Last week, Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton spoke about VZB techs and how she is pressing the company to recognize the union using card check. Hear Clinton discuss how appalled she is at the anti union campaign being conducted by Verizon against VZB techs.

Her speech addressing hundreds of CWA members in New York about the Employee Free Choice Act and about Verizon Business can be heard in this video.

On Tuesday December 11, 2007 VZB tech John Linder of New York, and VZB tech David Rogol of MA went down to DC to offer testimony to members of Congress and the Press on Verizon's Union Busting. John Linder spoke eloquently at the hearing about how Verizon is not respecting the majority of its techs who want to join a union.

The Congressional Forum on Collective Bargaining was the first of its kind. It was  led by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Rep. George Miller (D-CA).  Other members of Congress who attended included House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH and Jack Reed (D-RI) and Reps. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), Phillip Hare (D-IL) and John Sarbanes (D-MD).

John said it best at the forum: "I have served several tours of duty in both Afghanistan and Iraq. My country called me to serve, telling me I had to fight to protect freedom here in the United States. Imagine the irony of returning home and finding that my freedom to join a union is being denied."

The IBEW and CWA will continue to support our Brothers and Sisters at VZB, and we will prevail.

A busload from various locals of IBEW T-6, along with CWA members, went down to NYC on Thursday, June 28, 2007 to join with thousands of CWA members in front of the West Street C.O. to send a loud and clear message to VZ that Union-Busting will not be tolerated, and the sale of Northern New England will be stopped.

Thank You to the thousand union members who attended our mobilization rally at 185 Franklin Street in Boston. IBEW & CWA members along with many other union members, union leaders, and our political friends sent a clear and strong message to Verizon that we will not stand by while they attempt to destroy our jobs, our company, our customers.

VZB Techs in New York recently had a clear majority of the cards they signed to join a union validated by Congressman Jerry Nadler and Congressman Anthony Weiner, just as we did here in New England at our COPE Breakfast on March 4, 2007. What is Verizon so afraid of? This company needs to stop the anti-union campaign they have going, and respect the rights and wishes of these technicians, who clearly have voiced their intentions. If Verizon put as much energy and effort into working with the IBEW & CWA as they do fighting us we'd all be better off. Get used to it Verizon, we're not going away!

On Sunday, March 4th, three VZB techs from Massachusetts sat down with ex-Presidential candidate and current Senator John Kerry, US Representative Stephen F. Lynch, US Representative John Tierney, Massachusetts Lt. Governor Tim Murray, Arlington MA. Selectwoman Diane Mahon, Father Ed Boyle (Archdiocese of Boston), Former candidate for Mass. Governor Grace Ross, and Boston City Councilor Sam Yoon. Sen. Kerry and the others personally counted how many VZB techs signed up on the union forms. After counting the union forms, Kerry and others signed a statement verifying that a clear majority of Verizon Business Techs from NYS and all of New England want to join the union. After counting the union forms, various elected officials addressed a crowd of over 700 IBEW and CWA members to press the company to stop fighting the union, and instead recognize the majority’s wishes and begin negotiations for a strong union contract.

WHAT A WEEKEND!  Local 2222 designated the weekend of March 3rd & 4th, 2007 as Labor Weekend.  We began on Saturday March 3rd with two bus loads of members and countless car loads more heading north to Monument Square in Portland, ME for a "STOP THE SALE OF THE NORTHERN STATES" rally. We joined over a thousand of our Brothers and Sisters from IBEW locals throughout New England, as well as CWA and other organized labor groups to let Verizon & FairPoint know we will not sit idly while they sell off this company that we built.  The message was loud and clear, the solidarity evident.  Together we will be successful!