The IBEW & CWA continue to work hard with Verizon to reach agreements to protect our members, while at the same time maintaining our network and providing service to our customers. The Home Garaging Agreement allows for eligible employees to bring their work vehicles home.

This agreement has been extended through April 30, 2021.

The Work at Home Agreement is also in place until April 30, 2021.

Talks will continue between the IBEW, CWA, and Verizon to extend the agreements beyond this date.

The 800 nurses of St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester are on strike against Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare in the wake of the for-profit conglomerate’s refusal to heed nurses’ longstanding call for desperately needed staffing improvements to ensure safer patient care.

“This is a strike for the safety of our patients and our community,” said Marlena Pellegrino, RN, co-chair of the local bargaining unit of the Massachusetts Nurses Association. “We are sad to see that Tenet holds so little value for our patients, yet we are resolved to do whatever it takes for as long as it takes to protect our patients, as it is safer to strike now than allow Tenet to continue endangering our patients every day on every shift. As we begin our strike, we are always ready to get back to the table to negotiate whenever Tenet is ready to do the same.”

Picket lines will be up from 6:00 AM – 12:00 AM daily. Please make every effort to show up and offer support to our striking brothers and sisters.

Every day, President Biden recognizes the primacy of American workers, collective bargaining and the labor movement.  Two weeks ago, IBEW President Lonnie Stephenson, AFL-CIO President Rich Trumpka, and other labor leaders spent 90 minutes in the Oval Office speaking with President Biden and Vice President Harris about issues important to union members.  Then five days ago President Biden released a video (see below) recognizing collective bargaining rights and calling out employers who attempt to bust organizing campaigns.  Never before has a president been so public in their support of the values that the IBEW holds dear.

Please take the time to read through the IBEW Political Newsletter.

The Labor Guild School of Labor-Management Relations Spring Term begins March 8th

For over five generations, The Labor Guild School of Labor-Management Relations has been providing members of the labor movement with relevant, top-notch, and practitioner-led education.  Courses range in content, providing knowledge and skills for building just, ethical workplaces in Massachusetts and beyond.  Instructors are experts in a wide range of fields, coming from the ranks of labor lawyers, union officers, arbitrators, and more. Each class meets on the same day of the week for five weeks from 6:30 to 8:30

• The first set of classes run from the week of March 8th to the week of April 5th
• The second set of classes run from the week of April 12th to the week of May 17th

No School the week of April 19th – spring break All Classes will be held virtually via Zoom.

For more information, a list of course offerings, and to register, please CLICK HERE

IBEW Local 2222 will reimburse our members upon successful completion.

This information is from the COVID Resource Page on the VZ Eweb

[Updated 2.11.21]

There are currently two COVID-19 vaccines that the FDA has authorized for use in the U.S. These same vaccines and others have also been authorized for use in some countries outside of the U.S.

While vaccine distribution will vary by country and state (within the U.S.), and many specifics remain unknown, we are starting to see the first wave of doses offered to mostly healthcare workers, long-term care facility residents and older adults. Following the initial wave of vaccinations, jurisdictions will expand access to broader distribution. At the moment, it’s difficult to get an appointment to be vaccinated, but we expect that appointments will become more available to V Teamers in the coming weeks and months.

As COVID-19 vaccination appointments become available, employees should attempt to plan vaccination appointments outside of their work schedule. However, given the limited access to COVID-19 vaccines at the current time, we recognize that some V Teamers may receive an appointment that conflicts with their work schedule.

With that in mind, Verizon employees who need time off from work to attend their COVID-19 vaccination appointments will be able to request the time they need (up to 4 hours paid) to get the first dose and then again request the time they need (up to 4 hours paid) for vaccines requiring a second dose.

In advance of their scheduled vaccination appointment, employees will work with their supervisors, or resource management teams where applicable, who will make every effort to allow employees to take the time they reasonably request (up to 4 hours) to attend their own vaccination appointments, consistent with the needs of the business. Employees who use this time may be asked to provide documentation of their vaccination appointment.

Please note, this only applies to employees who have appointments to be vaccinated that conflict with their work schedules. If an employee wants to take time away from work to assist a family member with a COVID-19 vaccination, they can follow the normal process in their workgroup to request time off.

In the event any law, regulation, or policy provides paid time to receive vaccinations, we will of course comply, and the paid vaccination time available under this program will coordinate so as not to be duplicative.

We anticipate that later in 2021, COVID-19 vaccines will be more readily available and vaccination sites will be more prevalent, so employees generally will not need time away from work to get vaccinated. As that occurs in different areas, we will discontinue paid COVID-19 vaccination time and encourage everyone who has not already been vaccinated to do so outside of their work schedule or use other available paid time off, such as personal days.

It’s important to remember that as officials work to broaden access to vaccines, case rates remain high worldwide. We must stay vigilant when it comes to following safety protocols and procedures, like wearing face coverings and social distancing. Since each state and country is handling the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines differently, employees should follow local and state guidelines to make sure they have the latest information.

