Workers Memorial Day: Remember the Dead; Fight Like Hell for the Living

On April 28, CWAers will join with other workers to honor those who have lost their lives while on the job. International Workers Memorial Day was established in 1989 by the AFL-CIO and is a solemn commemoration observed around the world.

Every worker wants a work environment free from unnecessary dangers. However, the Trump administration is continuing its assault on worker safety, further weakening the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s heat standards. Click here to read a statement from AFL-CIO President Liz Schuler on the latest directive and its impacts on workers.

The Workers Memorial Day theme for this year is "Hold the Line for Safe Jobs." The AFL-CIO has posted a Workers Memorial Day toolkit with resources you can use as you raise awareness and commemorate the lives of those we have lost. In addition, you can download their "Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect" annual report here.

CWA, along with other labor unions and organizations, continues to fight for worker safety against unnecessary and destructive cuts that will inevitably lead to increased worker-related injuries, illnesses, and deaths.

Our job is never finished when it comes to worker health and safety protections. We must safeguard the rights we have won and keep fighting for safer working conditions in every workplace, industry, and sector. That is why on Workers Memorial Day we mourn the dead and fight for the living.

Click here to learn more about CWA’s Health and Safety Department.

Last week, members of Wells Fargo Workers United (WFWU-CWA) joined union allies including the North Carolina AFL-CIO, UNITE Here!, and SEIU 32BJ in Charlotte, N.C., to demand a fair union contract for workers. Bargaining is currently underway at 29 locations, but management has stalled negotiations.

Following the rally, workers delivered a signed petition to Wells Fargo management calling out the company for their delays at the bargaining table. WFWU-CWA members have been in bargaining with Wells Fargo for nearly two years.

“If Wells Fargo management is serious about protecting its workers and customers, they will come to the bargaining table and settle members' contracts currently in bargaining at 29 branches across the country,” said CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. “So long as workers feel like their jobs are in danger, they will stay quiet and the system will continue to work against its own workers and customers.”

In response to the bank’s aggressive anti-union tactics, including intimidation and illegal termination of union members, CWA has filed over 60 unfair labor practice charges against the bank with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

 
At a rally for members of Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA members in Charlotte, N.C., (left to right) North Carolina AFL-CIO President Braxton Winston, CWA President Claude Cummings Jr., and CWA Human Rights Committee Senior Campaign Lead Timmia Wiley marched with members and allies to deliver a signed banner petition calling on management to get serious about a fair contract.

 
LanguageLine Solutions workers seeking to form their union took their fight to New York City Hall last week. Workers posed with New York City Councilmember Julie Won (center).

Last week, interpreters at Teleperformance subsidiary LanguageLine Solutions (LLS) joined New York City Council members and New York City Comptroller Mark Levine in calling for the company to respect its workers’ right to form a union and improve working conditions. Leaders of powerful council committees overseeing city contracts, workforce development, and labor stood with LLS interpreters at a press conference on the steps of City Hall to announce the formation of a new committee on health and safety and demanded that management meet to address concerns impacting their ability to provide quality interpretation services to New Yorkers.

Click here to read the full press release.

Following a one-week extension for a new contract, CWA AT&T Orange Mobility members are mobilizing to show AT&T—and CEO John Stankey—what they think of their foul offers at the bargaining table. CWA Locals 9511, 4900, 7250, and 7901 held signs debunking the company’s “generous” offers as “stankey.” CWAers at AT&T Orange Mobility deserve a strong contract and will do what it takes to get it.

Last week, members of the Game and Media Workers Guild of Canada (CWA Canada Local 30111) ended a months-long battle with game developer Ubisoft over its decision to shutter its operation in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Members voted overwhelmingly to accept the terms of a settlement, the specifics of which have not been made public due to a non-disclosure agreement. The company announced the decision to close the Halifax office in January shortly after workers there organized their union.

“It came as a surprise to all of us and to the front-line managers as we were in the middle of many ongoing and new projects, and doing great work,” former Ubisoft Halifax employee Jon Huffman said in a statement from CWA Canada. “We are extremely grateful to our union for negotiating this package for us.”

“The success of the negotiation was directly attributable to the solidarity our members showed, their resolve in holding Ubisoft to account, the collecting and sharing of information, and remaining steadfast in advocating for their rights as unionized workers,” said President of CWA-SCA Canada Carmel Smyth.

France-based Ubisoft is one of the world’s biggest video game developers, employing 17,000 people globally, including over 4,000 in Toronto, Winnipeg, and four cities in Quebec. President Smyth acknowledged that, though not an easy negotiation, Ubisoft respected the union and acted in good faith to reach a resolution.

