The largest union on the East Coast said yesterday that it would urge its members to switch their telephone service from Verizon to competitor AT&T unless Verizon workers win the job concessions they seek.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) made the announcement as labor contract negotiations stalled over issues of health benefits, job security and overtime. No talks were held yesterday because of the electrical power outage in the Northeast.
Earlier this week, union leaders representing Verizon’s 78,000 employees in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast threatened a campaign to persuade Verizon’s customers to switch to AT&T. The Communications Workers of America and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers are trying to pressure the company to agree to their contract demands.
In announcing his support of the campaign, AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee said the union representing 750,000 East Coast government workers “will do everything we can to help them win a new contract that preserves their jobs and provides the health care benefits and working conditions they deserve.”
Officials at the nation’s largest local phone company said any move by the unions to hurt the company’s business would hurt employees worse by resulting in layoffs.
Negotiations that broke off last week resumed Tuesday with the help of federal mediators trying to avert a strike.
Verizon’s management says the company could lose its competitive edge in the telecommunications market if it agrees to the union’s demands.
For the unions, a primary concern is a contract provision that limits Verizon to moving no more than 0.7 percent a year of jobs in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast to other places. Verizon wants to increase the percentage to 8 percent a year.
“They want to move those jobs to lower-wage areas,” said Vincent Cody, a Verizon systems technician in Warrenton, Va. “We’ve seen what happened with AT&T. They’re moving all their jobs to India.”
Verizon denies that it would move the jobs overseas.
Telephone service in 12 states and the District could be affected by a strike. The employees represented by the CWA and IBEW include repair and installation technicians, and customer service operators.
About 10,000 of the employees work in the Washington area. The two largest offices are in Arlington and Silver Spring, with dozens of smaller technical-work centers throughout the area.
Talks are scheduled to resume Monday. The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service intervened in the negotiations after a strike deadline passed at midnight Aug. 2.
Verizon has said that “all the issues are connected and boil down to the company’s need to create a more competitive cost structure.”
Spokesmen for the unions refused to comment, saying they are following a “press blackout” ordered by the federal mediators last week until the negotiations are completed.
“We don’t want the parties negotiating in the press,” said Jack Toner, a spokesman for the mediators.
He would not predict when a final agreement was likely.
“I don’t know,” Mr. Toner said. “They’re down to tough issues.”
With about $67 billion in annual revenues and 221,000 employees, Verizon’s telecommunications network extends throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia.
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