Labor Updates (3/24/08)

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)
Connect-DC Campaign in The News: Connect-DC's campaign to get Verizon to bring high-speed Fios fiber optics service to DC was reported in the Washington Business Journal on March 14. "By highlighting Verizon's decision to deploy Fios first in Maryland and Virginia rather than in DC," reported Darlene Darcy, "the labor groups are accusing the telecom of neglecting the city's existing copper-based phone networks -- and of moving jobs from the city -- as it upgrades the suburbs with the latest equipment." The report also covers how Connect-DC, a partnership between the Communications Workers of America and DC Jobs with Justice, is opposing Verizon's push for the DC Council "to give up regulatory authority that could govern Fios' Internet-based phone service." Click here to read the whole story. Ballet Dancers Get New Contract: After just three days of negotiations, the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) reached an agreement last Thursday night for a new three-year agreement with the Washington Ballet. "Both AGMA and (Washington Ballet) management were pleased at the amicable tone of the negotiations and mutual respect demonstrated at the table," reported AGMA DC's Eleni Kallas. "The strides we made in communicating our needs to each other will serve us well as we move on to complete this season and through the next three years of our new agreement." A vote will be held shortly to ratify the new contract with includes raises of 4, 4.5 and 4.5% through the 2010-11 season.