Questions and Answers
Please note: While all questions are reviewed, only representative Q&A will be posted on the
Web site. Specific questions cannot be addressed in this forum.
The information in this Q&A document is intended to be informative and as accurate as
possible. If there is any conflict between information in this document and anything in the
Tentative Agreement with CWA and the Company, the agreement prevails.
Questions and answers added December 13, 2010
Q1:
A1:
Q2:
A2:
Could you please define what an "eligible employee" is under the National
Transfer Plan (NTP) as proposed under this Tentative Agreement?
Bargained-for employees in the National Internet Contract may indicate their
interest in other bargained-for positions in other participating companies. To be
an “eligible employee” under the NTP for a position in the receiving or
participating company, an employee must meet all qualifications (which may
include interviewing, testing, driving or security checks, etc.) and selection criteria
required by the participating company.
I need to send in my ballot. Could you provide me the district and local
number for the Birmingham call center chapter of the CWA and confirm
where it should be sent?
Certain locals, including Birmingham (District 3, Local 3902), provided preaddressed envelopes to have ballots forwarded to the CWA National Office
located at 501 3rd Street NW, Washington, D.C., 20001. Members mailing in
their ballots should include their district number and union local number on the
envelope.
Questions and answers added December 7, 2010
Q1:
A1:
Q2:
A2:
What are the catch-up contributions for the AT&T Retirement Savings Plan
(ARSP)?
Under the ARSP, if you are or will be 50 years of age or older before the end of a
calendar year, you may save more on a before-tax basis to “catch-up” your
savings to help meet your retirement needs. You may contribute an additional
Before-Tax Supplementary Contribution that exceeds the otherwise applicable
ARSP or statutory limits (a “Catch-up Contribution”).
Is the Calculator using wages before or after taxes?
As taxes and other deductions vary from employee to employee, the calculator is
using wages before taxes.
Q3:
A3:
I set the calculator to the “Family and Hospitalization” scenario and it said
my medical costs would only go up $4,100 over 3 years. How is that
possible if the Family Deductable will be $11,550? How are you arriving at
these medical cost numbers in your calculator?
The amount of $11,550 represents the Network/Out-of-Network Area (ONA) outof-pocket maximum for 2012, not the Family Deductible. The Family Deductible
for 2012 is $1,300. The Change in Health Care Cost shown represents the
estimated difference between out-of-pocket health care expenses under the
tentative agreement and your out-of-pocket health care expenses under the
current plan. All expenses are assumed to be in-network. Out-of-pocket health
care expenses include monthly premium contributions, deductibles, coinsurance,
copayments and any other eligible expenses.
Questions and answers added December 6, 2010
Q1:
A1:
Do non-union members qualify for the ratification bonus if the agreement is
ratified?
If ratification of the tentative agreement occurs by December 21, 2010, all
employees who are in the job titles covered in this agreement and who are on
payroll on the date of ratification will receive a ratification bonus of $500.
Q2:
A2:
When will Customer Assistants be eligible for Tuition Assistance?
The Company and Union agreed that Customer Assistants will be eligible for
Tuition Assistance effective with ratification. More information about the eligibility
guidelines is available here on HROneStop. If the tentative agreement is ratified,
the AT&T Non-Management Tuition Aid Policy application form, which can be
found at www.acclaris.net should be completed and submitted online.
Applications may be submitted online as early as 45 calendar days prior to the
start of the course but no later than the last day of the course.
Q3:
Is tuition assistance on a pre- or post-paid basis? What does this
assistance cover?
Tuition assistance is pre-paid to the employee, subject to submission of
acceptable final grades and proof of payment following completion of the course.
Tuition assistance covers a maximum of $3,500 in a calendar year and can be
used towards tuition and required course-specific fees. Courses must be in one
of the approved degree programs listed in the policy, which can be found here on
HROneStop.
A3:
Q4:
A4:
Are the lump sum payments for Customer Assistants and non-Customer
Assistants included in the ratification bonus of $500?
No, the $500 ratification bonus would be in addition to the lump sum payments
for Customer Assistants and non-Customer Assistants outlined in the highlights
document, if ratification of the tentative agreement occurs by December 21,
2010.
Questions and answers added December 4, 2010
Q1:
A1:
When does the Success Sharing Plan (SSP) begin?
See Q1 and Q2 under the questions and answers added November 29, 2010.
Q2:
A2:
Will we receive the ratification bonus and lump sum all in one paycheck?
