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Report of the CWA National Women's Committee to the 64th Annual Convention The first meeting of the newly appointed CWA National Women's Committee was held in Washington, D.C. March 6-8, 2002. In addition to assignments for this report, the Committee discussed the current role of the District Women's Activities Coordinators and the need to expand this role to include promoting and communicating the work of the National Women's Committee. The Committee is pleased to announce that the 2003 CWA National Women's Conference is scheduled for April 3-6, 2003 at the Hyatt Regency, Atlanta, Georgia. We are excited about the Conference and plans are underway to have an invigorating and productive conference with the theme: "Here's to Good Union Women." This report is meant to be an informational resource for delegates to take back and use in your women's activities programs. There is a wealth of factual data here on women's and family issues that are of concern to all CWA members. We urge you to use this information in local newsletter articles, letters to the editor, political and legislative efforts, etc. This report will also be posted on the National Women's Committee site on CWA's web site (www.cwa-union.org). One of the committee's recent actions has been to draft a new Mission Statement, which follows: Mission Statement of the CWA National Women's Committee The primary mission of the CWA's National Women's Committee is to raise issues of special concern to women and to develop programs and strategies to make these issues a priority in the workplace, in the community and most importantly, in the union. In our efforts to improve the working conditions of women, we will provide information about education and training programs available not only through our union but through the George Meany Labor Studies Center, summer schools for women, as well as education and training programs available throughout the Coalition of Labor Union Women. We believe these programs will not only help women in the workplace but in their unions and in their personal lives as well. Recognizing the many benefits that come from being a union member, including higher wages and fringe benefits, the Committee will provide support to our CWA's efforts to organize women throughout the country. Further, working within the Union's structure, the Committee will need to mobilize their women and work to involve them in all levels of the labor movement. We will encourage, educate, and prepare women to actively address their issues through political and legislative action, working within their unions, with AFL-CIO state and local bodies as well as with community-based allies. In addition, the Committee will encourage women to run for elected public office and will provide information about union programs designed to help them accomplish this goal. The Committee will provide support to CWA women in their fight for legislation at the local, state and national level designed to improve the status of working women and their families. The mission of the CWA National Women's Committee will be accomplished with the continued support and encouragement of the entire CWA structure and membership. A variety of issues affecting women and working families are described in the following sections of this report. Equal Pay Equal pay has been law since 1963, yet today women are still paid less than men. On average, women are paid 72 cents for every dollar men receive. That is 28 dollars less to spend on childcare, housing, groceries, and other expenses for every 100 dollars worth of work. Less pay means less to save for our futures and because women will be earning less, women's pensions will be less than those men receive. It is clear that pay equity is a bread and butter issue for millions of women and their families. "Equal Pay - Pay Equity" has been on the list of women's priorities in each of the three AFL-CIO "Ask a Working Woman" surveys over the past few years. In the 2002 survey 92% of the women say stronger laws to insure equal pay are important and 58% consider them very important. Men are nearly as intense as women in their support of stronger equal pay laws with 86% labeling them important and 53% considering them very important. Equal pay was found to be particularly important among women younger than 30 - with 64% calling equal pay laws very important - but majorities in all age groups consider the issue a priority. Equal pay is an issue for all working women no matter what the job. Over the years, laws barring discrimination in education and employment have given working women opportunities that our mothers and grandmothers never had. Women today work in fields that require different skills and experience. However, opening the doors to job opportunities for working women has not closed the door on pay discrimination. Discrimination is against the law. If an employer pays women less than men or denies them a job opportunity just because they are women, they are guilty of discrimination. There are federal laws and executive orders and some state and local laws that prohibit pay discrimination against women. In the 2002 "Ask a Working Woman" survey, 90% of working women and 85% of working men consider these laws important in addressing pay discrimination. Unfortunately, President Bush's FY2002 budget proposed funding cuts for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces federal laws against discrimination and promotes equal pay. We must remind the President that the wage gap is a real issue for America's working families and to put measures in place that promote equal pay for women and people of color. As it has done in the past, the National Committee on Pay Equity again calculated how long women had to work into the week to earn what men earned as of the end of the previous week. This resulted in Equal Pay Day - April 16, 2002. CWA women joined other union women and women from other organizations to publicize this day. Some participated in "Happy Hour" discussions in local unions, restaurants, and bars telling our unhappy story of pay inequity. Others took part in press events, rallies, etc. to raise the issue and gain support. This pay inequity is even greater for women of color. African-American women earn only 65 cents and Latinas earn only 52 cents for every dollar that men earn. While nearly every woman of color thinks equal pay is important, more than half of African-American women say they do not have it. Most women of color hold low paying jobs. African-American women's primary occupations are nurses aides, cashiers and secretaries. Latina women are found most often occupations of cashiers, secretaries and sales workers. For the majority of women of color, their jobs don't pay enough to reach the poverty line for a family of four. Latina working women live below the poverty level at a rate that is more than double the rate for all women workers. Even when women of color are in higher-level jobs, they earn less than their male counterparts. Pay equity is not just a United States issue. On every continent, more women are working for pay than ever before. But on every continent, women's pay lags behind men's pay. In fact, around the world, women receive no wages for 66% of the work they do, such as caring for children or the elderly and agricultural work. No wonder strategies for achieving equal pay are a top concern of working women