CWA D1

Look out for the Communications Workers of America District 1 newsletter every other week to see what CWA members have been up to!

Read on the web: From the Desk of the Assistant to the Vice President of CWA District 1 Local 1180 Member Searches for Kidney Donor to Save Her Son Major Upset Brewing in New Jersey’s Special Election for Congress! “Her advocacy is consistent, her leadership is earned, and her impact is felt every day”: Black History Month Spotlight CWAers Map Out Our Agenda to Fight for Stronger Communities in 2026 10,000 New York State Nurses Association Members Win Strike in NYC; 5,000 More Press On, Entering Week Five   From the Desk of the Assistant to the Vice President of CWA District 1 Healthcare in the United States is in crisis. We’ve all seen it; our bills going up, our premiums rising, prescriptions getting harder and harder to afford. In New Jersey, our members in Local Government have been hit with staggering increases between 37%-55%. At every single bargaining table across the District, the cost of healthcare is a top issue. And healthcare workers, including the 15,000 represented by CWA across NJ and NY, and the nurses represented by the New York State Nurses Association still on strike as we speak in New York City, are stretched beyond their limits. Workers are understaffed, overworked, and too often asked to choose between their own basic needs like bathroom breaks or meal breaks and their patients’ safety. This system is failing everyone — except those at the top who profit from it. That’s why reigning in healthcare costs will be the fight of our lives this year. CWA represents members in different communities and different types of work, but this is an issue that touches all of us, and we must face it on every front: at the bargaining table, in legislative chambers, and within healthcare facilities themselves. The care that our public sector,telecom or education sector members receive is as strong as the care that our healthcare members are able to provide, so these issues are deeply intertwined. This struggle cannot be fought on a single front, but everywhere we have power. 2026 began with the expiration of Affordable Care Act subsidies that catapulted millions of Americans into sharp increases in their medical bills. While those of us not on the exchange have been spared for now, we know the ripple effects are inevitable – more uninsured Americans will ultimately drive up costs for everyone. But we’ve also had some huge, inspiring events already in the first month of 2026. I’m thrilled to welcome 350+ nurses in Ithaca, NY who organized and voted in January to join CWA — that organizing was born out of a shared desire to fight for a better workplace to care for their patients. I’m also very proud to have stood with our NYSNA union family taking a stand in NYC for their patients and one another. What’s better than starting a new year with some union power, organizing and fighting for fair contracts? Nothing – especially as we stand together, organized and united, to fight for a healthcare system that truly works. -Billy Gallagher, Assistant to the Vice President, CWA District 1   Local 1180 Member Searches for Kidney Donor to Save Her Son Having just turned thirteen in November, Elias, the son of CWA Local 1180 member Margaret Manolis, has spent his entire life managing Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and has endured thirteen surgeries in thirteen years. CKD is a progressive condition in which the kidneys gradually lose their ability to function and can, over time, lead to dangerous toxin buildup and serious complications — including kidney failure. Doctors have now determined that Elias needs a kidney transplant, with his medical team strongly recommending a living donor due to his young age. If you’d like to learn more about becoming a living donor or wish to be screened as a potential match for Elias, please fill out this form. “I’ve had multiple surgeries to keep my kidneys from getting worse, but now I need a kidney transplant,” Elias said. “I’m still young, and a living kidney donor would change my entire life and help me be healthier.” Margaret, an Administrative Coordinator for the New York City School Construction Authority, recalls Elias being immediately rushed for testing and then surgery on the day he was born Thirteen years, thirteen surgeries, and countless medications later, “His kidneys are still not able to function the way they need to,” Margaret says. Despite everything, Margaret describes Elias as a kind, compassionate, and determined kid. At school, he proudly participates in the “Be a Buddy Club,” where he helps support classmates with autism. At home, he enjoys riding his bike, swimming, and playing video games with his younger brother. Margaret and the rest of their family work hard to let Elias enjoy being a kid as much as possible. The family has been unable to find a match for Elias, and so are trying to widen their search nationally, including within our CWA family. “We’re just hoping for one person,” Margaret says. “We only need one. There are so many success stories of strangers donating a kidney to help someone live a long, productive life without dialysis. It’s a beautiful thing. I wish I could do it myself.” Click here to read Elias’s full story. Click here to learn more about the donation process and how you can be screened as a potential match to help Elias.   CWAers Help Win Major Upset in New Jersey’s Special Election for Congress! Powered by CWA members and other labor partners, Congressional candidate and labor leader Analilia Mejia just history with a big victory in last week’s Special Election Primary for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District. After a tough, twelve-person race followed by several days of ballot-counting with the race too close to call, Mejia, endorsed by CWA District 1 as well as many other unions and community organizations representing working people in Essex, Morris, and Passaic Counties, NJ, declared victory yesterday. A longtime CWA ally, Mejia stood as the clear labor candidate in the race. She began her career as a union organizer and played a key role in the fights for a $15 minimum wage and paid sick leave in New Jersey. “This is a watershed moment for working families in New Jersey,” said Dennis Trainor, Vice President of CWA District 1. “When the labor movement rallies behind one of its own, we can change the political landscape. We are incredibly proud of our members who poured their hearts into this campaign!” Over the past several weeks dozens of members of CWA Locals 1037 and 1040 have mobilized to knock on doors and make phonecalls to voters to talk about Mejia, joining hundreds of other workers in a truly union-powered campaign.   “Her advocacy is consistent, her leadership is earned, and her impact is felt every day”: Black History Month Spotlight Kim Edwards, CWA Local 1298 Kim is not just active in Local 1298, she is present, engaged, and deeply invested in the lives of the members she represents. As a Local Union Steward, a member of the Local 1298 Civil Rights and Equity Committee, a member of our Organizing Committee and our Political Coordinator. Kim consistently shows up when members need answers, guidance, and someone willing to fight for them. Since beginning her career with Southern New England Telephone Company in 1996. Through many mergers with SBC, AT&T, Frontier and most recently Verizon, she has been an active and proud CWA member and she uses her dedication and knowledge every day to advocate for our members. Kim has been a trusted and vocal advocate on critical issues that directly impact working families. Over the years, she’s fought for legislation for Family and Medical Leave Act protections, ensuring that workers facing serious health or family challenges were treated with dignity and fairness. Most recently, Kim has been instrumental in advocating around unemployment benefits for striking workers, making sure members understood their rights and pushing for accountability during one of the most difficult moments a worker can face. These are not abstract issues. They are lifelines, and Kim treats them that way. Beyond the union, Kim’s leadership extends into public service. She is a three term elected Alder for the City of New Haven, Connecticut, and serves as Chairperson of the New Haven Black and Hispanic Caucus. Whether in City Hall or on the shop floor, Kim brings the same values with her: fairness, accountability, and a belief that working people deserve a real voice. Kim’s advocacy is consistent, her leadership is earned, and her impact is felt every day by the members of Local 1298. Each week throughout February, the CWA District 1 Human Rights Committee is highlighting one of our members, nominated by their peers, for our Black History Month Spotlight, lifting up their contributions and the impact they’ve made in our union and communities. Click here to nominate a fellow CWA member or retiree!   CWAers Map Out Our Agenda to Fight for Stronger Communities in 2026 Over the past several weeks, dozens of CWA members from locals throughout New Jersey and New York have come together over several sessions to map out our goals for the next several months, and how we plan to win for working families on the legislative and electoral fields this year. Legislative & Political Action Team members discussed some of the biggest issues facing working people right now like skyrocketing healthcare costs, Artificial Intelligence in the workplace, and how our tax dollars are being spent — and while they’re tough and sometimes divisive subjects, our central, unifying mission is to fight for a country where working people can afford to live, raise families, and retire with dignity, and where our public systems are strong enough to truly serve our communities. While those at the top try to divide and distract us, we’re focused on building a stronger union and stronger communities — not just defending what we have, but fighting for more. Our Legislative & Political Action Goals for 2026: Alongside organizing new members and winning strong contracts, our Legislative & Political Action Team is working to build an economy that works for all of us by: Making greedy corporations do their part to strengthen our communities while keeping taxes low for working families, allowing our cities and states to fund the programs people rely on, strengthen public services like healthcare and child care, and ensure good union jobs aren’t hollowed out or handed over to privatization schemes. Ensuring that workers come first in an age of rapidly changing technology, regulating surveillance and AI, preventing burnout through safe staffing and limits on mandatory overtime, and making sure innovation strengthens — not replaces — working people. Strong public oversight, whether that’s keeping regulating broadband work as an essential piece of infrastructure or stopping privatization efforts that undermine our public services and the workers that administer them. Ensuring that our retirement reflects the decades of hard work we’ve put in for public employees — fixing broken pension systems like Tier 6 in New York City, ensuring full pension payments in New Jersey, and protecting healthcare benefits across the District, including fixing the State Health Benefits Plan for Local Government employees in New Jersey.   10,000 New York State Nurses Association Members Win Strike in NYC; 5,000 More Press On, Entering Week Five 15,000 members of the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) have braved union-busting attempts, snow storms, and the coldest winter in over a decade to keep up strong picket lines and inspiring mobilization for four full weeks at three of the biggest, wealthiest hospital systems in New York City (Montefiore, Mount Sinai, and NewYork Presbyterian). There have been big developments this week, as NYSNA came to tentative agreements with the Montefiore and Mount Sinai hospital systems, ending the strike for over 10,000 nurses! That said, over 5,000 nurses at NewYork Presbyterian are continuing to hold the line, now going into their fifth week on strike, fighting for several key issues that our own members understand all too well: patient safety, safe staffing, addressing workplace violence, and healthcare for the workers. CWA members from Locals 1101, 1104, 1109, 1120, 1180, and others have walked picket lines, joined rallies, raised money for NYSNA’s Strike Fund, shared messages of support — because we know firsthand how difficult it is to put everything on the line to fight for one another and fight for a fair contract.