Annie Hill, chief negotiator for district 7 of the Communications Workers of America, talks about a contract agreement reached between telecommunications firm Qwest and union members on Friday, June 13, 2003, at a Qwest garage in Greenwood Village, Colo. Qwest Communications Inc., buried in debt and its accounting practices under investigation, announced the labor agreement Friday that includes no raises for 27,000 employees in 14 states, including Minnesota. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
09:19 PM EST June 13, 2003
The Associated Press
DENVERQwest Communications International Inc., loaded with debt and its accounting practices under investigation, said Friday it has reached labor agreements that include no raises for 27,000 employees in 14 states.
The Communications Workers of America said it will brief union locals on the two-year contract proposal for technicians, operators and other staff in 13 states. A similar agreement was reached last week involving 400 Qwest workers in Montana represented by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
"It's not easy to work with a company that doesn't have any money," said Annie Hill, the union's chief negotiator. She credited the team of CEO Richard Notebaert, who joined Qwest last year, for helping avert a strike.
The Denver-based company is the dominant local-phone provider in 14 Plains and Western states. It is struggling with $20 billion in debt, stagnant revenue and probes of its financial statements.
"I'm not happy we won't get a raise, but I'm happy there are no cuts or givebacks," said Joe Juarez, a customer data tech at Qwest. "We always want to have more money, but it's better to keep the jobs we have now and hopefully reap the rewards when Qwest becomes successful."
Hill said the contract would keep most benefits intact. Rather than raises, it would offer lump-sum payments of 1 percent to 3 percent of wages if Qwest meets earnings goals over the next two years.
"The best part of the deal is that Qwest working families will keep fully paid health insurance coverage," she said.
However, co-payments for doctor visits will rise from $10 to $15 next year and to $20 in the second year of the contract. Prescription co-pays will also rise.
The union said Qwest also agreed to limit outsourcing or transfers of work from union workers to salaried, non-union employees.
The union had agreed to forgo raises through 2005 as negotiations began. The current contract, a two-year extension from 2001, expires Aug. 16. Union members have until Aug. 1 to ratify the new deal.
Since firing Arthur Andersen LLP, the auditing firm convicted of obstruction of justice in the Enron collapse, Qwest has restated about $2.2 billion in revenue for 2000 and 2001 because of accounting errors.
Four former Qwest executives have been indicted on federal charges accusing them of artificially boosting revenues and covering up the scheme.
Qwest stock fell 2 cents to close at $4.89 on the New York Stock Exchange.
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On the Net:
Qwest: https://www.qwest.com
https://www.qwest.com
CWA local: https://www.cwa-union.org/district7
https://www.cwa-union.org/district7
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