Curtis Martin’s Response to President Kollmeyer

President Kollmeyer,

Thank you for taking the time to write to my local with your concerns about my writing. I’d be more than happy to address them, and in the interest of keeping things transparent, I’d be glad to post anything you or any other member has to say on our website as well.

I’m glad you’re grateful that our bargaining committee ‘put their lives on hold’ to bargain for a better contract; I wish they had done just that. You’d have me feel bad for them for their volunteer work. I’m sorry, Mr. Kollmeyer, I don’t feel sorry for the burden of volunteering. I feel honored every time I’m in a position to lend a hand. I’m very sorry that you don’t understand the difference between disagreeing with someone and attacking that person; I haven’t attacked anyone. I have an opinion and I am voicing it.

Mr. Kollmeyer, I’m bewildered and dismayed that you feel our fight will start at some nebulous point in the future. I can’t stand by and just wait for someone else to work to make things better. I’m so deeply regretful that you can.

Mr. Kollmeyer, you make the anti-union argument against unions when you suggest that I ask the unemployed to ‘feel sorry’ for me. Which side are you on, sir? The fact is that this contract is designed to make sure that fewer and fewer future employees ever have the opportunity to make anything approaching $34 per hour. Not that I think you were suggesting that I personally make $34 per hour, but for the record my hourly rate of pay on my last pay stub was $13.4625.

Selling out the future of our communities is a terrible idea. I’m shocked that I’m having to explain this to a union member, but when you stop hiring service reps or service techs and push their work to leveraged reps and premise techs, you’re taking money out of the community. That affects not only the members, but the community at large. Oh, and it affects the amount of dues coming into locals, districts and the international organization – making it even harder for the union to be effective.

Now I’m not suggesting that anyone go on strike; strikes are hard all around. However, if you loudly and continually reassure a company that under no circumstances will you withhold your expertise and your labor, what is that company’s incentive to bargain in good faith? Mr. Kollmeyer, with that attitude you’ve already surrendered.

How do we fight the good fight, you ask me. How about we spend our time and energy on bargaining and mobilizing rather than giving up and slamming the same TA through until it passes? You question why I didn’t say more on the recent mobility contract. You’re right; I should have been far more outspoken then, and I won’t make that mistake again. As any member from my local can tell you, I was disappointed by that contract, and voted against it. Perhaps if I’d talked to more people, we could have gotten better. I’m deeply sorry that I failed. On the other hand, bargaining for Mobility’s contract lasted longer and came with regular reports of progress and calls to action from the membership; things this rushed mimeographed contract lacked. I’m alarmed that you don’t feel your members deserve the effort. Heck, I’m alarmed that you don’t feel your members have deserved an update to your local’s page in the past year. If you need help setting up something easier to update, give me a call and I’ll see what I can do for you.

The problem, Mr. Kollmeyer, seems to be that you would prefer me to be more selfish. You’d like for me to be satisfied with what I have, to keep my head down, to not attract any attention. You’d like me to completely ignore the worsening conditions for those who will come after us. Shame on you. What, exactly, is the change you wish to see in the world, Mr. Kollmeyer? Recently I felt like I couldn’t be any more heartbroken about the apathy and misdirection of some so-called leaders here within my Union. Thanks for reminding me just how rampant the problem is, Mr. Kollmeyer.

You would have me apologize to those who would betray our members futures.

No.

Curtis R. Martin

A Letter from Kevin Kollmeyer

Recently, CWA Local 6203 received an e-mail from CWA Local 6313 President Kevin Kollmeyer. We are going to post that letter, unedited, so that our members will have context on our forthcoming response. We are willing to post anything written by any member to this website, or assist other locals with setting up their own website should they require assistance.

Here is the letter, as pasted from the local mailbox:

From: Kevin Kollmeyer
Date: Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Subject: Mr.Martin
To: “local@cwa6203.org” <local@cwa6203.org>

