Striking Verizon Workers Meet with Company, Labor Secretary

 U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez.

By JoAnne Powers

Representatives of Verizon and unions representing 39,000 striking workers are meeting in Washington, D.C., this week after U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez offered the services of his department to help with negotiations.

Members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Communications Workers of America have been on strike since April 13.

“Both sides agreed to meet with the secretary of labor. They are now involved in negotiations in Washington, D.C.  There’s not to be any information leaked out from there so that they can bargain without the pressure of the media. They are committed to stay until we have an agreement,” said Ed Hastings, president of IBEW Local 2222, Boston

Hastings says that before the Secretary stepped in, negotiations were at a stalemate. “The company had given us a last and final proposal and had not budged. Our concerns had to do with job security and keeping good-paying American jobs here in the United States. The company was insisting on the ability to ship jobs overseas, to transfer our members for hundreds of miles for months at a time.”

One thought on “Striking Verizon Workers Meet with Company, Labor Secretary

  1. “The company was insisting on the ability to ship jobs overseas, to transfer our members for hundreds of miles for months at a time.” –

    No one cares until it’s happening to them, unfortunately it has been happening for years, for the benefit of the few. I wonder if the respective unions will continue to donate and support various politicians that have turned a blind eye or legislated the destruction of The American Worker?

    http://valleypatriot.com/h-1b-foreign-workers-are-destroying-merrimack-valley-economy/