CWA Sues the Public Utilities Regulatory Agency for Anti-Union Contract Interference

Amidst tough negotiations for their next contract with Frontier Communications, CWA Local 1298 filed a lawsuit in December against the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Agency (PURA) for recent rulings which could force telecommunications company Frontier to use non-union contractor labor for vital utility pole repair work. These rulings run counter to legal precedent, dating back over a century, explicitly barring state regulatory agencies from interfering in contracts between public utilities companies and their employees.

Despite this law, PURA has issued a series of decisions since 2021 that mandate Connecticut public utilities employers outsource telecommunications work, long protected by CWA’s collective bargaining agreement, to contractors.

“CWA members work day-in and day-out to expand telecommunications access and provide safe infrastructure across Connecticut. PURA’s decisions have violated state law and put the jobs of 1,400 CWA members in jeopardy,” said CWA Local 1298 President David E. Weidlich, Jr. “The men and women of Local 1298 will not allow this agency to operate with impunity and take away our jobs.” 

In April 2024, CWA Local 1298 submitted a petition to PURA asking it to respect state law and cease its interference in CWA’s collective bargaining agreement. In October, PURA refused. The Local is now petitioning the Connecticut Supreme Court to hold PURA accountable and to prevent reliable, good-paying union positions from being replaced with cheap contractors in violation of state and federal law.

Read more about the suit here.

While the contract expiration date has been extended to March 30, Local 1298 members are willing to do what it takes to win a fair agreement, and voted in late December to authorize a strike against Frontier if necessary. On January 30th CWA Local 1170 members, also in negotiations with Frontier, voted 92% in favor of authorizing a strike as well.