Phone strike threat postponed

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Monday, Jan. 3, 2000 | 11:16 a.m.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The threat of localized strikes against telecommunications giant Sprint Corp. has been postponed until tonight, and company officials hope even that can be averted.

Sprint Corp. reached tentative 3-year contract agreements with union locals in five states but failed to reach agreement with a Florida local by a midnight strike deadline, the company said late Thursday.

The union agreed to extend a working agreement with Sprint until midnight tonight to continue negotiations.

Sprint reached tentative contract agreements Thursday with Communications Workers of America locals representing about 2,830 workers in North Carolina, Indiana, Oregon, Tennessee and Virginia.

The CWA said the company wants to cut the number of annual paid holidays from 12 to 11, to reduce the regular wage increases for newer employees in training and to deny existing employees hiring preferences when new jobs open. Sprint also has proposed trimming severance pay, the union said.

A strike would affect Sprint's local operations in parts of affected states. It would not affect Sprint long distance or its mobile phone operations, Sprint officials said.