Are you headed off to college or trade school in 2021? Well Liberty Bay is pleased to announce their college scholarship to make it easier for you to meet tuition costs. The $12,500 Scholarship Program for 2021 is now open! Eligible college-bound members may enter to win one of eleven $1,000 general scholarships, or apply for one $1,500 essay-based scholarship.

College-bound or enrolled members are eligible to enter a drawing to receive one of eleven $1,000 scholarships. These scholarships are in honor of former Credit Union employees, directors, and family members, and can be used to assist with tuition, books, supplies, or any other educational purpose.

Current high school seniors are eligible to apply for this $1,500 essay-based scholarship. This scholarship was created to pay tribute to a Credit Union employee who spent her 46-year career with Liberty Bay, and can be used towards tuition, books, supplies, and any other educational expenses during the academic year.

For more information or to apply CLICK HERE

Covid-19 is an existential crisis that impacts everyone.  While some have been able to work from home, many of our neighbors are making difficult tradeoffs between paying rent, putting food on their table, and keeping their kids engaged in remote learning. The state unemployment rate has skyrocketed from 2.4% to as high as 32.6% in hard-hit cities, pushing more than 330,000 families deeper into financial crisis

Since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley has raised and distributed over $8 million to more than 300,000 vulnerable people, providing emergency financial assistance of $300 on average to help pay for food, rent/housing, utilities, and other basic needs. More than 100,500 households received food assistance, 3,500 households had utility/rental help and another 8,000 households received general financial assistance. One hundred percent of donations to United Way were distributed to families in need. In some of our target communities, many applicants for financial assistance have had no income since mid-March.

Six Headlines of the Current Crisis

1. The MA unemployment rate skyrocketed from 2.8% before Covid-19 hit to over 16% this summer.
2. We are bracing for a potential 60,000 evictions, more than triple the 16,000 in an average year.
3. COVID led to the loss of 800 beds, pushing an already strained homeless shelter system to the brink.
4. Racial and economic inequities are more glaring than ever. Rates of infection, unemployment and food insecurity as much as 3x and 2x higher for Black and Latinx residents.
5. The early education sector is in a perilous situation, losing $250 million during the shutdown.
6. Remote learning has brought in a whole new set of challenges for families, afterschool programs and for an estimated 127,000 students in our region.

United Way has the scale and reach to help.  Join us in raising $52 million to lead a comprehensive community response to the ongoing crisis.

Please CLICK HERE to donate.

Please CLICK HERE for more information.

NH Members, your friends and family in NH can use THIS LINK to look up your elected officials, and urge them to VOTE NO on Right to Work! 

Despite the misleading name, so-called “right-to-work” laws do not guarantee anyone a job and do not protect workers’ rights. 

“Right-to-work” laws prohibit trade unions from collecting fees to cover the cost of contract administration from employees who benefit from the protections of a collective bargaining agreement, but do not join the union. There are different versions of “right-to-work” legislation, but all so-called “right-to-work” laws are designed to limit the power of labor unions, and the workers they represent, to negotiate for better pay and working conditions.

Federal law requires trade unions to equally represent all workers covered by a collective bargaining agreement, regardless of union membership status. In states without so-called “right-to-work” laws, private employers and their employees are free to negotiate agreements that ensure everyone who benefits from a union contract contributes a share of the costs of obtaining and protecting those benefits. By prohibiting unions from asking non-members to pay a “service” or “fair share” fee to cover the basic costs of contract administration, so-called “right-to-work” laws give state governments the power to limit the terms and conditions that private-sector employers and their employees have a right to negotiate as part of a collective bargaining agreement.

Labor unions in “right-to-work” states are forced to absorb the costs of grievance and arbitration procedures on behalf of non-members who benefit from the terms of a bargaining agreement, but who do not contribute to the union’s operating fund. By draining resources and hurting the ability of unions to grow, “right to work” laws are consistently linked with lower average wages and reduced workplace safety for all working people in states that have passed the legislation.

Well-funded “right-to-work” proponents include the National Right to Work Committee, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and Americans for Prosperity. While supporters typically claim that “right-to-work” laws are necessary to attract new businesses and increase employment opportunities, rigorous economic studies fail to validate such claims.

 

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FOR MORE INFORMATION:

NH AFL-CIO 2017 briefing pamphlet (PDF): Know the Facts About Right to Work

A Tale of Two States (and what it tells us about so-called “Right to Work” laws)
By Ross Eisenbrey and Teresa Kroeger, Economic Policy Institute, January 12, 2017

“Right-to-Work” States Still Have Lower Wages
By Elise Gould and Will Kimball, Economic Policy Institute, April 22, 2015

We currently have more members who have tested positive for COVID-19 than we have at any point since this pandemic began.  COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths across the United States are rising. Take steps to slow the spread of COVID-19.

We at Local 2222 know what it means to stand united with our Union Brothers & Sisters. Let’s show our solidarity with frontline workers – nurses, police, firefighters, EMS, teachers, grocery workers, postal workers – by wearing our masks, by practicing social distancing, by adhering to all guidelines in place. Let’s keep them safe, keep our co-workers safe, keep ourselves safe, so we can all make it safely home to our families.