The Communications Workers of America announced that 91% of Qwest’s unionized workers voted to authorize a strike if the union and Qwest management could not agree on a contract by Saturday night.

Qwest and the CWA are haggling over issues that include health care, wages and a mandatory overtime policy. The first full negotiating session finally between Qwest and the CWA finally took place late last week, with the strike threat seen by the union as a “good messageâ€? to force Qwest to the bargaining table. Reports out of the bargaining room are that Qwest and the CWA have tentatively agreed on some minor points, but they still are far apart on the major issues. — TelecomWeb

For a strike to take place, the next step would be for CWA’s executive board to authorize President Morton Bahr to set a strike date.

“CWA wants to reach a fair agreement with Qwest, but management must recognize that our members have made substantial sacrifices to help keep Qwest in business over a very rocky period,” said Annie Hill, CWA District 7 Vice President, in a press release.

“Our members want Qwest to succeed, but we also expect management to come to the bargaining table with fair proposals, not excessive demands for shifting health care costs to workers and retirees, and demands for increased mandatory overtime work that force workers to spend even more time away from their families,” she said.

Qwest has not commented regarding the contract negotiations, but states it has contingency plans to put managers to work in critical areas in case of a strike. According to a memo sent to Qwest managers, they would be required to work 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, throughout a strike.

The memo states that Qwest expects to negotiate new agreements with the union. However, “It is only prudent to ensure a plan is in place to continue serving customers in the unlikely event that no agreement is reached and a stoppage occurs.” — Denver Business Journal

Great, just what I need is a manager who hasn’t been out in the field in years fixing my phone. At the same time the employees do need to be treated fairly.