17,000 AT&T workers in Southeast strike over contract negotiations

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — More than 17,000 AT&T workers in nine states across the Southeast are on strike. The Communications Workers of America represents the striking employees and says workers walked off the job Friday in response to AT&T’s failure to bargain in good faith. The labor organization says AT&T did not send representatives to the bargaining table who had authority to make decisions. AT&T says the accusations are “not grounded in fact.”  The strike involves AT&T technicians, customer service representatives, and others who install, maintain and support AT&T’s residential and business networks. It involves workers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee