HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — More than 17,000 AT&T technicians, customer service representatives and other employees announced a strike Friday citing "unfair labor practices" during union contract negotiations with their corporate employer.
The strike affects employees in Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina and South Carolina.
Communications Workers of America District 3 said they have filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board accusing AT&T of bad-faith bargaining and reneging on agreements.
“Our union entered into negotiations in a good faith effort to reach a fair contract, but we have been met at the table by company representatives who were unable to explain their own bargaining proposals and did not seem to have the actual bargaining authority required by the legal obligation to bargain in good faith,” Richard Honeycutt, vice president of CWA District 3 in the Southeast, said in a statement.
AT&T denied the union’s accusations.
“CWA’s claims of unfair labor practices are not grounded in fact. We have been engaged in substantive bargaining since Day One and are eager to reach an agreement that benefits our hard-working employees,” the company said in emailed statement. AT&T said it reached three separate agreements this year covering more than 13,000 employees.
The labor union on Monday also accused AT&T of “sending undertrained managers and contractors to perform highly technical work” during the strike. AT&T said it has “various business continuity measures in place to avoid disruptions to operations and will continue to provide our customers with the great service they expect.”
The strike includes employees with BellSouth Telecommunications (also known as AT&T Southeast), AT&T Utility Operations, and BellSouth/AT&T Billing.
Workers of any of those units are advised by the union to contact their local bureau for instructions on how to proceed.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
