Verizon workers vote to authorize strike, if necessary

Verizon headquarters in Manhattan on May 12, 2015.

Verizon wireline unit workers located in the East Coast have voted in favor of a strike if necessary, with contract negotiations continuing as of Saturday.

“Our members are clear and they are determined”, said Dennis Trainor, an official with the Communications Workers of America union.

“Our users are understandable plus they are also established – they will decline management’s hard concessionary desires, also the expulsion of work peace of mind, distinct raises in workers’ health treatment charges, and reducing…”

Although the contract that the CWA and the worldwide Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) have with Verizon, which covers 38,000 workers at the telco, expires at midnight on Saturday, August 1, neither side has been able to come to an agreement yet.

According to the trade union, 86 percent of Verizon workers authorized a strike. The unions said that the telecom giant is demanding that workers sharply increase their healthcare contributions and make concessions on pensions, a demand which it believes is against the welfare of its members and would not be accepted at any cost.

Rich Young, spokesman of Verizon, said the company has offered the union “a solid proposal that recognizes the changing communications landscape and offers a path toward success”.

Numerous aspects of the contracts that were set “decades ago” were no longer relevant in an industry that was facing increased pressure and structural change, Young said.

Earlier in August 2011, close to 45000 workers of Verizon had gone on strike for a couple of weeks. In view of the threat of a strike, Verizon is training non-unionized workers to take over additional roles to ensure services are not disrupted if the unionized staff would walk off their jobs.