When Lumen announced four months ago that it would sell its most profitable mass-market fiber assets to AT&T, workers’ voices and futures were left out of the deal. After decades of loyal service and union contracts, Lumen’s proposed deal offered no protection for workers. CWA District 7 members fought back and reached a tentative agreement this week to protect themselves in case of future sales and to empower more Lumen workers to join our union.

CWAers won this tentative agreement by mobilizing in the workplace, in the community, with state Attorneys General, at state Public Utility Commissions, and at the federal level. Members’ mobilization efforts brought AT&T and Lumen to the table to address member concerns.

The tentative agreement expands neutrality language to all of Lumen and Lumen subsidiaries across the 15-state region of CWA District 7, opening the door to bring more members into our union. CWAers negotiated improved language to ensure that CWA members keep our union and our union contract in the case of future transactions or sales of any part of the Qwest business. Members also secured signing bonuses and annual 4 percent wage increases.

No worker should ever be treated as corporate collateral, to be traded or disposed of as corporate executives carve up the businesses members built. By standing together and fighting back as a union, CWA members at Lumen have asserted their dignity and worth.

Members will be voting on the tentative agreement in the coming weeks.

Last week, CWA members working for Frontier Communications in California held two rallies in support of their bargaining team. These rallies come after weeks of workplace mobilizations across CWA District 9, demanding Frontier bargain in good faith. Members working for Frontier Communications in Connecticut ratified a contract with the company late last month.

CWA Local 9586 hosted a rally on September 26 in Whittier, Calif. Speakers included CWA District 9 Vice President Frank Arce, California Federation of Labor Unions President Lorena Gonzalez, CWA Local 9586 President Rick Ibarra, and Senator Bob Archuleta's Labor Representative Danny Andalon.

“We Frontier California workers have been here working hard,” said CWA Local 9586 President Rick Ibarra. “We worked through the 2016 Verizon to Frontier acquisition. We worked for months through Frontier's unstable network. We endured the Frontier bankruptcy and the COVID pandemic, despite times when Frontier did not have any PPE to give to the customer-facing members and while watching Frontier executives give themselves big bonuses. Frontier should not forget who worked hard and has been maintaining the network all this time. We deserve a fair contract NOW!"

On September 28, members of CWA Local 9588 hosted their own rally in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., repeating the call for Frontier to bargain in good faith. Speakers there included Arce, CWA Local 9588 President Jimi Brubaker, and Inland Empire Labor Council Executive Secretary-Treasurer Ricardo Cisneros.

“CWA District 9 has been committed to supporting Verizon in the acquisition of Frontier and we are dedicated to ensuring career longevity for our Frontier members," said Arce. "However, Frontier is submitting proposals that are completely unacceptable, as if they’re trying to sabotage the acquisition. We will not settle for anything less than meaningful improvements for our members, and we are prepared to fight one day longer than the company to secure a fair and just contract.”

Click here to see pictures of member mobilizations in cities across California.

CWA District 9 Vice President Frank Arce (left of center) joined members of CWA Local 9588 (pictured) in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., and members of CWA Local 9586 in Whittier, Calif., to demand Frontier Communications bargains in good faith.

Last month, public service members, represented by CWA Local 1400, voted overwhelmingly to ratify a new contract with the Town of Westford, Mass. Members work in various departments, including public libraries, the water department, animal control, and emergency dispatch.

Members are dealing with low wages, poor work/life balance, and poor compensation for longevity or advancement. The three-year contract includes 2.5 percent wage increases each year of the contract, a 1 percent wage increase added to Step 9 of all titles, a longevity bonus, and additional vacation time based on years of service. The contract took effect immediately upon ratification, with retroactive pay increases back to July 1.

During contract negotiations in 2022, members of CWA Local 1400 fought hard for a good contract, with widespread mobilizations and even a court case. This year’s bargaining went much more smoothly, with little need for mobilizations or escalations.

Congratulations to the members of CWA Local 1400!

IUE-CWA Local 83761 members Jaelin Carpenter (left), Nathan Schultz (second from right), and Oliver Smith (right) pose with CBS correspondent Mark Strassman (second from left).

When immigrant coworkers came under attack by the Trump Administration’s anti-immigrant policies, members of IUE-CWA Local 83761 spoke out and shared their solidarity far and wide. Last week, CBS Evening News featured IUE-CWA members from Louisville, Ky., sharing how union workers, both immigrant and citizen, have made GE Appliances more productive and globally competitive, creating more American manufacturing jobs.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration, without warning, revoked the legal immigration statuses of more than 150 IUE-CWA members at GE Appliances, causing the workers’ employment to be terminated without notice. Manufacturing lines were thrown into chaos with multiple team members suddenly missing from the line.

"These people were one of the vertebrae in the backbone that is American manufacturing,” Nathan Schultz, an IUE-CWA member, told CBS Evening News.

IUE-CWA Local 83761 members bargained for, and won, the right for workers who are able to secure new legal immigration status to return to work without penalty.

An additional 200 IUE-CWA members at GE Appliances may lose their immigration status in the coming months, dealing another blow to American manufacturing.

GE Appliances has been an American manufacturing success story, recently announcing another $490 million in investments in the Louisville plant, slated to create approximately 800 jobs. IUE-CWA has played a key role in the plant’s comeback. The facility began to expand after the company agreed to participate in IUE-CWA’s LEAN manufacturing program. Unlike corporate-side LEAN programs, IUE-CWA’s approach protects and grows employment at manufacturing sites by increasing efficiency and reducing waste without sacrificing health, safety, or jobs.

