Speed Matters: U.S. Needs to Boost Universal, Affordable Access to Broadband

CWA Pres. Cohen opens Speed Matters news conference. From left: Chairman Julius Hollis, Alliance for Digital Equality; Council Member Sherri Bowman, Charles City County, Va.; FCC Chair Julius Genachowski; NAACP Washington Director Hilary Shelton, and Carl Pope, Chairman, Sierra Club.

Below: FCC Chair Genachowski says 'speed matters' for jobs and economic growth.

CWA's fourth annual Speed Matters report comparing broadband speeds in every state was rolled out at a news conference with President Larry Cohen, FCC Chair Julius Genachowski, and key coalition members in the campaign to improve access and affordability of high speed broadband.

Leaders from the NAACP, Sierra Club, Alliance for Digital Equality, and from Charles City County, Va., a Richmond area community where more than half the residents don’t have any access to broadband, joined the event, comparing the needed buildout of high speed broadband to projects decades ago that brought U.S. residents the interstate highway system, electricity in rural communities and other public gains.

Currently, nearly half of all U.S. residents don't meet the FCC's miniumum speed standard of 4 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 1 Mbps upload, the report found.

Cohen commended the FCC for its work to improve broadband deployment, connection speeds and adoption, especially in rural and lower-income urban areas. "By building out high speed Internet, the infrastructure of the 21st century, we'll create quality jobs and support economic growth," Cohen said.

Genachowski stressed that "speed matters on the Internet, enabling innovations in telemedicine, education, economic development, energy conservation, and job creation." The CWA report spotlights the need for investment in higher speed broadband networks to support America's critical applications, he said, adding, "that's why moving forward on the National Broadband Plan is our top priority at the FCC."

Watch the full news conference at www.speedmatters.org.

The five fastest states: Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland and New York. Among the slowest: Montana, Wyoming, Arkansas and Mississippi.

Lack of access to high-speed Internet reflects a persistent digital divide among Americans. Geography and income too often indicate whether someone has access to high-speed Internet. In urban and suburban areas, 70 percent of households subscribe to broadband, with only 50 percent of rural households subscribing to the service. For Americans who make more than $75,000 a year, 87 percent get broadband while only 45 percent of Americans that earn less than $30,000 subscribe.

That's why CWA and others support the FCC's National Broadband Plan, which lays a framework for all Americans to have access to affordable, high-speed Internet, resulting in economic growth, quality job creation, sustainable communities and advances in education, healthcare and more via the Internet.

For access to the full 2010 Speed Matters report, click here, and click on "Download the Report."

Three Weeks to Senate Rule Change Vote

How can we restore democracy and debate to the U.S. Senate? That was topic A at a forum sponsored by Common Cause, where CWA President Larry Cohen, Common Cause President and CEO Bob Edgar, Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and others talked about ways to fix the arcane Senate rules.

These rules aren't in the Constitution and have been changed many times over the years. They've just about shut down action on important issues to working families over the past two years.

After the new Senate is sworn into office nearly next year, Senators can vote to change the rules on holds, delaying tactics that prevent debate and how filibusters are conducted.

Chris Bowers at DailyKos updated where things stand. Read his entire report here.

Bowers writes: "Unlike other congressional fights, which always seem to drag on interminably, the rules reform campaign is a date-certain event. On the first day the Senate is in session during the 112th Congress--which is January 5th, 2011--the Senate either will, or will not, change its rules. That is only three weeks from today, so there isn't a lot of time left in this campaign.

There are already more than 50 Senators in favor of changing the rules in some way. However, they have not reached consensus on which reforms they want."

Read how you can join the campaign here.

And check out this video of CWA Executive Vice President Annie Hill and why we need to act now. 

Workers Keep CWA at Budget Rental, Join CWA in Other Campaigns

A unit of 53 Budget Rental Car workers represented by IUE-CWA Local 81201 at Logan Airport beat back a management-supported campaign to get rid of their union, and voted 25-18 to keep their IUE-CWA voice. A strong rank and file campaign that included house visits and a public letter of support signed by 26 workers was key to the victory. Workers at Budget first organized in October 2009.

