Business Manager’s Report - July 2011
Our current Collective Bargaining Agreement with Verizon expires at midnight on August 6th. The same expiration date applies for approximately 45,000 Verizon employees represented by the IBEW and CWA from Massachusetts to Washington, DC and Maryland, including New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
Representatives of both unions met with Verizon on June 3rd in Washington, DC. At that time, Verizon detailed their costs of providing health care benefits to both active and retired employees and their dependents, which totals $3.6 billion for active and retired Verizon employees - $14,700 annually for medical benefits on average for active employees, and $10,900 , on average, for retirees (both Medicare and non-Medicarre eligible).
Verizon put the unions on warning that to stay competitive, they would be proposing major changes to our Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Regional bargaining with Verizon formally began on June 22nd. The IBEW in New England is bargaining jointly with the CWA in New York on regional issues, which are defined as wages, health care benefits, pensions, and job security for the former NYNEX region. True to their word, Verizon has proposed major and catastrophic diminishments to our existing Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Specifically, in the area of health care benefits, Verizon has proposed to eliminate all existing health care plans effective January 1st,2012. The existing plans would be replaced, under the Company proposal, by two medical plans.
Option 1 is an in-network and out-of-network plan, and Option 2 is an in-network only plan. Under Option 1, employees would contribute a $390 annual co-pay , or $990 if they smoke. A family plan would require an annual co-pay of $1380 – or $1980 if any family member smokes.
Under Option 2, a single plan employee who smokes would be required to pay $1420 annually, while non-smokers would pay $820. Family plan contributions would be $3810 annually if any family member smokes and $3200 for non-smokers. By the way, if you claim you don’t smoke and and Verizon finds out that you or a family member does smoke, that would be considered a Code of Business Conduct violation.
In addition to the contribution required, members would have to dish out an annual deductible of $1000 for a single plan, or $3000 for a family plan (under Option 1). Annual out-of-pocket maximums would be an additional $2000 per individual and $6000 per family. Other lowlights include a proposed $200 emergency room co-pay, chiropractic treatment only covered to 60 percent, and hospital stays only 80 percent covered in-network and 60 percent out of network.
Option 2 would include in network-only out of pocket annual maximums of $1000 for a single plan and $3000 for a family plan. Anything out-of-network would not be covered.
In addition, Verizon has proposed eliminating all Class II dependents.
Verizon has also passed a proposal across the table which would give the Company the ability to share calls among many centers “with no limitations, geographic or otherwise, on the Company’s right to transfer and route calls between and among centers, CONTRACTOR LOCATIONS, and individuals working at home”.
In addition, Verizon has proposed to:
· Eliminate the movement of work .7% restriction language. This would impact the CSSC, MCO, FSC, CFS-Collections, APC, and NAC.
· Eliminate Job Security language for all employees.
· Eliminate any wage increase unless employees make a year-end performance appraisal.
· Eliminate Corporate Profit Sharing.
· Institute a Pension Band freeze effective 12-31-2011.
· Eliminate the Pension Lump-Sum Cashout option.
· Reduce Sickness and Disability pay by 50%.
· Terminate the Next Step program effective 1-1-2012.
· Eliminate paid ½ day before Christmas.
· Terminate the Work and Family fund.
· Eliminate Short-Notice EWDs
· Payment for incidental absence would be a maximum of 5 days with 20 years service, 4 days for 15-20 years, 3 days for 7 to 15 years, 2 days for 2-7 years, and 0 days for employees with less than 2 years service.
To beat back these offensive proposals, and to demonstrate that the IBEW and CWA are committed to fight to protect collective bargaining gains earned through negotiations over the past several decades, we need your support.
VOTE FOR STRIKE AUTHORIZATION
MOBILIZE – STAY UNITED
VERIZON MUST BE PUT ON NOTICE THAT OUR MEMBERS DEMAND NOTHING LESS THAN A FAIR AND JUST CONTRACT.
