times Tech Guild-CWA Local 31003, said, “Many times in the past, I’ve had an initiative foisted upon me without consultation, which more thought and deliberation would have determined to be a tremendous waste of resources and time.” A core recommendation by CWA is that employers be required to bargain over design and implementation of new technologies with frontline workers prior to adoption.

Jerome Morrison, Secretary-Treasurer of the Meow Wolf Workers’ Collective-CWA Local 7055, stressed the need for clear language to distinguish one AI tool from another. “AI is too much of a catch-all term,” said Morrison. “Are we dealing with machine learning, automated management software, surveillance technology? All of these terms are important for you to have strong language for your contract negotiations and for requests for information you may file.”

Geiser spoke to the role labor unions must play, saying, “Technology embeds existing power relations, and there are no quick fixes, but as labor union representatives, we know that collective bargaining can move faster than public policy to address emergent workplace issues. At the same time, policy can be critical in raising the floor so we don’t have to bargain over basic rights like anti-discrimination and minimum wages.”

The Center for Applied Research on Work (CAROW) at Cornell University sponsored the webinar. Dr. Virginia Doellgast, the Anne Evans Estabrook Professor of Employment Relations and Dispute Resolution at Cornell's Industrial and Labor Relations School, moderated the discussion, which built upon a conference examining AI impacts on workers held at Cornell last September, co-organized by CWA.

Click here to watch the webinar in its entirety.

Last month, CWA members and retirees across the country took time to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. For decades, CWA members and retirees have taken action to further the ideals of inclusivity and equity both within CWA and nationally. This year, they celebrated the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by recommitting to the fight for a just society for all.

National Action Network MLK Breakfast (Washington, D.C.)

CWA President Claude Cummings, Public, Healthcare and Education Workers Vice President Margaret Cook, Chair of the CWA National Women’s Committee Yolanda Pearson, and Chair of the CWA National Civil Rights & Equity Committee Reginald Pearson attended the National Action Network's MLK Breakfast in Washington, D.C.

Martin Luther King III and other members of the King family also attended this annual celebration.

Public, Healthcare and Education Workers Vice President Margaret Cook, Chair of the CWA National Civil Rights & Equity Committee Reginald Pearson, and Chair of the CWA National Women’s Committee Yolanda Pearson met for breakfast and to celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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Atlanta MLK Day March (Atlanta, Ga.)

Chair of the CWA National Women’s Committee Yolanda Pearson joined CWA Local 3204 President Ed Barlow and the CWA Local 3204 March Committee to participate in the MLK Day March.

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Atlanta MLK Prayer Breakfast (Atlanta, Ga.)

Association of Flight Attendants-CWA International President Sara Nelson spoke at the Atlanta MLK Prayer Breakfast on January 17. She highlighted Dr. King’s lasting message, saying, “Dr. King often said that ‘injustice anywhere is a threat to everywhere.’ In labor we say, ‘An injury to one is an injury to all.’ This concept of solidarity applies across all lines that might normally divide us: by race, by gender, by national origin, by religion; you name it. The boss has used those labels to divide us for hundreds of years: to pit workers against one another as a means of control and to suppress wages. They work to divide us to keep us down and to avoid a real and meaningful showdown between capital and labor.”

You can read her full remarks here.

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2025 MLK Celebration Commemorative Festival (Phoenix, Ariz.)

CWA Local 7050 Executive Vice President Tayqwoiseceyon Akins and CWA Local 7019 Assistant Vice President Vonda Wilkins, representing the National CWA Human Rights Committee, participated in coalition-building at the Arizona “We Still Believe In The Dream” MLK Celebration.

The event brought together local non-profit organizations and businesses, with Akins and Wilkins assisting with A.P.R.I. (Apprenticeship Programs for Racial Inclusion) informational tabling. The team provided key information about pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs aimed at supporting African-American children and adults in the community.

In addition to sharing these valuable resources, the event featured 50/50 raffles, free book giveaways, and information on how to join the Phoenix A.P.R.I. Chapter. Attendees were also educated on the vital importance of labor rights for workers in Arizona, strengthening the connection between labor and the African-American community.

Left to right: CWA Local 7050 Executive Vice President Tayqwoiseceyon Akins and CWA Local 7019 Area Vice President Vonda Wilkins joined Ny'Zjhae Jones, Jackson Reed, and Apprenticeship Programs for Racial Inclusion President Rasean Clayton at the 2025 MLK Celebration Commemorative Festival.

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Keeping the Dream Alive in 2025 (Hattiesburg, Miss.)

Federal call center workers for Maximus (members of Call Center Workers United-CWA Local 3509) celebrated MLK Day with food, fun, and awards for their hard work organizing for better wages and healthcare. CWA Local 3509 President Michael Hodges joined the festivities to welcome the call center workers and pledge support for their fight. Maximus workers from both the Hattiesburg, Miss., and Bogalusa, La., sites met with organizers from Step-Up Louisiana, an organization fighting for Dollar General and Family Dollar in Louisiana. Local political candidates for city council also took part.

True to the theme of “Keeping the Dream Alive in 2025: Celebrating MLK's Legacy and Our Achievements for Working People,” attendees watched a slideshow and discussed the campaign’s organizing wins and actions. CCWU-CWA Executive Vice President Anna Flemmings (Hattiesburg call center) and CCWU-CWA Executive Vice President Katrina Berry (Bogalusa call center) presented awards to activists like Lakeisha Preston (pictured below) for their dedication and service.

The Trump administration has issued a number of executive orders and memos that are already impacting many union members, federal workers, and people all across the country.

That’s why the AFL-CIO is collecting stories from workers and working families who are affected by the Trump administration’s new policies.

The AFL-CIO wants to hear from you: How do these new policies impact your job? How do they impact the government funding and services that matter to you, your family, and your community?

Sign up here and share your story.

PHOTO CREDIT: Alexandra Wimley, Pittsburgh Union Progress, member of TNG-CWA Local 38061.

Name: Emily Matthews
Local: The Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh, TNG-CWA Local 38061
Workplace: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Job Title: Photojournalist
Experience: 8 years
Strike Time: 27 months
Quote: “I continue to strike and fight for a fair contract because I believe we all deserve to have a say in our working conditions.”
Inspiration: “I’m inspired by the tenacity, camaraderie, and spirit of my fellow strikers. It's been difficult to be on strike for over two years, but knowing that I'm on strike with the most amazing people reinforces my reason for doing this and encourages me to keep going.”

To support striking workers and families, you can do any of these three things today:

1. Donate to the strike fund that's used to pay for rent, utility bills, car repairs, groceries, and to keep their pets alive and well.
   
2. Order a T-shirt repping their strike publication, the Pittsburgh Union Progress. All proceeds go to the same strike fund.
   
3. Subscribe to the Pittsburgh Union Progress for free news on the strike, the lives of working people in Western PA and beyond, and more.