Communications Workers of America


Communications Workers of America is the largest communications and media labor union in the United States, representing about 700,000 members in both the private and public sectors. The union has 27 locals in Canada via CWA-SCA Canada representing about 8,000 members. CWA has several affiliated subsidiary labor unions bringing total membership to over 700,000. CWA is headquartered in Washington, DC, and affiliated with the AFL-CIO, the Change to Win Federation, the Canadian Labour Congress, and UNI Global Union. The current president is Chris Shelton.

History

In 1918 telephone operators organized under the Telephone Operators Department of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. While initially successful at organizing, the union was damaged by a 1923 strike and subsequent AT&T lockout. After AT&T installed company-controlled Employees' Committees, the Telephone Operators Department eventually disbanded. The CWA's roots lie in the 1938 reorganization of telephone workers into the National Federation of Telephone Workers after the Wagner Act outlawed such employees' committees or "company unions". NFTW was a federation of sovereign local independent unions that lacked authority over the affiliated local unions leaving it at a serious organizational disadvantage. After losing a strike with AT&T in 1947, the federation led by Joseph A. Beirne, reorganized as CWA, a truly national union, which affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1949. CWA has continued to expand into areas beyond traditional telephone service. In 1994 the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians merged with the CWA and became The Broadcasting and Cable Television Workers Sector of the CWA, NABET-CWA. Since 1997, it includes The Newspaper Guild. In 2004, the Association of Flight Attendants merged with CWA, and became formally known as the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, or AFA-CWA.

Contracts and strikes

Following is a partial list of contracts and strikes that the Communications Workers of America were involved in:
used by the CWA during a 2009 rally against Verizon
in October 2011
YearCompanyNumber of Members AffectedDuration of StrikeNotes
1955Southern Bell Telephone Co.50,00072 daysStrike was in answer to management's effort to prohibit workers from striking.
1968AT&T200,00018 daysWage increases to compensate for cost of living, and medical benefits won
1971Bell System400,0009 monthsCost of Living Allowance won for workers
1983Bell System600,00022 daysLast contract with the Bell System before its breakup. Bell System sought givebacks. The contract resulted in Wage increases, employment security, pension, and health improvements.
1986AT&T175,00025 daysCOLA clause suspended in contract - former Bell System contracts vary substantially from the AT&T contract.
1989AT&T175,000n/aChild and elder care benefits added to contract. COLA clause removed from contract
1989NYNEX175,00017 weeksStrike was due to major health care cuts by NYNEX
1998US West34,00015 daysStrike was due to mandatory overtime demands and forced pay-for-performance plan. Overtime caps were won.
2000Verizon80,00018 daysVerizon strike of 2000: Strike was due to mandatory overtime demands. Provisions for stress were won.
2011Verizon45,00013 daysStrike was due to major wage and health care cuts by Verizon, a forced pay-for-performance plan and movement-of-work job security provisions. Contract extended.
2012AT&T20,0002 DaysAT&T West; California, Nevada, and AT&T East; Connecticut - Unfair labor practice strike during contract negotiations.
2016Verizon40,00049 DaysVerizon strike of 2016: Issues include healthcare and pension costs, moving call center jobs overseas and temporary job relocations. Call center jobs were returned to the bargaining unit; pension increases won; healthcare reimbursement added and first Verizon Wireless contract reached.
2019AT&T20,0005 days2019 AT&T strike: AT&T Southeast - Unfair labor practice strike during contract negotiations.

Composition

Membership

According to CWA's Department of Labor records since 2006, when membership classifications were first reported, the total reported membership has varied greatly and unpredictably due to the addition and removal of reported membership categories. As of 2014, around 27%, or a fourth, of the union's total membership are classified as "non-dues-paying retirees", and not eligible to vote in the union. The other, voting eligible, classifications are "active" and "dues-paying retired". CWA contracts also cover some non-members, known as agency fee payers, which number comparatively about 7% of the size of the union's membership. This accounts for 166,491 "non-dues-paying retirees" and 52,240 "dues-paying retirees", plus about 43,353 non-members paying agency fees, compared to 404,289 "active" members.

Affiliates