Unfortunately that ship has sailed the union leadership messed up years ago.That ship has now sailed !!!!Lets face it the best you can hope for is an agreement that can cap it at some point but Verizon will not roll back the current cap .So right now prepare for $600 month for pre Medicare cost .Lets face it we sold our soul years ago.Anyone currently working keep going till Medicare eligibility or if you leave be prepared to find another job that pays medical till that Medicare .But the corporation ki-led retiree benefits years ago .They have always been one step ahead of the good old boys gang who did our negotiations.The company has always played the long game.The biggest we need to keep an eye on is our pensions along with the lump.We may need heavy duty raises in this agreement knowing now tht in exchange we basically won’t have retiree benefits worth taking.Sorry but the people tht most retirees and current employees voted for years ago based on popularity is now coming to bite us.
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We’ve been making contributions for years, try getting with the times.
"To this day, members of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) who work at the phone company in the Northeast make no premium contributions for their individual or family coverage–an arrangement now enjoyed by a fraction of the labor force. To avoid being stigmatized as a privileged group–selfishly trying to preserve better-than-average benefits–the NYNEX strikers were careful about how they countered management’s demand for premium-sharing and framed the central issue in dispute. Their buttons, banners, press releases and leaflets made it clear that the solution to medical cost inflation was “Health Care For All, Not Health Cuts!...”
CWA su-ks they sold the membership out since 2010 .Now they say "members first " give me a freakin break"members first to get sc--wd you mean.
All that can happen at worst is company says we reached a " impasse" and apply a new contract .
@OP cant wait til we strike and we get locked out, and trump tells verizon not to negotiate with us and to just fire us all.
The Mac you can contribute is $23,500. If what you were saying is true, it’s isn’t the big deal your financially illiterate mind is thinking it is.
Re Post ID: @eb+1k4qek6kz. It’s a “need to know” basis and you don’t need to know! Union has sc--wed up the contract for years, be a big surprise if that changes now.
So no we will never get a pension for new hires tht do not have one .We will never get rid of medical contributions to retirees pierced cap cost.The best way would be to negotiate a better match for the new hires,Negotiate a cap on the amount that can be shared by retirees on the medical cost pre Medicare ,All in exchange for good raises and possible increase in pension contributions along with keeping the lump sum.The best way to extend.If the entire contract is opened not only will you not get everything you now will possibly lose more .We need to first hear the issues what was asked what was offered .But again the union for some reason has not given members any knowledge of the early negotiations which hurts us
@c9, sometimes, when you hold the pursestrings for a large organization, you curry personal favors by bid donations to politicians that will help you advance personally, without peoples knowledge or consent. That is crooked and just plain wrong on so many levels.
Did you know that "allegedly" CWA has a 401k ON TOP OF the company's 401K, and credit cards pay for all sorts of nonsense?
@c9, the answer is quite simple. They have taken $30 bucks or so each week from you for several decades. Now, you need them to have your back (although it often seems they've moved on to other enterprises since the cash cow diminished - dispatchers, librarians, nurses...). Let them pay you through the strike like NY does. That makes for a strong union - unless, the money's not there. And, if it's not, where did all those millions of dollars go? Should we involve the feds?
@c7 that may work for CWA but IBEW is like the Democratic Party there’s NO STRIKE FUND the dems they fought so hard for is refusing to grant unemployment ( last strike 9 weeks all workers was not paid ) so while some are enjoying that weekly guaranteed money from members while union heads are building up there properties investing 200k but never works OT MAKE IT MAKE SENSE….and have a golden parachute prepped!!! we are the dummies waiting for the impact of our careers we’re union!!!
@b4, many years ago the union pushed that as a possible reality that never came to light.
We just ain't Europe or Canada yet.
@by, doubtful. Everyone's sitting on a decent nest egg that can be tapped if needed. The mortgages are paid, the kids are out of college, the union has a strike fund, the unemployment kicks in after - I disagree with your assessment as this is in no way dire.
The long game is finally on the union's side.
@ay the 2026 strike, if they’re d-mb enough to do as they’re told and walk, will bring the cwa to their knees. Imagine six months.
The obamacare aca cadillac tax was repealed
Why is there still a weekly pay contribution to medical?
Imagine if we had universal healthcare years ago- imagine the contracts we’d have today if health insurance was never even in the mix
You ain’t getting a huge raise WFH. That’s why they kept you there. Now it’ll be official that all things will be outsourced during the strike. Be careful what you wish for.
@aj, don't you worry. This strike will be the great equalizer, and not for the better. They do not care.
Not sure how the union expects to survive with the 2 > 3 tier membership they allowed previously. Newer hires have cr-p compared to older more senior members.
And ponies! Everyone should get their own pony.
Pension long gone for all employees. Can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube. Union sold everyone out a long time ago
@OP let's get a pension for all union employees.