Verizon Communications Inc and the unions representing its wireline unit employees on the US East Coast said work will go on and talks continue after their current contract expired.
Since June, the unions have been in talks with Verizon over the company's plans to cut costs by controlling healthcare and pension-related benefits over a three-year period. Last week, the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers that represent over 37,000 wireline employees said they had voted to go on strike, if needed, after their contract expired on August 1 at midnight. During the last round of contract negotiations in 2011, talks ended in a strike.
The unions want extra benefits in addition to job security provisions. The CWA said on Saturday that Verizon has not budged from its original proposal which they have said would increase workers' healthcare costs by thousands of dollars, eliminate job security and remove any restrictions on the company's right to contract out or offshore union jobs.
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