A Loud Message to the Senate: Don't Tax Our Health Care

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) expresses opposition to the Senate's proposed excise tax on health benefits. With him are Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn), CWA Pres. Larry Cohen and CWA Local 2204 health care coordinator Valerie Castle-Stanley.

On the steps of the U.S. Capitol, leaders from CWA, the National Educational Association, the AFL-CIO and union members joined Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Representative Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) at a news conference that focused congressional and public attention on the devastating effect of the proposed Senate plan to tax health care benefits.

Sanders and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) have sponsored an amendment to strip the excise tax from the Senate bill and use funding sources passed by the House of Representatives. Representative Courtney gathered signatures from 187 of his House colleagues expressing their strong opposition to the excise tax plan.

CWA President Larry Cohen told the news conference that taxing employers that already provide benefits is bad public policy. "Instead of taxing those who already provide benefits, those employers who don't pay, should pay," he said.

This tax will hit 30 million families in the first five years of the plan, he said. Cohen also cited a new poll commissioned by CWA that finds that 70 percent of voters surveyed strongly oppose the tax on health benefits.

Valerie Castle-Stanley, a member of CWA Local 2204, said that "when I heard that some senators want to tax our health care benefits, I just couldn't believe it. It will hurt families like mine."

Castle-Stanley, who works at an AT&T relay center in Norton, Va., said CWA has bargained good benefits, benefits she and her family count on. "We're not rich. We're average middle class Americans. We need quality health care," she said.

"But there's no question that companies will look for ways to pass on this tax – they're sure not going to pay it. That means my benefits will be cut and my costs will go up. I support health care reform but I can't afford this tax," she said.

CWAers Visiting Hill Tell Lawmakers: Drop the Tax on our Health Care

Two dozen CWA local union health care coordinators met with their senators and representatives to reinforce strong opposition to the Senate bill's tax on health benefits. Some joined Pres. Cohen at a Capitol Hill news conference. From left, Dan Frazier, Local 4322; Ron Gay, Local 4300; Cohen, Valerie Castle-Stanley, Local 2204; Ravin St. Julien, Local 3827, and Erika White, Local 4319.

CWA legislative and political activists from nine states delivered a strong message to Capitol Hill this week, telling Democrat senators that the proposed excise tax on health care benefits is CWA's line in the sand.

Heading to the Hill for meetings with senators, representatives and staff were 25 CWA activists from Arkansas, California, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia. They told members of Congress how the excise tax will lead to cuts in benefits and higher costs for millions of American families.

Although the excise tax is now part of the Senate bill, the CWA delegation also met with House Democrats who will vote on the final legislation to express strong support for the House bill, which finances health care reform by making most employers pay toward workers' health care coverage and restoring a surtax on the wealthiest Americans, among other measures.

In addition to the lobbying and other actions that are focusing attention on the devastating impact of the tax on middle income and working families, CWA has launched new online ads that reinforce that message. The banner ads will run for two weeks and feature CWA Local 2204 member Valerie Castle Stanley. You'll see the ads on websites including the Hill newspaper, the Washington Post, Huffington Post and Facebook, and you can click on the ads to sign a petition opposing the tax. Video ads are appearing on Hulu. Watch the ads at www.healthcarevoices.org/excisetaxads.

Report Reveals Abuses by T-Mobile USA

A report issued this week by the American Rights at Work Education Fund exposes the systematic campaign by T-Mobile USA and parent company Deutsche Telekom to prevent T-Mobile employees in the United States from forming a union.

The report, "Lowering the Bar or Setting the Standard? Deutsche Telekom's U.S. Labor Practices," slams DT for its double standard: refusing to respect workers' rights in the United States as it does in Germany, where it cooperates and works closely with union workers at DT and T-Mobile.

In the U.S., the report points out how T-Mobile threatens workers who want a union. It also spotlights the aggressive anti-union training managers receive and the steps
T-Mobile takes to limit and interfere in workers' ability to organize.

"It's time to hold Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile USA accountable," said CWA President Larry Cohen, who noted that CWA supported Deutsche Telekom's application to bring T-Mobile into the U.S. based on the company's strong record of respecting workers' rights. "Since then, we have seen no respect for workers' rights, just eight years of intolerance and hostility toward workers and complete disregard of their rights to organize and bargain collectively," Cohen said.

CWA and ver.di, the union for telecom workers at Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile in Germany, have created TU, a joint union that will win fair treatment and collective bargaining for U.S.-based T-Mobile workers. "Management must get used to the idea that we are representing the interests not only of German workers but of American workers as well," said Lothar Schröder, a ver.di leader.

Executives at T-Mobile USA and DT have gotten the message loud and clear. Last month, T-Mobile and DT workers from Germany joined their counterparts in the U.S. to tell U.S. government officials of T-Mobile USA's assault on workers' rights.

Click here to download the report.

Click here to sign a petition to DT CEO René Obermann and tell him to respect the rights of all his workers.

CWA Joins Mexico, Canada to Discuss Workers' Shared Concerns

CWA Executive Vice President Annie Hill and CWAers joined a conference in Mexico on issues affecting U.S., Canadian and Mexican workers and unions. Other participants included, at far left, Francisco Hernández Juárez, president of STRM and at far right, Ben Davis, a TNG-CWA member and Mexico Program Director for the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center.

At a conference in Mexico City last week, CWA Executive Vice President Annie Hill and two CWA members discussed job security, the war on bargaining rights and how to improve conditions for workers in Mexico, Canada and the United States.

"There's anti-worker and anti-union behavior being played out everywhere," Hill said. "It may be a little less in Canada, but they're having problems, too. We all recognize that we need a stronger labor movement across our countries. The conference was a step toward creating a coalition and more labor unity on global basis."

 

The conference was sponsored by CWA, the independent Union of Telephone Workers of the Mexican Republic (STRM) and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada. Mexican Labor Party leaders, the Solidarity Center and the AFL-CIO also were involved.

As part of a panel, CWA Local 3010 President Rafael Castro-Torres talked about trying to organize Puerto Rican workers at Atento, a subsidiary of the Spanish company Telefonica where union supporters have been fired. Local 6229 Vice President Jose Cantu talked about the struggle to organize at T-Mobile and how differently the company's European and American workers are treated.

Hill talked about the demise of bargaining and organizing rights in the United States and noted that among the world's democracies, only Colombia has a lower rate of collective bargaining.

But she said recent developments in newer democracies, including South Africa, Brazil, Argentina and Taiwan, are hopeful signs. "Governments in these countries have strengthened workers' bargaining rights, while unions have linked their struggles to democratic movements for political reform and social justice. Much can be learned from their experience," Hill said.

NLRB Finds Evidence of Owner Fraud in Puerto Rico Newspaper Fight

In a big victory for Puerto Rico newspaper workers who are fighting to get their jobs back, the National Labor Relations Board has found that 107 employees were illegally discharged in July as the company refused to bargain in good faith.

The ruling further charges that the newspaper, El Vocero, remains a single entity despite its owner's attempt to set up sham companies that have been receiving U.S. stimulus dollars to hire replacement workers.

"This decision confirms UPAGRA's allegations over owner Miguel Roca's anti-worker and illegal actions against his workers, many of whom have more than 30 years of service," said Nestor Soto, president of the union UPAGRA, part of The Newspaper Guild-CWA, and a CWA at-large executive board member.

The NLRB findings are the first step to restoring the workers' jobs, which were in the circulation department. Both sides will present evidence at a hearing scheduled Feb. 3 before an administrative law judge.

TNG-CWA President Bernie Lunzer said while he's hopeful that the jobs will be restored, with back pay for workers, Roca's attitude toward his employees and his brazen fraud involving U.S. taxpayer dollars suggests that he will fight the union every step of the way.

The union exposed the scam a few months ago, after Soto followed a paper trail showing that local politicians had funneled stimulus money to Roca. So far Roca has received more than $6 million and claims the funds are for "new" jobs at his "new" companies. One city, Guyanabo, has started the process of pulling more than $1 million in grant funds from him, and others may follow.

Take a CWA/NETT Course Now and CWA Will Pay Your Exam Fees

For a limited time, CWA will pay your CWA/NETT certification exam fees, in honor of the 10th anniversary of the program that's helped more than 25,000 members learn new skills and advance their careers.

CWA is encouraging even more members to take advantage of the CWA/NETT Academy, kicking off a year-long campaign this month: "2,010 students in 2010." Members who become certified in any CWA/NETT program will be eligible for a drawing to win one of 10 Dell netbook computers. The local with the most participants also will receive two Dell computers.

For more information, visit www.cwanett.org/2010 or contact Staff Representative Kevin Celata at kcelata@cwa-union.org.

Cast Your Vote Now for 2009's Biggest Business Scrooge

The season of joy, giving and merriment is also the season of Scrooge, and Jobs with Justice needs your help to decide which greedy American business behaved in the most Scrooge-like fashion over the past year.

This year's nominees for Scrooge of the Year – the contest named the Grinch of the Year in past seasons -- are Bank of America, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Hyatt Hotels, Publix Supermarkets and, collectively, student loan lenders Sallie Mae and Citibank.

The JwJ website details why each nominee is a worthy candidate to win the title of the meanest, greediest business (or business organization) of the year. Go to www.jwj.org/scrooge to read more and cast your ballot before Dec. 21.