Verizon Communications Inc. is facing a possible strike from close to 40,000 workers in its East Coast operations on Sunday, with the company and its unions unable to agree on a new deal even as the contract is set to expire on Saturday.
The Communication Workers of America and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers are still locked in contract negotiations with the second-largest U.S. telephone company despite seven weeks of talks. The unions have agreed to go on strike if needed last week.
Verizon said it is willing to continue meeting with the unions to arrive at an agreement that is acceptable to employees and the company. The company admitted there has been little progress in the talks and it is ready for a work stoppage.
Citing the Communications Workers of America, Reuters reported that a strike could come as soon as Sunday with contracts set to expire at the midnight of Saturday. Bloomberg reported that a strike would cover workers in the northeast and mid-Atlantic regions and lead to delays in service calls and installations for new phone and Internet customers.
The two sides could not come to terms on benefits for employees. Bloomberg reported that the unions are demanding higher tuition assistance and the removal of health-insurance contributions instituted for the first time in the 2012 contract.
It added that the demands are a counter-proposal to Verizon's offer of a package in June for a 2 percent pay hilke for two subsequent years and a lump-sum payment in the third and final year of the contract.
Bloomberg noted that Verizon has been trying to reduce costs as customers switch to mobile devices from traditional home phones. It said the company's plans to reduce benefits are meant to raise competitiveness.
Bloomberg said that in the 2011 contract negotiations, employees stopped working for two weeks. It took 15 weeks for the company and employees to reach a deal.
