Qwest Reaches Pact With Union, Averting Strike

Qwest Communications International Inc.’s largest union said it had reached a contract agreement with the company late Tuesday, removing the threat of a strike by 25,000 telephone workers in 13 states.

The agreement includes a 7.5% wage increase over three years, changes to healthcare coverage to reduce overall costs for many employees, and an eight-hour cap on mandatory overtime, union spokeswoman Candice Johnson said. It still must be ratified by workers across the 13-state region.

“I think it’s a good agreement for both sides,” she said. “I think it reflects that Qwest recognized that the union workforce is value-added and a critical party in helping the company.”

Qwest spokesman Bob Toevs did not immediately return a telephone message seeking comment.

The bargaining teams put the final touches on the tentative pact after several days of on-and-off negotiations that intensified after the union’s previous contract expired at midnight Saturday.

The CWA agreed to keep negotiating without a contract in hopes of avoiding a strike.

The hike in basic wages is the first since 2003, although employees received some bonus payments.

Johnson said the healthcare package was restructured so that employees would not have to pay a monthly premium, but there were changes in some out-of-pocket costs and a new enrollment fee for coverage of spouses and families.

Dale Feller of CWA Local 7777 in Denver said he and his colleagues were reviewing the terms of the tentative pact.

“The early indications would be it looks like a contract that recognizes the hard work of the people,” he said.

Denver-based Qwest is the primary local telephone service provider in 14 states.

The contract covers Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, South Dakota, North Dakota, New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa and Utah.

Qwest is negotiating separately with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which represents about 300 workers in Montana.