Last month, CWA members and retirees across the country took to the streets in opposition to President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” which eliminates healthcare protections for millions of Americans while providing tax breaks for the obscenely wealthy. Members joined labor and community partners to hold elected officials accountable and send a clear message: the American people will remember who voted against their interests.

Pictured top, left to right: Members called out elected officials, including Representatives Monica De La Cruz in Texas, Maria Elvira Salazar in Florida, Cory Mills in Florida, Mike Turner in Ohio, Derrick Van Orden in Wisconsin, John James in Michigan, and David Valadao in California.

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In Arizona (left), CWA partnered with the AFL-CIO's Better in a Union Bus Tour to call out anti-union Representatives David Schweikert, Abraham Hamadeh, and Juan Ciscomani. We partnered with the tour again in New York, holding N.Y. Reps. like Mike Lawler to account.

In New York State, CWA partnered with the Fiscal Policy Institute and several other major unions and community organizations to hold virtual briefings for members on the major impacts of the bill on working people across the country.

On August 22, members of CWA Locals 1103 and 1118 took part in the Progress for the People Town Hall, an in-person briefing in Glens Falls, N.Y., on the impact of the bill, alongside Reps. Paul Tonko, Ayanna Pressley, and Becca Balint.

“My member of Congress [Rep. Mike Lawler] voted for the One Big Ugly Cruel Bill," said CWA Local 1103 Secretary-Treasurer Joe Mayhew, speaking at the event. "And that is a problem for the members of CWA, especially the ones in the healthcare profession. The One Big Ugly Cruel Bill cuts hundreds of billions of dollars out of Medicaid and that will affect all of our local hospitals.”

Click here to read more about the impact of Medicaid cuts to rural hospitals from the National Rural Health Association.

Nearly 100 members of CWA Local 7019 took action to protect their jobs, their customers, and their communities last week in light of the proposed sale of Lumen to AT&T. After an all-hands-on-deck meeting called by CWA Local 7019 President Ron Fagan, members made more than 120 contacts with state legislators requesting in-person meetings, pushing back against AT&T corporate spin, and demanding accountability. Members made clear the real risks, especially to rural communities where reliable service is already in jeopardy.

CWA workers have built, maintained, and improved communications networks that Arizona families and businesses rely on. The deal threatens to increase outsourcing of this critical work, potentially jeopardizing not only service quality but also the good union jobs that sustain Arizona communities.

This legislative effort was led by CWA Local 7019 member and Broadband Technician Bert Boutin with support from CWA District 7 staff and the CWA Local 7019 Political Committee. In a statement from the team, they expressed their gratitude, saying, “CWA remains committed to this fight. We thank every member who stepped up to make their voices heard. Together, we are stronger—and together, we will protect the future of our work.”

Click here to support CWA members in their fight to protect their jobs and communities.

This Labor Day, CWA and the AFL-CIO celebrated the shared trials and triumphs of working people. Dubbed the “Workers’ Labor Day,” CWA members, retirees, and supporters gathered to celebrate the power we have when we come together in a union—the power to take back our country from the bully billionaires. Over 1,000 activities, from picnics to protests, were scheduled through the AFL-CIO online portal.

CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. attended a march and rally in Detroit, Mich., where he spoke to members, allies, and supporters on this critical moment for the Labor Movement. He stressed resistance to authoritarianism, saying, “Do you know who is not running scared? Us. Our union and our labor movement. We have a whole lot of experience standing up to bullies. When they come for us, for our co-workers, and for our families, do we back down? No!”

CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. (left of center) joined NABET-CWA Local 54043 President and Vice President of the Metro Detroit AFL-CIO, Dorethea Brown-Maxey, along with CWA District 4 Administrative Director Mike Handley, CWA District 4 local officers, staff, members, retirees, and supporters during the Metro Detroit AFL-CIO Labor Day March.

Stay tuned for more Labor Day 2025 coverage in next week’s newsletter.

You can read President Cummings’ Labor Day message here!

CWA members travelled to the Activision Blizzard campus in Irvine, Calif., to speak with Diablo workers after they secured a majority for union recognition.

Last week, over 450 video game workers behind the popular video game series Diablo voted strongly in favor of union representation. The unit, which includes game developers, artists, designers, engineers, and support staff across the Diablo franchise, is one of the largest wall-to-wall unions at a Microsoft-owned studio. The workers will be members of CWA Local 9510 in Irvine, Calif.; CWA Local 1118 in Albany, N.Y.; and CWA Local 6215 in Austin, Texas.