See Q3 under the questions and answers added November 29, 2010.
Q3:
Will the company still offer a 401(k) match of 80 percent up to 6 percent of
your pay?
Yes. All employees will remain in their current 401(k) plan through May 31, 2010.
Effective June 1, 2011, all employees will become eligible to participate in the
AT&T Retirement Savings Plan (ARSP). This 401(k) plan provides the same
generous Company Match amount as under the prior savings plan, and includes
the option to contribute to a Roth account as well as Catch-up Contributions. The
ARSP provides a broad fund lineup that offers 10 core options, LifeCycle funds
and a brokerage window option that allows thousands of other investment
options.
A3:
Q4:
A4:
How do you find out what step of wage progression you are on now?
Your supervisor should be able to help you determine where you are at on the
wage table.
Q5:
Who is eligible to participate in the expanded National Transfer Plan? Also,
could you elaborate more on what the plan entails?
The National Transfer Plan (NTP) extends and enhances the current
Intersubsidiary Movement process and the CWA Surplus Exchange process that
allows eligible employees to move to other CWA-represented regional bargaining
unit jobs before external hires. NTP will become effective once ratified by the
Internet bargaining unit. Job offers made under the NTP will follow the order of
consideration below after regional contract processes:
1.
Surplus employees currently on the payroll and surplus employees
involuntarily laid off within the last 12 months.
2.
Current employees requesting transfer to other regions.
A5:
Under the NTP, eligible employees would have the opportunity to move to any of
participating CWA-represented bargaining units.
Questions and answers added November 30, 2010
Q1:
A1:
I'm confused by the National Internet contract Calculator. Can you explain
how it works?
The calculator was developed to allow bargained employees to look at the
estimated financial impact of the tentative agreement. After entering some basic
information, employees can view a comparison that shows their current pay and,
if applicable, benefits compared to the pay and, if applicable, benefits under the
tentative agreement.
For wages, the "Increase in Pay" represents the cumulative effect of your
proposed wage increases over the life of the tentative agreement. This includes
the proposed annual wage increase, wage progression (if applicable) and lump
sum payments. Below is an example of a Technical Support Representative II at
top pay (Step 11) with no overtime.
As of July
2010
$62,000
Year 1
Increase
Year 2
Increase
Year 3
Increase
Lump Sum
First Year
of
Contract
$65,500
Second
Year of
Contract
$65,200
Final Year
of
Contract
$66,800
$1,800
$1,800
$1,800
$5,400
$1,400
$1,400
$2,800
$1,600
$1,600
$4,800
$11,500
$1,700
$3,500
$3,200
Total
Remember, the comparison is based on your wages as of July 2010. Without
wage increases, progression increases or lump sums over the next three years,
you would receive $186,000 ($62,000 x three years) in wages. With the wage
increases negotiated, you would receive $197,500 ($65,500 + $65,200 +
$66,800) in wages. Therefore, the difference would be $11,500 ($197,500 $186,000) in increased wages over the life of the tentative agreement. For those
in progression, step increases would also be considered in the increase in pay;
an employee in wage progression would see a substantially greater wage
increase.
If benefit changes apply to you, the "Change in Health Care Cost" shown
represents the estimated difference between out-of-pocket health care expenses
under the tentative agreement, and out-of-pocket health care expenses under the
current plan. All expenses are assumed to be in-network. Below is an example of
an individual plus 1 dependent who is a medium user of healthcare.
Change in
Health Care
Cost
Contract
Year 1
Contract
Year 2
Contract
Year 3
Total
$100
$300
$1,300
$1,700
The $300 in the second year of the contract represents the estimated increase in
out-of-pocket health care expenses over estimated current costs. This includes
monthly premium contributions, deductibles, coinsurance, copayments and any
other eligible expenses. The estimates are based on AT&T average claim data
for an individual plus 1 dependent medium user.
For participants who select "hospitalization" for the type of health care user, the
change in health care cost is measured using a utilization of "hospitalization" in
the first and second year and "high" in the final year of the tentative agreement.
Subtracting the increased costs in healthcare from the total increase in pay
results in “Net Gain to You.” In the above example, $11,500 total increase in pay
minus $1,700 total increase in healthcare costs results in $9,800 net gain to you.
When using the calculator, do not use the back and forward buttons on your
browser as this will not store your results.
Q2:
Do all non-Customer Assistant titles also get the $500 bonus on top of the
$1,200 lump sum?
