PORTLAND, Maine - The National Labor Relations Board has dealt a setback to 1,800 striking workers of FairPoint Communications. After investigating charges made by two unions alleging unfair labor practices, the NLRB says it has found insufficient evidence to support the charges.
Union leaders are undeterred and say they will appeal.
As the strike against FairPoint concludes its 75th day, union leaders say they remain united and committed in their fight for fairness at FairPoint. The NLRB's findings, they say, are disappointing but not surprising.
"The labor laws in this country are really not strong and favorable towards workers, so it really wasn't shocking to us," says Jen Nappi, assistant business manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2327.
Nappi says the union will continue to make its case. "We're going to appeal to the general counsel (of the NLRB). We hope that the general counsel has a different view," she says. "But, really, our most powerful tool, that we exerted on Oct. 17, is our strike, and we were not depending in any way on the board's decision. That was just a tool in the toolbox."
Region 1 of the board dismissed six complaints made by the IBEW, which represents about 1,700 workers in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, and the Communications Workers of America, which represents about 300 workers in the three states.
The unions believe FairPoint's imposition of a contract, after abruptly ending tense negotiations, was unlawful. Among other things, the new contract requires union members to pay more for health care, freezes the current pension and eliminates retiree health care benefits for current workers.
There is also disagreement about the company's interest in hiring outside contractors to perform certain work - and, says Jen Nappi, concern about FairPoint's transparency.
"It's a failure to provide information," she says, "information the company's refused to provide throughout the bargaining process so that we could make more comprehensive, concrete proposals."
In its dismissal letters, the NLRB's acting regional director wrote that the parties "had reached a good faith impasse on August 28, 2014, at which time the Employer implemented its last, best and final offer."
Angelynne Beaudry is a spokesperson for FairPoint. "It's certainly gratifying," she says, "and confirms our position that we've been bargaining in good faith and that implementation of our offer was an exercise of a right granted us by federal law when the negotiation process is at an impasse."
The NLRB says its investigation failed to establish that FairPoint engaged in a course of conduct designed to frustrate negotiations. Instead, the investigation revealed that "the Employer engaged in lawful hard bargaining designed to achieve its stated goals of cost savings and operational flexibility.."
IBEW'S Jen Nappi says the Region 1 ruling could have gone either way, and she says while the strike is an economic hardship for workers who've been without wages and health care, she says they have no plans to give up.
"They love their jobs and they want their jobs back," Nappi says, "but they want a fair deal. We're fighting for the right thing. We're fighting for good middle class jobs in Maine where they belong."
Since the strike began in October, regulators in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont say they've seen an increase in the number of complaints from customers about FairPoint service.