Members of The NewsGuild-CWA’s Pacific Media Workers Guild (TNG-CWA Local 39521) have joined in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Foundation of Northern California on March 25 against the City of Modesto, Calif., over its unconstitutional ordinance banning masks and personal safety gear at public demonstrations.

From a media release issued by the ACLU, the measure “remains too broad and too vague. It stifles free speech and free expression and infringes on journalists’ constitutionally protected right to report on protests.”

NewsGuild-CWA members fear the measure could lead to selective enforcement, increase uncertainty about what is lawful and what is prohibited, and endanger journalists attempting to perform their jobs. The ordinance prohibits personal protective gear including bike helmets, bandanas, and padded vests. Without reasonable and specific language, the measure could be used to target journalists, protesters, and legal observers and chill peaceful dissent.

“Many journalists, myself included, have been hit by crowd-control weapons or affected by tear gas while covering protests. For the Guild’s members, gas masks, helmets, and goggles constitute basic safety gear necessary to safely document protests in our communities,” said Annie Sciacca, president of the Pacific Media Workers Guild. “State law allows journalists to stay at a protest after an unlawful assembly is declared, but by stripping journalists of necessary safety gear, the ordinance puts us in harm’s way.”

Click here to read more about the lawsuit.

Last week, members of the United Campus Workers at the University of Alabama-Tuscaloosa (UCWSE-Alabama CWA Local 3821) unveiled a new billboard, drawing attention to their ongoing campaign to win a cost of living adjustment for campus workers. Members are currently garnering signatures on a petition they will present to the university administration. In recent months, basic necessities, as well as parking permits and health insurance premiums, have increased, putting pressure on campus workers trying to make ends meet. Many members report having to take second jobs.

“We have over 1,200 signatures on our petition at this point,” said UCWSE-Alabama member Anthony Willing. “We have started to collect more data about people who work second jobs as well so that we can have more stories to share. The billboard has already gotten a lot of traction, and we want to continue building our momentum.”

The Communications Workers of America (CWA) union issued the following statement in response to the order by Chief Judge Troy Nunley of the Eastern U.S. District Court of California in the antitrust case against Nexstar Media Group’s acquisition of Tegna:

CWA applauds the decision by Chief U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley to order a preliminary injunction blocking Nexstar from acquiring TEGNA while the antitrust case against the transaction proceeds.

The federal cap on the number of stations a single company can own is a necessary protection for a free and fair democracy. In defense of our democracy and the interests of the American people, eight state attorneys general initiated the litigation, joined by DIRECTV, to prevent Nexstar from acquiring TEGNA because of the deal’s anticompetitive harms. CWA has expressed its support for this litigation, which seeks to protect local journalism from corporate greed.

Our democracy cannot afford to compromise on media consolidation. Our democracy cannot survive the destruction of local journalism, the people who hold power to account. Today’s injunction is the first step in reclaiming our free, local press from corporate greed.

###

About CWA: The Communications Workers of America represents working people in telecommunications, customer service, media, airlines, health care, public service and education, manufacturing, tech, and other fields.

cwa-union.org @cwaunion

A unionized workforce would ensure quality interpretation services to nearly 1.79 million New Yorkers with limited English proficiency.

(NEW YORK, N.Y.) — As interpreters continue to fight for a union at LanguageLine Solutions (LLS), New York City Council members and New York City Comptroller Mark Levine call on parent company Teleperformance to respect their workers’ right to form a union and improve working conditions. Leaders of powerful council committees overseeing city contracts, workforce development, and labor stood with LLS interpreters at a press conference on the steps of City Hall to announce the formation of a new committee on health and safety and demanded that management meet to address concerns impacting their ability to provide quality interpretation services to New Yorkers.

LanguageLine Solutions serves more than 30,000 clients worldwide, including agencies within the New York City government, which total over $19.3 million in active contracts. LLS interpreters ensure fair language access via telephonic interpretation in situations that impact the health, legal rights, and finances of approximately 1.79 million New Yorkers with limited English proficiency (LEP).

Despite their essential work, interpreters face stressful working conditions, inadequate training, and low pay. According to a survey of LLS employees conducted by CWA, over 80 percent of respondents felt their ability to interpret well is impacted negatively by company policies that pressure interpreters to take calls back-to-back, and a majority of workers report gaps in medical and legal training. These unfair working conditions result in high employee turnover, which places at risk the quality of service they are able to provide to New York City’s immigrant communities.

