• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983

2

Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?

3

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns

1

Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983

2

Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?

3

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
TechThe Mobile Executive

This Is AT&T’s Tentative Deal to Unionize DirecTV Call Centers

By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
December 20, 2016, 11:54 AM ET
Vulture Festival - Milk Studios
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 21: A view of the DirecTV Lounge at the Vulture Festival at Milk Studios on May 21, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Vulture Festival)Cindy Ord—Getty Images for Vulture Festiva

AT&T extended its run of successful labor negotiations, announcing on Tuesday a new tentative deal to give raises to 2,000 workers at five DirecTV call centers it acquired last year.

The carrier and the Communications Workers of America union made three separate agreements to start covering the workers at facilities in Minnesota, Colorado, West Virginia, Alabama, and Oklahoma. The deals must still be ratified by the workers in coming days.

AT&T noted that, with the latest deals, it has made nine agreements covering 8,000 workers at DirecTV since it acquired the satellite TV service in July, 2015. In October, it reached agreements covering 2,000 DirecTV service workers.

The carrier’s success with its DirecTV and telecom workers stands in contrast to the 7-week strike by some 40,000 Verizon telephone, Internet, and TV service workers in the spring as well as sparring between the CWA and T-Mobile (TMUS) over unionization of that carrier’s mobile phone workforce.

AT&T, by contrast, is the only one of the major carriers whose mobile workers are mostly unionized and the company has been steadily extending union agreements across DirecTV. With the CWA and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the company has reached more than 20 straight agreements. The last major strike at AT&T occurred in 2012, though it lasted only two days.

Call center issues have led to some particularly tough standoffs in the telecommunications industry as the jobs are seen as a primary focus of cost cutting and overseas outsourcing efforts. During the Verizon (VZ) strike, workers travelled to the Philippines to meet with call center workers for Verizon there. And AT&T (T) has a contract coming up with 15,000 telephone workers on the West Coast, where concerns have already been raised about outsourcing.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Under the tentative deals announced on Tuesday, workers paid hourly wages in the range of $16 to $19 per hour will see modest hikes as well as a $500 ratification bonus once the contract is approved. Workers making a top scale wage of $17.90 per hour, for example, will get a 2% hike in February and another 2% a year later.

“This achievement was built on months of hard work by DirecTV members all over the country to stand together and demand a voice at their workplace,” the CWA said in a statement to the affected workers. The agreement followed a “mobilization” of the call center workers last week, who wore red shirts and held signs at their offices calling for a deal by Christmas.

About the Author
By Aaron Pressman
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Dario Amodei, Anthropic CEO
AIAnthropic
A warning from Amazon led the White House to shut down Anthropic’s Mythos model
By Beatrice NolanJune 14, 2026
3 hours ago
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney warns U.S. restrictions on new Anthropic AI models show danger of relying too much on American providers
AICanada
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney warns U.S. restrictions on new Anthropic AI models show danger of relying too much on American providers
By Rob Gillies, Jason Ma and The Associated PressJune 14, 2026
5 hours ago
SpaceX surge further boosts Saudi billionaire prince’s fortune
InvestingSaudi Arabia
SpaceX surge further boosts Saudi billionaire prince’s fortune
By Adveith Nair and BloombergJune 14, 2026
9 hours ago
Wall Street is gaining access to new catastrophe models to help predict wars
BankingWar
Wall Street is gaining access to new catastrophe models to help predict wars
By Gautam Naik and BloombergJune 14, 2026
9 hours ago
People wait outside a building
AIJobs
AI job disruption is here. The problem may be compounded because nearly 75% of people don’t apply for unemployment benefits
By Jacqueline MunisJune 14, 2026
9 hours ago
Just months after Trump warned states not to regulate AI, Republican and Democratic lawmakers are doing it anyway
Politicsregulation
Just months after Trump warned states not to regulate AI, Republican and Democratic lawmakers are doing it anyway
By Marc Levy and The Associated PressJune 14, 2026
9 hours ago

Most Popular

Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983
Personal Finance
Social Security's 2032 deadline puts a 22% cut on the table — but Washington has way less room to negotiate than 1983
By John W. Diamond and The ConversationJune 12, 2026
2 days ago
Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?
Economy
Boomers actually do hold most of the wealth and power. So why do they call it 'whiny' to point that out?
By Nick LichtenbergJune 14, 2026
13 hours ago
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
By Sydney LakeJune 13, 2026
2 days ago
CEO of $20 billion AI firm Perplexity says the secret to success is ‘sleeping with that fear’ that your competitor will steal your idea
Success
CEO of $20 billion AI firm Perplexity says the secret to success is ‘sleeping with that fear’ that your competitor will steal your idea
By Preston ForeJune 13, 2026
2 days ago
Iran proved it can close the Strait of Hormuz, but the U.S. is advertising very loudly that the world's top superpower can at least punch open a hole
Energy
Iran proved it can close the Strait of Hormuz, but the U.S. is advertising very loudly that the world's top superpower can at least punch open a hole
By Jason MaJune 14, 2026
6 hours ago
'It's not a jailbreak' — Research leading to U.S. export restrictions on top Anthropic models was for defense, cybersecurity CEO says
AI
'It's not a jailbreak' — Research leading to U.S. export restrictions on top Anthropic models was for defense, cybersecurity CEO says
By Jason MaJune 13, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.