Executive Vice Presidents' Report
April 27, 2011
Well, its official Qwest
is becoming CenturyLink! As of April
1st the transition has started.
The “NewCo” has indicated the branding and name change will happen in
August.
With the "NewCo” there
will be change. We will have to wait
and to see what this looks like.
However, as soon as we know, you will know.
CWA leadership and the new leadership met for a meet and greet on April
11, 2011. It was simply a meet the
new leadership meeting. One thing
the construction director said was he has no intentions of getting rid of
construction technicians. That’s a
plus!
CWA has a local in Oregon
which is currently bargaining a contract with CenturyLink.
The items the company came to the table with are;
changes in the reduction of forces language, ability to unilaterally
change or cancel HealthCare, changes in the job assignment language, elimination
of double time and changes in the grievance procedure and timelines.
We will have our work cut
out for us come October 2012. We
need to stay focused on how we gained all of the benefits we currently enjoy and
we do this by sticking together and staying unified.
Everything seems to be
very quiet right now. I am calling this
the “honeymoon” period. We have to remember our contract is coming up in October
2012 and the honeymoon will be over.
Start saving your money now, you may need it later and you can never be too
ready!
The company has completed
their Safety Rodeo’s for both Operations and Construction.
They went well. Just a couple
of things to remember; it is important to check your fluids and make sure you
have oil in your truck!
If you are interested in
moving within your title make sure you have your 6500 in and up to date.
This is a local agreement we have with the company and yes, it is still
in place.
Don’t forget we have a
Unit 5, 6 and 7 Meeting the 1st Wednesday of each month.
This is where you can come to ask questions and share information on what
is going on in your crew.
Also, the 3rd
Thursday of each month is the Mobilization/Multimedia Committee meeting.
If you are interested in joining, please come to and see what’s going on.
May 14, 2011 will be CWA’s
11th Annual Day of Sunshine Golf Tournament.
Registration information is available on
our website.
CWA 7019 is on Facebook at
Phoenix CWA and Twitter @CWA7019.
These are just two of the avenues of communication that will be utilized when
bargaining comes around.
That’s it for now.
For more information come to a meeting! Be safe and have a great day!
In Unity,
Valeri Dossett
January 17, 2011
Happy New Year! I hope you had a safe and fun holiday season.
Please check our webpage where you will find the 2011 LNO Local Agreements. You
will also find the most recent newsletter.
You can now follow us on Twitter @CWA7019, and Facebook!
These social networking sites have been added to the CWA 7019 line of
communication to help our members stay informed. Our goal is to have as many of
our members connected in one way another. The 2012 contract bargaining is just
around the corner. It will be incumbent on us to hold the line and stay informed
it is all of our responsibility.
With the merger and our contract coming up in 2012 it is imperative that our
committees are fully functional and ready for contract negotiations. We have no
idea what this company will propose and we need to ready. If you are interested
in joining a committee, please call the hall and you will be contacted.
Our website will also provide you with course information from providers that
are Pathway approved. Remember, you do not have to take courses related to your
current job function.
With the New Year comes a new legislature opening day was January 10, 2011 and
this year the President of that Legislature is Russell Pearce. Let me be clear,
he is not a friend of any worker in the state of Arizona and he is truly
anti-union. Please be informed about this person who represents 6 million
citizens and was elected with 17,000 votes. We will try our best to keep you up
to date on the anti-worker bills that will no doubt be the focus of the session.
These will ultimately affect you and your families!
We will continue having leadership meetings with the company to have a pro
active approach in the everyday operations of Qwest business and how it affects
our members.
Motor vehicle discipline has been on the rise, so please be safe. A lot of these
accidents are our members hitting stationary objects. Sooooo, look out!
That’s all for now! Call if you have any questions or issues that need to be
addressed.
In Unity,
Valeri Dossett
October 15, 2010
We are in the
home stretch for 2010. Make sure you have scheduled your
carry over vacation as the 2011 canvassing started this week. Members don’t
always schedule all of their entitlement. Remember if you don’t schedule it
during original canvass, it goes on a first come basis. If you are in doubt
schedule and you can cancel. Also, you can only schedule and
wish list the amount of time you have. The guidelines will
be posted on our website. You have until April 30, 2011 to
use 2010 entitlement.