“IUE-CWA’s LEAN program is creating more jobs in American manufacturing right here in Louisville,” said Oliver Smith, an IUE-CWA Local 83761 member. “But deporting my coworkers just hurts my line and hurts GE’s ability to put out American-made appliances.”

Watch the CBS Evening News Story here.

NewsGuild-CWA Member Karen Attiah Will Not Be Silenced

After 11 years with the Washington Post, journalist, founding Global Opinions editor, and Washington-Baltimore News Guild (TNG-CWA Local 32035) member Karen Attiah was abruptly fired last month for remarks she made in the aftermath of controversial podcast host Charlie Kirk’s death, condemning America’s acceptance of political violence. Despite her commentary receiving virtually no condemnation or public backlash, management at the Post called her remarks “unacceptable” and “gross misconduct” and accused her of endangering the physical safety of colleagues.

Attiah, in her Substack, commented, “They rushed to fire me without even a conversation—claiming disparagement on race. This was not only a hasty overreach, but also a violation of the very standards of journalistic fairness and rigor the Post claims to uphold.”

The Washington Post Newspaper Guild, in a statement released last month, commits to supporting their union sibling and condemns the Post’s actions. “The Post not only flagrantly disregarded standard disciplinary processes, it also undermined its own mandate to be a champion of free speech. The right to speak freely is the ultimate personal liberty and the foundation of Karen’s 11-year career at the Post.”

You can read the Washington Post Newspaper Guild’s full statement here.

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TSEU-CWA Members Strike Back Against Free Speech Suppression

Also last month, after the dismissal of tenured Texas State University professor Dr. Tom Alter, members of the Texas State Employees Union (TSEU-CWA Local 6186) sprang to his defense, rallying student and community organizations, labor allies, and elected officials to demand his immediate reinstatement. University President Kelly Damphousse terminated Dr. Alter without a hearing, investigation, or meaningful opportunity to respond.

Dr. Alter was fired after giving an off-campus talk as a private citizen at a conference three days prior. His talk was secretly recorded and shared by an aspiring YouTube influencer who is known for extremist rhetoric. In his talk, Dr. Alter outlined the history of socialist movements in America.

TSEU-CWA members launched a petition campaign and then turned to organizing a rally and press conference at the Hays County Historic Courthouse to demand Dr. Alter’s reinstatement and to send a clear message: free speech will not be silenced in Texas. Speakers at the press conference included Public, Healthcare and Education Workers Vice President Margaret Cook; TSEU-CWA President Ilesa Daniels Ross; Leonard Aguilar, Secretary-Treasurer of the Texas AFL-CIO; Texas State Representative Erin Zwiener; San Marcos City Councilmember Amanda Rodriguez; and representatives from other campus and civic groups.

“This is about Tom and his family, but it is bigger than just Tom and his family,” said Ross. “It’s about whether any of us can speak our minds without fear. If we stay silent, we let political pressure and online mobs dictate the rules. But when we organize to fight back, we win.”

On September 27, Hays County District Judge Alicia Key granted a temporary restraining order, reinstating Dr. Alter with back pay and benefits while litigation continues.

Members of TSEU-CWA joined with student, community, and labor allies to oppose the unjust termination of tenured professor Dr. Tom Alter. Public, Healthcare and Education Workers Vice President Margaret Cook (third from right) took part in the rally and press conference.

Community Standing Strong
Last month, in response to an urgent request for aid, grievance team members from IUE-CWA Local 81381 responded to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid in progress on a roofing job in Monroe County, N.Y. Members arrived to find two roofers still on a rooftop while hundreds of community members surrounded the house. One roofer, who had been a legal working resident of the United States for several decades, had already been taken into custody by ICE.

When a cadre of state legislators attending an unrelated press conference nearby arrived, ICE agents fled the scene.

"The experience was empowering,” said CWA Local 81381 President Christina Christman. “Labor leaders, politicians, clergy, and concerned neighbors came together to protect workers in our community from harassment, detainment, and possible deportation. The day after the Supreme Court issued a ruling overturning racial profiling, we as a community stood up for the workers this would negatively impact.”

A Voice for Workers’ Rights and FAIR Treatment
Also last month, IUE-CWA Local 81201 President Adam Kazinsky participated in a N.Y. State House panel discussion on the potential harms of artificial intelligence in the workplace.

Kazinsky gave details of the poor performance of AI systems, especially in the administration of benefits, including workers’ comp, health insurance, PFMLA, short-term disability, and payroll. He cited instances where doctors had stopped accepting employers’ insurance due to needless hurdles imposed by AI. He also spoke about compromised privacy with multiple instances of private medical records being sent to the wrong members. AI systems are also being successfully breached, potentially putting sensitive medical data in the hands of criminals.

“These systems make frequent mistakes,” said Kazinsky, “but never in the worker’s favor. The AI drives and amplifies the old ‘delay, deny, and discourage’ strategy insurance companies have long used. Third-party administrators openly advertise how much money they save employers in claims and missed days by using AI—but those ‘savings’ come directly at the expense of working families.”

Kazinsky urged lawmakers to pass the FAIR Act (Fostering Affordability and Integrity through Reasonable business practices), saying it is “critical to protect timely access to benefits, safeguard medical privacy, and ensure that technology serves people instead of being used to deny them care and income.” The legislation, if passed, would significantly expand consumer protection laws by enabling the Attorney General to take action against unfair, deceptive, and abusive business practices. This act would also lower the threshold for legal action against such practices, broaden the scope of businesses subject to enforcement, and increase consumer protection in the state.

As of this writing, the legislation has passed both the N.Y. Assembly and N.Y. Senate and is awaiting approval by the Governor.