Mr. Martin,
I would like to address some of the comments you have posted on your local’s website. First, I take offense to you attacking my bargaining committee, those who are elected to the bargaining committee do this knowing they are going to put their lives on hold to hopefully make a difference for the union members they represent at the table and I have the utmost respect for my friends who decided to serve on it, knowing it was not going to be an easy task at hand. But they took the task on with out hesitation. And I say “THANK YOU” to my Brothers for it. Aside of being on the bargaining committee they are also officers in their respective locals and for you to attack them is wrong, this contract affects them to as well as their members. I am disappointed in President Patton for even letting that get posted on the internet for the whole world see. Shame on you David!!!!!!! They deserve an apology.
You also talk about what our parents and grandparents fought for and where we are now, do you know the difference between now and then? They had the American people standing behind them because they were tired of the rich getting richer and they kept getting poorer, right along with their Congressmen and Senators applying pressure on the company, We don’t have either now, They believe we are the evil greedy union that destroyed Detroit. Not till the American People wake up and decide to take back this nation by electing people, who believe the poor and the middle class is what built this nation. That is when our fight will start. Until then we have a very hard road ahead of us.
So, how do we bargain a better contract if we don’t have the support of the American People and our Legislators? I dare you to walk up to any of the 12.3 million people that are unemployed and ask them; don’t you feel sorry for me? I make 34 dollars and hour and paying 75 dollars a month for health care and in 4 years they are going to pay me 37 dollars an hour and I am going to pay 225 a month for a health care. Matter of fact, ask anyone and see what kind of response you get. I don’t like paying for health care anymore then any other person, but there is not a union contract out there now that union members don’t pay something for health care. Please tell us what we need to do to get a better contract?
Go on strike? Let’s think about this for a minute, with the political and economic climate that we are currently, would it not be the worst mistake we could make right now? The Republicans, from the States all the way to Congress, are already trying to pass right to work bills, paycheck deception bills, and prevailing wage bills, take away collective bargaining rights of our members. So don’t you think if we go on strike, it would be a disaster for us? This, I believe, is what the anti-union activists and special interest groups and Republicans are waiting for us to do, to drive their message home about unions being greedy and destroying America. So how do we fight the good fight?
Now, about Vice-President Cummings protecting the Members relief fund. He is only one man on a board of 21 executive board members that would vote to give President Cohen the authority to set a date. So do you think the executive board is going to vote to strike after 2 other districts have settled? REALLY!
Last but not least, your theory on the ratification vote, After sitting back and looking at the whole 1st ratification vote to the 2nd ratification vote, I could see where there is perception of malice on the districts part, but I truly believe the real problem was the voting irregularities, from a secretary- treasurer walking around with a ballot box taking secrets ballots. To locals not mailing ballots as required by their bylaws, as we have seen in some locals elections where stewards were taking secret ballots from members for them to vote, the DOL stepped in and said rerun the election, so I believe it probably was the smartest way to run the second election through a 3rd party, because if the DOL would got involved we would of opened up a door that we didn’t want to open. That’s why we have election committees in our locals to run these elections.
Now Mr. Martin I have looked through your posts, but I see nothing about your ratification vote on your health care that was mailed out by the international, instead of your local running the ratification vote for it. Or matter of fact, any comments about your very own contract after bargaining. You are not building solidarity within the union by posting your tirades on the internet for the whole world to see by attacking local officers. I believe you need to be educated on some things and hopefully your leadership can help with that. Now, I do believe the Bargaining Committee deserves an apology from you!!!!

John K. Kollmeyer
President
CWA Local 6313

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” -Gandhi

Curtis Martin On The District 6 & AT&T Southwest Tentative Agreement

My name is Curtis Martin, and I serve as a Steward for CWA Local 6203. Additionally I serve as the local’s Legislative Coordinator, Mobilization Coordinator and President of the Lubbock Central Labor Council. Apparently, titles matter to some people. I’d like to take some time to talk about this tentative agreement, which is largely unchanged from the TA District 6 already resoundingly voted down.

Brothers and Sisters, does our bargaining committee truly believe that 5 additional days of early bargaining is the best they can do for the members of District 6? What motivates the committee, along with District 6 Vice President Claude Cummings to try to frighten and bully the membership into changing their votes from no to yes? Why is District 6 using vote suppression techniques, mailing individual ballots out to what they “think” are the current addresses of our members, rather than allowing members to vote through their locals? Why does Vice President Cummings and his bargaining committee feel that our members don’t deserve a fully engaged team who are willing to go the distance and bargain for substantial gains?

District 6 Vice President Claude Cummings writes “I believe that we have negotiated a solid contract. I also believe that AT&T Southwest will attempt to “take back” the positive improvements we have made in this tentative agreement if we seek to return to the bargaining table.” Mr. Cummings, I disagree that we have negotiated a solid contract. At CWA Local 6203’s explanation meeting for the previous TA, a member asked Staff Representative Charlie Torres if he felt that TA was better or worse than the 2009 agreement. Mr. Torres stated, when asked, that the TA was worse than then 2009 agreement. This TA is largely unchanged from that TA, and is absolutely worse for the membership than the 2009 agreement. Mr. Cummings, when you say you ‘believe’ that AT&T Southwest will attempt to ‘take back’ the positive improvements in this TA should we go to regular bargaining, are you trying to frighten or intimidate the members you were elected to serve? Of course AT&T Southwest’s bargaining committee will negotiate the best deal for AT&T that they can – it’s their job. It’s our bargaining committee’s job to do the same thing for our members, and I strongly feel that they can do far better than they’ve bothered to do thus far.

