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CNN Live At Daybreak
Making Progress: Verizon, Two Unions Negotiate Past Deadline
Aired August 04, 2003 - 06:17 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Time now, though, for a little business buzz. Union negotiations at Verizon were heated over the weekend. Let's see if they were able to work things out.
Carrie Lee live -- Carrie Lee is live from the Nasdaq site in New York.
Good morning -- Carrie.
CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Verizon and two of its big employee unions are still connected thus far. Verizon is making substantial progress in its labor talks with two of these big unions, which represent about 35 percent of Verizon's work force. That's about 80,000 employees.
Now negotiations went past their deadline for a new labor contract, which expired at midnight Eastern on Saturday. A strike has been avoided thus far. But had it not been, it would have affected service from Maine to Virginia. Now the workers had voted to authorize their union leaders to call a strike, but negotiators felt they were making good progress in their dealings.
Here's what's on the table, job security, also work transfers and health care costs. Now Verizon is the nation's largest telephone company. Due to the weak economy, the company says it might have to transfer some work to lower cost regions or cut as many as 5,000 jobs. Meanwhile, the unions, of course, want to keep their jobs and benefits. They also want to organize some non-union areas of the company, including its wireless unit. So that's what's on the table so far. No strikes so far, Carol, but certainly far from being completely resolved.
COSTELLO: Carrie Lee, reporting live from the Nasdaq site in New York, many thanks.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Deadline>
Aired August 4, 2003 - 06:17 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Time now, though, for a little business buzz. Union negotiations at Verizon were heated over the weekend. Let's see if they were able to work things out.
Carrie Lee live -- Carrie Lee is live from the Nasdaq site in New York.
Good morning -- Carrie.
CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Verizon and two of its big employee unions are still connected thus far. Verizon is making substantial progress in its labor talks with two of these big unions, which represent about 35 percent of Verizon's work force. That's about 80,000 employees.
Now negotiations went past their deadline for a new labor contract, which expired at midnight Eastern on Saturday. A strike has been avoided thus far. But had it not been, it would have affected service from Maine to Virginia. Now the workers had voted to authorize their union leaders to call a strike, but negotiators felt they were making good progress in their dealings.
Here's what's on the table, job security, also work transfers and health care costs. Now Verizon is the nation's largest telephone company. Due to the weak economy, the company says it might have to transfer some work to lower cost regions or cut as many as 5,000 jobs. Meanwhile, the unions, of course, want to keep their jobs and benefits. They also want to organize some non-union areas of the company, including its wireless unit. So that's what's on the table so far. No strikes so far, Carol, but certainly far from being completely resolved.
COSTELLO: Carrie Lee, reporting live from the Nasdaq site in New York, many thanks.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Deadline>