“My entire career as a developer has seen my peers and I paying the ‘passion tax’ for working in an industry that we love,” said Nav Bhatti, Team 3 Senior Software Engineer and organizing committee member. “At some point you have to choose between fight or flight, and forming a union is us doing just that—standing our ground in the industry.”

This latest organizing update shows that the wave of unions at video game studios has accelerated across the industry. Since last July, when over 500 World of Warcraft developers formed the first wall-to-wall unit at Microsoft, over 3,500 Microsoft workers have organized with CWA, fighting for fair compensation, job security, and a seat at the table to improve workplace conditions.

Read the full press release here.

In July, CWA Local 1014, representing 1,600 public service employees working for Camden County, N.J., including over 150 emergency services dispatchers, filed a lawsuit against the county alleging systemic violations of New Jersey’s Equal Pay Act. The complaint accuses the county of paying female and minority employees less than their male or non‑minority peers who perform the same work.

The complaint alleges an estimated $10.5 million in lost wages to date and seeks not only back pay, but also to change county pay practices going forward to ensure fair treatment for all employees.

“We’ve made every attempt to address this issue, but we’ve gotten no meaningful response from the County,” said Garren Steiner, President of CWA Local 1014. “We’re not asking for anything crazy here—all we’re looking for is what’s right and what’s required by law. We want what’s best for this community, for taxpayers, and for our members who devote their lives to this job. The County offered us a nominal one-time payment to make this lawsuit go away. That’s unacceptable in light of the years of lost wages and emotional toll that this has taken on our members.”

Click here to read the full press release.

Leaders from several unions representing American Airlines workers convened last week to further CWA’s shared goal of building a more unified, impactful labor movement at one of the nation’s largest airlines.

Representatives from the CWA-International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) Association, the Allied Pilot Association (APA), the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), the Professional Airline Flight Control Association (PAFCA), and the Transportation Workers United-International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (TWU-IAM) discussed cross-union solidarity and coordinated action, the need for increased transparency from management, and joint proposals for worker empowerment and protection on the job.

In a statement, the unions stressed their commitment to maintaining a cohesive, coordinated labor coalition to address the opportunities and challenges ahead. They will meet again on October 23 at APA headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas, to continue this critical dialogue.

Meanwhile, CWA members at American Airlines subsidiary Piedmont Airlines continue to fight for a fair contract. The bargaining team is continuing to meet with the company while awaiting the start of federal mediation. Under the Railway Labor Act, which governs labor relations in the airline and railroad industries, mediation is a required step when the union and the company cannot reach an agreement on their own. Passenger Service Agents are not permitted to strike, picket, or take job actions unless the National Mediation Board declares an impasse and formally releases both parties from mediation.

Members of CWA’s Next Gen, a program for up-and-coming union activists 35 and under, have partnered with the CWA Legislative and Political Department to host short, focused workshops drawn from the department’s well-regarded Political Boot Camp program. Led by CWA Senior Campaign Lead Asa Shaw, these two-hour midday Zoom sessions are designed for activists who have shown strong initiative and were nominated by their Lead Activist or District staff.

Next Gen has hosted six trainings so far this year, with plans to continue them on a monthly basis and increase the pace in 2026 as they get closer to the midterm elections. Topics include The Ongoing Class War, Storytelling and Deep Listening, and A. Philip Randolph and the Labor Movement.

In addition to these capsule political education trainings, Next Gen is working with the Human Rights Department to offer full day virtual trainings on gender justice, implicit bias, and environmental justice. Two sessions are scheduled for this month, with the goal of continuing them on a regular basis.

According to CWA Local 3808 member Landon Bratcher, “The Next Gen trainings have been a big eye-opener for me. The session on storytelling and deep listening showed me how to really talk with coworkers about the union, not just at them. It gave me confidence that I can do my part to get more members active.”

To sign up for updates from CWA Next Gen, visit cwa.org/nextgen.

Follow CWA Next Gen on social @cwanextgen on all platforms.

CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. met with Amanda Bratcher, CWA Next Gen Lead Activist for CWA District 3 (left) and Britni Cuington, CWA Next Gen Lead Activist for District 6, at the 80th CWA Convention in Pittsburgh, Pa., in August.