Bargaining Committee member Chad Barnhill writes “Ask you neighbors, people you attend church with or family members what they are currently paying for healthcare.” He seems to believe that our Union should accept massive increases in healthcare because our non-union neighbors pay more for healthcare than we do. Mr. Barnhill should be ashamed of himself. Mr. Barnhill, please take the time to learn even just the basics of the history of the Union Movement. Our parents and grandparents did not fight their entire lives for you to surrender what little they’ve gained so readily.

Bargaining Committee member Joshua Kayser writes, in reference to returning to regular bargaining, “there will be no $1000 signing bonus”. Mr. Kayser, who cares about a $1000 lump sum payment when faced with the prospect of raises that don’t even attempt to keep up with the rising cost of living? That lump sum is nothing more than a bribe designed to trick the membership into selling out their own futures.

Bargaining Committee member Gerald Murray writes that he supports this tentative agreement without saying anything of substance other than to assert that he has leadership skills. I’ve seen no evidence, Mr. Murray.

Bargaining Committee member Jason Peavler writes, in addition to the same song and dance about a ratification bonus “The Leverage Service Representative Sales committee meeting was increased from 2 to 4 meetings a year with 2 additional Leverage Reps on the committee.” Great start. Let’s get back to the table and make sure that this committee has the ability to actually accomplish positive change for our members!

Bargaining Committee member Glynne Stanley writes “This agreement has better wage increases, less medical premiums, and better protections for our Customer Service Technicians and Service Representatives than the previous three CWA-ATT Contracts ratified in 2012.” We have heard the bargaining committee and District 6 Vice President Claude Cummings talk repeatedly about how our medical premiums are lower than the other districts that have ratified contracts. What they like to omit is that our premiums are lower by $5 per month. Now five dollars is a great start, I’ll admit it, but it’s far short of the heroic victory this bargaining committee seems to think it is. Get back to the table and bargain!

District 6 Staff Member Mike Neumann writes more of the same; there’s a one time $1000 bonus, the premiums are lower (lower by $5), etc. He says nothing of substance whatsoever. The same can be said for Staff Member Charlie Torres’ flaccid endorsement of this tentative agreement.

Finally, District 6 Staff Member Tony Shaffer writes “I say shame on you that have questioned the integrity of your fellow brothers that are dues paying members and have to live with the same contract.” and “Bargaining is about getting the best contract for all the members, not just a certain title.” Agreed, Mr. Shaffer. Shame on the elected officials and staff of District 6 who tell stories about ‘know nothing kids with three months service’ and don’t deserve better than they have. Bargaining is, indeed, about all members. Mr. Shaffer also writes “These CEO’s are all on each other’s board of directors and work on their bonus’ and salaries along with how to union bust. They have implemented a top-down mentality with corporations having the same business model. I have sat on Verizon’s bargaining table twice, Dish Network, Comcast several times and now with ATT. All of their philosophies are almost identical. They post record profits quarter after quarter, but come to the table and say how much they are losing in certain areas, except in the bottom line, PROFIT. “ Mr. Shaffer, the fact that companies are behaving more and more aggressively when it comes to unions and bargaining does not mean that we should rush to settle for poor and mediocre deals; now is the time for us to redouble our efforts and fight the good fight.

Mr. Shaffer also writes “I have also been to a few contract explanations that frankly, appalled me. One in particular didn’t even show respect enough to hear the explanation. They voted before it started. Not sure why, but it spoke volumes.” Mr. Shaffer, when these explanation meetings consist of staff reading, verbatim, the explanations that have already been e-mailed out, it’s no surprise when some members elect to vote and move on with their lives. It may surprise you, but we do know how to read.

Let’s return briefly to Mr. Cummings, who writes “Some members raise the possibility of going on strike. We all need to think long and hard about that. How long could we sustain a strike? Would it be effective? How long are you willing to stay out? A strike among 22,000 workers is a huge responsibility for all involved, with no guarantee of a positive outcome.” Mr. Cummings, why are you working harder to protect the CWA Strike Fund than you are your members?