“As interpreters, we are the voice of New Yorkers in their most important moments—in hospitals and courtrooms, accessing city services, financial services, or even calling 911,” said Yuliia Moshkova, Russian interpreter at LanguageLine Solutions. “Our working conditions are New Yorkers’ service conditions, and we need LLS management to work with us to address health and safety issues on the job that are impacting our ability to provide quality interpretation services.”

"As a New Yorker who grew up relying on interpretation and translation services, I would not be here today without the essential services provided by the interpreters at LanguageLine Solutions," said Council Member Julie Won. "These workers provide reliable interpretation that bridges the communication gap between patients and doctors, families and services, people and justice. It is heartbreaking to hear from our interpreters today about horrid pay and terrible working conditions. The City has allocated millions to interpretation services, and so there is no other choice but to listen to these workers and support their right to organize."

"The hundreds of languages spoken across the five boroughs every day are what make New York City such a special place," said City Comptroller Mark Levine. "Many of these New Yorkers rely on the LanguageLine interpreters, who ensure that no matter what you speak, you can understand the city services available to you. Our interpreters deserve better pay and conditions to carry out this vital civil service, and I am proud to stand with them in this fight."

"Interpreters at LanguageLine Solutions have reported meager wages, inadequate training, and impossibly short break times,” said Assistant to the Vice President of CWA District 1 Billy Gallagher. “These interpreters are fighting for a union to improve conditions not only for themselves but for everyone who depends on them. CWA will fight alongside these workers every step of the way until LanguageLine Solutions does the right thing and respects these workers' right to organize."

“Interpretation service workers are vital for the well-being of our city. When they are overworked with few workplace protections, it makes it harder for them to do their work effectively and harms our communities in turn. I encourage the CEO of LanguageLine Solutions to hear his workers’ demands and create better conditions for all interpreters,” said Council Member Alexa Avilés.

“New Yorkers depend on interpretation services to access essential care, education, and city resources, and those services are only as strong as the workers who provide them,” said Council Member Harvey Epstein. “The reports from LanguageLine interpreters raise serious concerns about the quality and reliability of these critical services: unsustainable workloads, inadequate training, and insufficient pay. LanguageLine Solutions must work collaboratively with its workforce to ensure fair conditions, stability, and dignity on the job. Doing so is not only the right thing for workers, but essential to delivering the high-quality services that millions of New Yorkers rely on every day.”

A subsidiary of French multinational Teleperformance, LLS is party to the Teleperformance-UNI Global Agreement on Social Responsibility, which affords workers the right to organize a union free of management interference and intimidation. While LLS has implemented this agreement in other countries, the company is refusing to fully implement the agreement in the United States. Workers under this agreement are afforded the right to have elected representatives in a Health and Safety Committee that meets with management to address concerns. LanguageLine Solutions workers have formed such a committee and are ready to meet with Teleperformance management to resolve issues affecting their physical and mental health on the job.

With vital services to millions of New Yorkers at stake, the New York City Council is escalating its demands for Teleperformance to improve working conditions and recognize the interpreters’ right to organize a union. Previously, the City Council and former Comptroller Brad Lander sent a letter to Teleperformance leadership. In today’s press conference, members of the Council and other elected officials stood shoulder-to-shoulder with workers to repeat their demands, including Councilmember and Chair of the Workforce Development Committee Julie Won, Councilmember and Chair of the Contracts Committee Lincoln Rester, Councilmember and Chair of the Labor Committee Shirley Aldebol, Councilmember Alexa Avilés, Comptroller Mark Levine, and Brad Lander.

###

About CWA: The Communications Workers of America represents working people in telecommunications, customer service, media, airlines, health care, public service and education, manufacturing, tech, and other fields.

cwa-union.org @cwaunion

In March, Flight Attendants at United Airlines, represented by AFA-CWA, reached a tentative agreement with the company after more than four years of bargaining. This agreement came during mediated bargaining and is expected to improve base pay, impose restrictions on red-eye flying, and improve language on accommodations.

Notably, the agreement includes language setting boarding pay. This contract would continue to solidify boarding pay as a new standard for compensation going forward. If ratified, the improved pay scales and boarding pay would go into effect on May 31, with the June schedule month.

The tentative agreement will go to AFA-CWA members for a vote starting on April 23, with voting concluding on May 12.

The tentative agreement was made possible by the determination of AFA-CWA United Airlines Flight Attendants and the hard work of the AFA-CWA United Master Executive Council.