Bargaining Updates
VERIZON BARGAINING UPDATES
1-800-773-4292
BARGAINING BULLETIN #54 4/24/10
The Union and the Company bargaining committees have reached a tentative agreement
today.
Brief highlights of the Core agreement are:
• Wage increases of 2.75% for each of the 3 years. • Sales Incentive Compensation Plan remains voluntary! 7A wage schedule
increased. • New MOA on Contractors, requiring the Company to report the contracting of
“bargaining unit work” on a monthly basis. • Verizon Business and Video Hub work moved into the Core agreement. • No employee medical contributions. • New Medical PPO plan effective Jan 2011 for all employees.
Brief highlights of Regional Wire Service agreement are: • Additional holidays
• Wage increases of 2.75% for each of the 3 years
More details to follow! Many “Thanks” to all of the members who actively participated in the bargaining process through your support and mobilization.
In Solidarity,
Your Bargaining Committee
Lisa Shafer
David Goodwin
Mike Frost
Ellen West
Ed Venegas
Gregg Gibson
The Union and Company Bargaining Committees have reached a tentative agreement today!
Details will follow regarding the explanation meeting for the Local Presidents as well as the ratification vote and process.
Details of the agreement will follow.
The committee thanks you for your continued support and mobilization!
Ellen West
CWA Recommendations for Voting Your Verizon Proxy
Item 1: Vote For Directors. If individuals have a beef about an individual director,they should vote against him or her. We think the Board does not pass the test ofgood governance because of the consistently high compensation for IvanSeidenberg and the backhanded justifications for it in the proxy explanation.
We Recommend a Vote AGAINST.
Item 2: Auditor. Ernst & Young has done nothing egregious. If you do not like voting with the company,
We Recommend a Vote of ABSTAIN
Item 3: Advisory Vote Related To Executive Compensation. In 2007, CWA andother AFL-CIO unions, ran a shareholder campaign and achieved 50.18% of thevote on a similar proposal. The company then agreed to adopt it. Thus, everyyear this will be on the ballot. This is the second year. This proposal asksshareholders to approve the incentive compensation and overall compensation ofthe company's top officers. We believe they have been consistently overpaid.
We Recommend a Vote AGAINST.
Item 4: Prohibit Granting Stock Options. Stock options have been seriouslyabused by companies over the last twenty years. Although Verizon has notgranted stock options since 2004, this proposal would make a statement againstthe existing overpayment of top executives.
We Recommend a Vote FOR.
Item 5: Gender Identity Non-Discrimination Policy. This proposal would add animportant prohibition against discrimination on the basis of gender identity orexpression to Verizon’s current policy of non-discrimination. CWA stronglysupports this addition. It is hard to imagine why Verizon would publicly opposethis proposal except that management almost never sides with shareholders.
We Recommend a Vote FOR.
Item 6: Performance Stock Unit Performance Thresholds. The proposal asks thatfuture performance stock units (stock equivalents given as incentivecompensation) be granted only when the company performance equals orexceeds the median performance of peer companies. The way the currentincentive compensation works, the company can be well below average (25thpercentile) and officers still collect their incentives.
We Recommend a Strong Vote FOR.
Item 7: Shareholder Right To Call a Special Meeting. On the one hand, it isalways good to give shareholders more rights over management. On the otherhand, lowering the threshold further gives private equity the opportunity to pushmanagement in directions we may disapprove of. Currently, the company has a10% threshold with some restrictions to call a special shareholders meeting. Lastyear this proposal received over 50% of the vote.
We Recommend a Vote FOR.
Item 8: Adopt and Disclose Succession Planning Policy. This proposal asks for awritten policy of CEO succession planning. The Board claims it already has apolicy but that writing it down and making it public would somehow compromisethe privacy rights of the current CEO. Their argument put another ways is, “Trust us.” CWA believes that Boards should be explicit about plans for succession.
We Recommend a Vote FOR.
Item 9: Shareholder Approval Of Benefits Paid After Death. The proposal asks for shareholder approval for any benefit paid after death. The idea of paying anyexecutive after death through "golden coffin agreements" is repulsive. The topexecutives at Verizon are already severely overpaid. The payments owed to theestates of top officers after death are therefore excessive as well.
We Recommend a Vote FOR.
Item 10: Executive Stock Retention Requirements. This proposal creates a policythat would require executives to hold onto stock (recommendation of at least75%) gained through incentive plans for a period of at least two years after the executive leaves the company. Much of this stock was not actually "earned" at all, but was rather a wholesale giveaway to undeserving executives. This policy is a good one. There are too many examples of executives leaving, cashing out,and then the stock values suddenly crash.
We Recommend a Vote FOR.
VERIZON TO EMPLOYEES: WE EXPECT OUR HEALTHCARE COSTS TO RISE
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=YTk1OWNjNGNmYWJiOTIzY2E4YjYyYmJjOTJhMGQwZDg=
BARGAINING BULLETIN
CWA Members Vote Strike Authorization at Verizon California, Inc.
Santa Fe Springs, March 19 – Members of the Communications Workers of America working at Verizon California voted overwhelmingly to give CWA leaders authorization to call a strike if a fair contract cannot be reached. If a strike is called, about 5,500 Verizon workers, almost all of whom work in Southern California will walk off the job, affecting land line telephone operations throughout the greater Los Angeles area.
The existing union contract expired on March 13, and employees are now working under a contract extension. Negotiations are still underway on behalf of CWA-represented workers, with disagreement over health care premiums and a proposed mandatory sales commission program that the union believes would be bad for workers and consumers. Also at issue is Verizon’s transfer of work out of California. In the course of these negotiations, Verizon sent jobs performed by union members in Oxnard to Tijuana.
CWA reported that 90 percent of members voted in favor of strike authorization in balloting conducted by CWA local unions. Voter turnout was very high.
“The strike authorization vote demonstrates members’ solid support for their bargaining team and their strong determination to achieve a fair settlement with Verizon,” said District Vice President Jim Weitkamp. “Verizon can well afford to treat its workers fairly.”
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district9.cwa-union.org/verizon/
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