IBEW Local 2321 News

Local 2320 (NH) Bowling Tournament

Craig Fields — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:16:09 -0500

Local 2320 Bowling Tournament

Our brothers and sisters in NH are having a Bowling Tournament at Merrimack Ten Pin

Saturday, April 21^st, 10:30AM

$100 per foursome

Entry fee includes 3 strings of bowling, shoe rental, appetizers, and pizza.

There will also be a 50/50 Raffle!

Call Dave Duhamel, 603-391-4171

Cathi Dion, 603-440-3785

For details and to enter your team.

Click here to see the flyer.

Local 2321 Mourns Passing of Brother Duke Hanlon (retired)

Craig Fields — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 08:23:09 -0500

Hubert P. Hanlon

HANLON, Hubert P. Of Carver formerly of Medford Dec. 30, Beloved Husband of Rosemarie (Valente) Hanlon of Carver. Loving father of Louis P. Hanlon of Medford, Hubert P. Hanlon Jr. of Northboro, Gina Marie Hanlon-Cavicchi of Carver, Peter Hanlon of Wilmington, William Hanlon of New Hampshire, Michael Hanlon of Revere, Patricia Hanlon of Revere, and Colleen Argenzio of Revere. Devoted Brother of Paul Hanlon of CA, Robert Hanlon of Winthrop, Arthur Hanlon of New Hampshire, Edward Hanlon of Wilmington, Dorothy Turner of CA, The late William Hanlon and Albert Hanlon. Cherished Grandfather of many loving Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren. Also survived by many loving nieces, nephews, dear friends and family. Relatives and friends invited Funeral from the Gaffey Funeral Home 43 High St. Medford Square Medford on Thursday Jan. 5, at 9 am followed by a Funeral Mass of Christian Burial in Saint Frances of Assisi Church Medford at 10 am Visiting hours Wednesday Jan. 4, from 4 pm to 8 pm Interment Oak Grove Cemetery Medford. Gaffey Funeral Home 781-396-7700

Local 2321 Mourns Passing of Brother Gerry Cunningham (retired)

Craig Fields — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 08:12:24 -0500

Gerald J Cunningham, Jr., 59, Hernando, Fl.
Gerald J. Cunningham, Jr., 59, of Hernando, Florida passed away on Monday, December 26, 2011, at Hospice of Citrus County in Inverness. He was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on November 24, 1952 to the late Gerald J. and Mary (Voutour) Cunningham, Sr. Gerald served as a loyal employee of Verizon for more than 30 years before retiring in the area in 2008, coming from Boston, Massachusetts. He was a member of the Citrus Hills Country Club, and enjoyed tennis, the beach, and motorcycles. He also enjoyed working with his hands, especially landscaping. Gerald is survived by one son, Christopher Cunningham of Seattle, Washington; and one daughter, Shannon Cunningham of Boston, Massachusetts. He is also survived by three sisters, Nancy Gibbons of North Hampton, New Hampshire; Jean Cunningham of Magnolia, Massachusetts; and Mary Dervishian of York, Maine. A Celebration Of Life Memorial Service is scheduled for Tuesday, January 10, 2012, 9:00 am at the Chas. E. Davis Funeral Home, Inverness, Florida. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Hospice of Citrus County. For donations go to: www.hospiceofcitruscounty.org/page/donate.htm Chas. E. Davis Funeral Home with Crematory is in charge of the arrangements.

Report Shows How Company Shifts Tax Bill to the 99 Percent

Craig Fields — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 09:52:43 -0400

Report Shows How Company Shifts Tax Bill to the 99 Percent

$100-Billion Verizon One of Nation’s Champion Tax Dodgers - http://cwa-union.org/vzunpaidbills

A new report this week reveals how Verizon achieves a negative federal tax rate to avoid paying its fair share of taxes, and how the company aggressively uses tax loopholes and subsidies to cut its tax bills even more.

"Unpaid Bills: How Verizon Shortchanges Government Through Tax Dodging and Subsidies," (PDF) was produced by Citizens for Tax Justice (CTJ) and Good Jobs First, a national policy resource center.