We will be negotiating Local Agreements in the next month and they will be
posted on our web site.
There is a lot of movement in the valley, both work and people.
It is critical, if you want to move, your 6500 is up to date. We
have come to agreement with the company that prior to any movement,
tech’s will be notified. This agreement came about because
there were a couple of managers who informed their crews of changes and they got
an edge. It’s clear we cannot get the managers to do the
fair thing, so we hope this will level the playing field.
Remember there are no guarantees, so stay up to date.
The 1st Wednesday of each month, there will be a meeting for Units 5,
6, and 7. The next meeting is November 3, 2010, 7:30pm at
the union hall. Put it on your calendar! Be an
informed member, come to a meeting.
The CenturyTel/Qwest merger is our future and it is not looking good for us.
If you think it will not impact you personally, you are wrong!
This merger will affect every single one of us.
Please stay informed and these meetings are the best place to get information.
Midterm
elections are November 2, 2010. We are not telling anyone
how to vote. Please just vote.
Every candidate we have endorsed has asked for our endorsement and has answered
the questions in our favor for working families and labor friendly support.
CWA does not get involved in social issues. We get involved in working
family issues which affect us and labor.
Legislation is
currently being drafted to target unions in this state. Let me remind you, any
losses we take in the law, affect our strength at the bargaining table just as
it would when we gain better labor laws. My suggestion is to be to be careful
who you vote for. You just might vote for someone who doesn’t care how you get
your wages, pensions and affordable healthcare!
QJD is still
in the forefront and the company has fired people for their numbers.
We are currently at 3rd step on those grievances.
Code of Conduct is still the driving force for discipline.
Please be where you are supposed to be.
If you are in
an investigation and are advised you are not to talk about this with anyone,
DON’T!
If you have a problem
with another tech or their work, go to them or your union rep first before you
go to management. We need to work together.
As union workers, we need to be proud of the work we do and not leave a
mess for the next tech.
Halloween is
almost here and the trick or treaters do not always watch for cars when darting
around the neighborhoods, so please drive with caution.
In Unity,
Valeri
opeiu30
August 27, 2010
Here is a short update on what’s going on in Units 5, 6, and 7 and some other
stuff.
Unit 5 AVP Ziedler- Bob’s been here for a few months and seems to be getting
comfortable in his new role. There was a recent surplus of Central Office
Technician’s. With the company going down in Central Office support, it is
important for the outside technicians to not go into the Central Office’s and
pick up the slack. Please remember, it is the company’s decision to go down in
Central Office Technician’s it is not a Customer Data Technician, Broadband
Technician or Network Technician’s job to do Central Office Technician work.
There was also a change in leadership with design. Ken Lanzell now has design
and Cybuch is in the Central Office field now. There have been grievances filed
for QJD in Design and terminations for something other than QJD. Please be safe
and drive careful!
Unit 6 AVP Fagan (West) and Unit 7 AVP Parrish (East) - The majority of
grievances filed in these units have been for QJD. The company has decided to
start using a sustain clause in their documents. The AVP’s have been fighting
this back vigorously. There was also a surplus in the Broadband Technician and
Network Technician titles. With this surplus will come movement of technicians
from copper to fiber as well as other 6500’s. If you are interested in moving
work location or work function make sure you are current on your 6500. Also,
please remember you must be satisfactory in all areas and not on benefits to
participate. The company got their number with VSPP offers and STLA’s. That
means no one left unless they wanted to. That’s a good thing.
Other stuff- Avaya has had a surplus of 1 technician and he is moving to Denver
to avoid layoff.
The 8th Annual CWA Local 7019 Convention will be September 11, 2010. Mary Taylor
our District 7 Vice President will be here to talk about the Qwest/CenturyTel
merger. If you are interested please call the hall 602.331.7019 and put your
name on the guest list. It will be held at the IBEW local 640 hall, 5808 N 7th
ST. Call to order will be 9am.
That’s it for now!
In Unity,
Valeri Dossett
opeiu30
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