A2:
If ratification of the tentative agreement occurs by December 21, 2010, all
employees on payroll on the date of ratification will receive a ratification bonus of
$500.
Q3:
Why do non-Customer Assistants get an increase each year and the
Customer Assistants only get a 2 percent increase in 2010 and a 1 percent
increase in 2012?
The average Customer Assistant in progression will receive an approximately 37
percent wage increase over life of the agreement. This includes a 2 percent
general wage increase retroactive to July 18, 2010 and a 1 percent general wage
increase on Aug. 19, 2012, as well as progression increases. In addition,
Customer Assistants will receive:
 A ratification bonus of $500, if ratification of the tentative agreement
occurs by December 21, 2010.
 Two lump sum payments of $300, the first one payable as soon as
practicable after ratification and the second one paid by August 26, 2011.
 Opportunity to receive up to $7,000 in additional cash payments during the
term of the agreement under a the new quarterly Customer Assistant Pay
Plan (CAPP)
A3:
Q4:
A4:
How much of an increase will I receive including everything – i.e.
ratification, lump sum payments, etc.?
In our continuing effort to provide accurate information on the tentative
agreement between the CWA and AT&T for the National Internet contract, we
are providing a calculator to help you understand how the proposed tentative
agreement will affect you. The calculator can be found at
www.att.com/internetbargaining, and a basic Q&A on how the calculator works
can be found above.
Questions and answers added November 29, 2010
Q1:
A1:
Since Team Award is going to be replaced by the Success Sharing Plan
(SSP), is there anything special the employees will have to do in order to be
eligible for payout in November?
Employees who were in titles which were previously eligible for Team Award
must be on the payroll on both the beginning and ending dates of each award
year and during that award year work a minimum of three months. Customer
Assistants, who were not previously eligible for Team Award, will be eligible for
SSP in the 2013 award year with the same eligibility requirements.
Q2:
A2:
What do you mean for award year? Is it years of service?
No, the award year is not years of service – it is a 12-month period during which
eligible employees will take part in the Success Sharing Plan (SSP). There are
three award years for the SSP. Eligible employees will be awarded 150 success
units at the beginning of each award year (Award Year 2011 – October 1, 2010,
Award Year 2012 – October 3, 2011 and Award Year 2013 – October 1, 2012).
Those success units will only be valid for that award year and will not carryover
to the next award year.
Q3:
If the contract is ratified by December 21, when will we receive the bonus?
When will we receive the retro pay and the $300 lump sum?
Both payments will be included in your regular paycheck no later than the second
pay cycle in February 2011, but could be as early as your second pay cycle in
January 2011.
A3:
Q4:
A4:
Q5:
A5:
The tentative agreement mentions a wage increase. If you are already at top
pay, what does that mean?
The wage increases will be applied to the wage schedule. Therefore, those at top
pay will have their wages increased as well.
Do those who have not capped out of their pay grade still get hourly wage
increases?
The wage schedules will be increased and employees in progression will
continue to receive increases every six months based on the new wage
schedules.
Q6:
A6:
Is the Sunday shift differential still in effect?
Yes, the Sunday shift differential is still in effect.
Q7:
A7:
Is everyone able to vote on the contract? If not, who is able to vote?
The voting process is managed by the CWA and questions on this process
should be directed to your local union.
Q8:
A8:
What changes in the contract will apply to Internet Assistants?
The details in the highlights document that apply to Non-Customer Assistant
titles, as well as any noted as applying to all employees, are applicable to
employees in the Internet Assistant title.
Q9:
A9:
Is the pharmacy deductible still included with the medical deductible?
Yes, the pharmacy deductible is still included with the medical deductible.
Q10: Does the insurance deductible have to be met before the company will pay
100 percent of in-network preventive care costs?
A10: In-network preventive care costs are 100 percent covered by the company;
therefore, in this situation the insurance deductible does not have to be met.
Q11: Do we still have seven paid holidays?
A11: Yes, we still have seven paid holidays.
Q12: How will this agreement affect a person in U-verse Tier 2?
A12: The details in the highlights document that apply to Non-Customer Assistant
titles, as well as any noted as applying to all employees, are applicable to
employees in the in U-verse Tier 2 titles.
Questions and answers added November 24, 2010
Q:
A:
When is the ratification vote?
The vote is scheduled to be completed before and notice delivered to the
company by December 21, 2010.