The report shows that Verizon, a $100-billion corporation, paid an effective federal tax rate of -2.9 percent between 2008 and 2010. In 2010 alone, Verizon's federal tax rate was -5.7 percent. In fact, the company received a federal tax rebate of nearly $1 billion.

The report is especially timely as the congressional "super committee" meets on budget and tax issues. Verizon has put the "Reverse Morris Trust" tax loophole to extensive use, avoiding $1.5 billion in taxes on the sale of its landlines and other assets, CWA Senior Director George Kohl said.

"Verizon doesn't use its tax avoidance gains to keep up its copper network or extend its fiber optic technology to cities like Boston, Baltimore, Buffalo or other communities, or create quality jobs. It isn't negotiating a fair contract with the workers who have made this company so successful," Kohl said. "Instead, it is demanding nearly $1 billion in givebacks and making sure that its top executives stay in the top 1 percent of American earners. That's why we say 'the 99 percent' are picking up Verizon's tax tab."

CTJ recently identified Verizon as one of the nation's top tax avoidance offenders, manipulating state revenue rules, seeking economic development subsidies, and structuring its business and tax affairs to produce a negative federal income tax rate. Further, Verizon has received state and local tax subsidies in at least 13 states.

CTJ Director Robert McIntyre, the report's lead author, said the billions of dollars that companies like Verizon receive are "wasted dollars that could have gone to protect Medicare, create jobs and cut the deficit. Too many corporations are gaming the system at the expense of the rest of us."

Philip Mattera, research director of Good Jobs First and also a report author, said Verizon and other tax dodgers "aren't using these tax givebacks to create good jobs or invest in their companies in ways that would improve our communities. Ordinary Americans are struggling to pay their own taxes and are picking up the tab for these corporations as well. It's a system out of control."

Letter to the Editor of The Eagle Tribune

Craig Fields — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 08:35:56 -0400

EagleTribune.com, North Andover, MA

August 19, 2011

Letter: Verizon strikers are fighting to save jobs

To the editor:

I am 34 years old. I am 5 feet, 3 inches and I weigh 115 pounds, so please stop calling me a fat, lazy slob. I am not lazy. I have been working since I was 14 years old. I am the loving mother of two young children, so please stop calling me a thug.

My father died at the age of 45 and my mother at the age of 49. I am predisposed to cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease — in other words, the Grim Reaper is seeking me out. I do not want to leave my children motherless, therefore health insurance is extremely important to me. I work 40 hours per week, I commute more than two hours per day, I pay taxes (just for the record, Verizon does not), I have a mortgage and credit card debt, I pay for child care — I am just like most of you. Except, right now, there is no income in my household.

My husband, like me, works for Verizon. With Verizon's proposed $20,000 per year pay cut, my household is $40,000 down. Yet, much of the public believes that I should shut up and be happy I have a job. I am happy that I have a job. I want my job. I want my job so badly that I am willing to go weeks without an income, just to keep my job.

Much of the public is under the impression that if I just give up and give Verizon what they want, I will go back to my job and live happily ever after. The truth is my job will most likely be done by someone in an overseas call center. For some reason, I am expected to just give away what hundreds of thousands before me have fought for. My mother walked the picket line for 16 weeks in 1989, so that I would have the pay, benefits and job security I have now. I should just consider that a waste of time and give that away?

Let me ask all of you one question: Would you just give back to your employer $20,000 in salary? Verizon is an extremely profitable business. The CEO makes $55,000 per day.

I am proud to be a union member. That is not a popular sentiment in today's world, but that doesn't make me any less proud. I may be without income, I may be extremely unsure of what the future holds, but I have 45,000 brothers and sisters who will be there for me. Should I be ashamed of that?

We're not on strike over pay raises or even benefits. We're on strike to keep what we have. We're on strike to keep jobs in America. I only ask that before you cast stones at me, learn what we are fighting for. I am almost certain that most of you will find it's worth fighting for.

Stacie Cashman

Striking Verizon employee

Methuen