Pennsylvania Bell, CWA in Tentative Pact

Bell of Pennsylvania reached tentative agreement Friday to avert a walkout by 12,000 employees, while contract talks remained stalled for 52,000 striking “Baby Bell” telephone workers across the nation.

Talks in Washington, Iselin, N.J., and Philadelphia revolved around local issues affecting 40,000 employees of Bell Atlantic in six states and the nation’s capital.

Bell of Pennsylvania, one of Bell Atlantic’s subsidiaries, received a “final offer” Friday from the Communication Workers of America, and the union vowed to strike unless an agreement was reached. The company announced a tentative three-year agreement Friday night.

‘Meets Needs’ of Both

John Gamba, assistant vice president of labor relations for Bell of Pennsylvania, said the agreements “meet the needs of our employees and the company.”

Terms of the agreements were not immediately available. The dispute centered on the use of contract labor and local work-rule procedures.

Gamba praised Bell of Pennsylvania employees, saying they worked “in spite of the uncertainties of the last days.”

Negotiations in Iselin involved 4,717 employees; talks in Washington affected 23,500 employees of the Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone Co. in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia, said Francine Zucker, a spokeswoman for the CWA in Washington.

Can Serve Outside Region

Meanwhile, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington ruled Friday that the Bell companies can provide exchange services outside their geographic regions.

A three-member appeals panel reversed a decision by U.S. District Judge Harold H. Greene, who presided over the American Telephone & Telegraph Co. breakup in 1984 and ruled in January that the regional companies must concentrate on offering high-quality local service.

The companies had sought to diversify into new businesses, such as cellular radio services outside their geographic regions, computerized answering services and sales of telecommunication packages of office buildings.