Local organizer Sheila McGuillicuddy helped the group remain united, working with Budget workers and stewards Mukhtar Abdul and Kamau Hashim, and Jorge Rivera, chief steward from the CWA-represented unit at Avis.

In Baltimore, workers at the American Red Cross voted for Local 2100 representation by a 5-2 vote. Workers held together despite an intense anti-union campaign. The campaign was led by local organizer Pam Wilt and supported by local president Mark Balsamo.

In Arizona, eight print shop workers in the Tucson Unified School District voted for Local 7000 representation, the second print shop organized by the local recently. In another campaign, three workers at the Gloo Factory joined Local 7000 through majority sign up. Workers were assisted by local president Linda Hatfield and organizer Maritza Broce.

In New Jersey, the 23 members of the Advertising Business Inside Circulation Employees Association at the Trentonian newspaper voted to affiliate with TNG-CWA Local 38010. The newspaper was formed in the 1940s by ITU members who were on strike at the Trenton Times.

NLRB Endorses Majority Sign Up

In a welcome about-face from the kind of rulings issued by the National Labor Relations Board under the Bush Administration, the NLRB has strongly endorsed workers' ability to choose union representation through majority sign up.

The case centers around a pre-recognition agreement between the UAW and Dana Corp. in St. Johns, Mich., where about 300 workers manufactured automotive parts. In that agreement, Dana agreed to recognize and bargain with the UAW once proof of majority support for a union by workers was determined and to remain "totally neutral" during the union’s organizing campaign on the issue of union representation.

The Board rejected charges by several anti-union employees that the pre-recognition agreement violated the National Labor Relations Act by giving improper support to the union. Instead, it found that the UAW-Dana agreement was lawful because it did not have any immediate impact on employees' terms and conditions of employment. The Board also stated that it would be very hesitant to create "new obstacles to voluntary recognition."

The Board provided strong support for majority sign up by affirming the law’s recognition of long-standing principles of voluntary recognition, noting "that an employer may voluntarily recognize a union that has demonstrated majority support by means other than an election, including authorization cards signed by a majority of the unit employees."

"This decision clearly demonstrates why it is so important to have a pro-worker majority on the NLRB," CWA President Larry Cohen said.

This decision involves different issues than the 2007 Dana Corporation decision involving a different corporate facility, where anti-union employees were given a 45-day window to petition for a decertification election after a majority of the workers had already acted to voluntarily recognize a union. Cases are now pending before the current Board to overturn that ruling.

Guild's AP Journalists Withhold Bylines in Protest Over Benefit Cuts

Hundreds of TNG-CWA journalists at The Associated Press are taking part in a national "byline boycott" this week, removing their names from stories and photos to protest the news service’s attempt to slash pension and medical benefits.

Members of the News Media Guild, TNG-CWA Local 31222, also are showing their unity by wearing red shirts and signing a petition asking AP management to reconsider plans to freeze pensions and raise employees' share of medical costs by more than 40 percent.

AP is demanding the rollbacks despite many financial concessions from workers in recent years. "Guild members have increased productivity, embraced new skills, and have made many financial sacrifices," NMG President Tony Winton said. "AP has to do better if it wants to preserve and protect quality journalism."

The Guild represents about 1,200 AP reporters, writers, editors, photographers, broadcast staff, technology employees and business office employees in United States. Their current two-year contract expired Nov. 30.

Solidarity Succeeds as PBS Workers Ratify New Contract

NABET-CWA members who stood strong through months of tough bargaining at PBS have ratified a new contract with 5 percent wage hikes over three years in addition to significant wage adjustments for many employees.

The new contract, which includes a $500 signing bonus, covers about 50 technicians, editors and satellite workers represented by NABET-CWA Local 52031. The previous contract expired in June.

The bargaining team worked hard to bring the wages of both new hires and longer-term workers in line with salaries at other networks, with PBS technicians and other workers receiving base pay increases to bring them up to industry standards.

NABET-CWA leaders credit the unit's active membership and mobilization for getting management to back down. Mobilization activities included hot dog days outside the building, turning out for PBS board meetings in red shirts of solidarity, and sending postcards to the network's CEO.

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