Strike Ends at AT&T Southeast

WASHINGTON, September 16, 2024 – Communications Workers of America members are back on the job at AT&T Southeast Monday, ending a 30-day strike involving 17,000 workers.

The union reached separate tentative agreements Sunday with AT&T Southeast and with AT&T West, where another 8,500 workers were nearing a strike of their own. Members are set to vote on the proposed contracts in the coming weeks.

“I believe in the power of unity, and the unity our members and retirees have shown during these contract negotiations has been outstanding and gave our bargaining teams the backing they needed to deliver strong contracts,” CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. said in a statement.

In the Southeast, the union said the proposed five-year contract includes a universal 19 percent wage increase and lower health care premiums after the first year. The four-year agreement in the West includes a 15 percent wage boost and “improvements to overtime and scheduling.”

“As we’ve said since day 1, our goal has been to reach fair agreements that recognize the hard work our employees do to serve our customers with competitive market-based pay and benefits that are among the best in the nation – and that’s exactly what was accomplished,” AT&T COO Jeff McElfresh said in a statement. “These agreements also support our competitive position in the broadband industry where we can grow and win against our mostly non-union competitors.”

The union struck at Southeast last month over what it said was the company’s refusal to bargain in good faith, accusing AT&T of going back on agreements and then using the federal mediation process to drag out negotiations. The company denied those allegations.

The agreements come days after CWA leaders authorized a separate strike against AT&T West on Sept. 11, teeing up a work stoppage that appears to have been avoided for now. Members there rejected a tentative agreement with the company the week prior.

The union represents workers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee in the Southeast, plus California and Nevada in the West.