around the world. In the United States, many feel that stronger laws are needed. There are others who believe non-discrimination laws need to be better enforced. Another strategy rated high by all women is to legislate stronger affirmative actions laws to provide more opportunities for women. There is also much activity growing at the state level for equal pay laws and at the federal level there are two bills: Paycheck Fairness Act (SB 77/HR781). Introduced by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), the Paycheck Fairness Act will add teeth to the Equal Pay Act, strengthening fair pay laws to provide more effective legal remedies to women who are not being paid equal wages for doing equal work. The legislation will strengthen penalties for violations under the Equal Pay Act, protect employees who discuss wages with co-workers and provide training for employers and employees on wage discrimination. And it offers a comprehensive, balanced approach to eliminating the nation's wage gap. Fair Pay Act (SB684/HR1362). Jointly sponsored by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) in the Senate and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) in the House, the Fair Pay Act prohibits an employer from paying men and women different wages for jobs that require the same skill, effort, and responsibility. The Fair Pay Act also allows plaintiffs to recoup compensatory and punitive damages if an employer is found liable for wage discrimination. The bill has 13 co-sponsors in the Senate and 14 co-sponsors in the House - all Democrats. The CWA National Women's Committee will continue to work to make these strategies a reality in our fight to improve the lives of CWA working women and men and their families. Organizing Overall, unions are organizing and winning new members. Last year for example, the total number of union members from both the private and public sectors increased by a net 100,000 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Unfortunately, despite the increase in organizing activity, union membership as a percentage of the U.S. work force continues to decline mainly due to layoffs, plant closings, retirement, etc. CWA recognizes the importance of organizing, and is committed to the challenge we face today. Unions are making great strides in organizing women into the trade union movement, but more work needs to be done. While more women are working than ever before, only 11.7% are union members, compared with 15.1% of male workers. Public opinion polls show that women favor collective action, and when given the opportunity to vote are consistently more likely than men to vote for unions. History proves this to be true. For more than 25 years, women have joined unions in larger numbers than men. In 2001, the American labor movement gained 93,000 new women members while the number of male members declined by 76,000. Between 1997-2001, membership gains totaled 425,000 women while losses among men totaled 200,000. Overall, in the United States, women make up 42% of union membership and growing. CWA, too, has proven this to be true in the many successful organizing campaigns won with predominately female workforces. Women have much to gain from union membership. Collective bargaining can, among many other things, win higher wages and fair treatment on the job. The National Women's Committee strongly urges all locals to aggressively seek out and pursue organizing opportunities for women to join CWA. The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions has taken a step in this direction. On March 7, 2002, the ICFTU established an ongoing campaign called "Unions for Women, Women for Unions." The main objective of the campaign is to double union membership among women around the world over the next three years. In each of these three years, a new theme will be used to focus in on different aspects of the struggles of women. This year's theme is "Women's Right to Decent Work" which points to issues such as equal pay for equal work, respect and value for all types of women's work, equal opportunities and treatment at work, health and safety at work, etc. The ICFTU campaign will target groups of women workers and plan activities and strategies to intensify organizing women into unions. Press releases, articles, brochures, etc. will be sent out on a regular basis and will also be published on the ICFTU/Global Union's web site. CWA continues to recognize the value and expertise that women organizers bring to both the national and local levels. We must all work to insure that women are free from discrimination within our union and that they are provided with educational training such as the AFL-CIO Organizing Institute and the CWA District Organizing Retreats to promote more opportunities for advancement into these roles. The committee recommends that locals contact the CWA Organizing Department at 1-800-424-2872, or the District Offices for more information on these programs. The organizing of women cannot simply be a project or the subject of a committee report. It must be an ongoing way of life in our union. Many great women have become leaders and forged the way into the union movement, especially within CWA. The National Women's Committee knows the power that comes from increased women's membership will only serve to make our union stronger. Global Women's Issues Globally, today more than ever, women are facing problems on an epic scale. Economic globalization has led to an upheaval of and a great migration of people from poor countries to wealthier and more industrialized nations. Women, in their multifaceted role as workers, matriarchs, and indeed the soul and sanity of society, are facing a plethora of problems. Some of these problems are new; some are modern incarnations of age-old issues in our ever-changing societies. Among the most immediate and serious issues women face are problems associated with the abject poverty endemic in the underdeveloped nations of the world. Women in search of a better life for themselves and their families are being forced to move around the world at a growing rate. There are many predators who would take advantage of them: organized crime is operating on a global scale and trafficking in women and children has become one if its foremost sources of profit. Employers in the supposedly civilized societies of the Western Hemisphere exploit these women as they migrate in an attempt to find employment for themselves and a means of survival for their families. For many women, the promise of a new life in countries like the United States is more than enough to inspire them to pack their bags, and uproot their families in search of a better standard of living. These women can be taken advantage of by organized criminals who receive large sums of money for trafficking in a modern day slave trade. Congressional Research Service Report 98-649C states: "Trafficking is now considered the third largest source of profits for organized crime, behind only drugs and guns, generating billions of dollars annually." Traffickers often abduct women in their homelands and sell them in countries where their sexual services are in demand. The congressional survey paints a picture of one of this planet's bustling markets for sex and puts some of the numbers in perspective: "Japan is the largest market for Asian women trafficked for sex, where some 150,000 non-Japanese women are involved. Half are from the Philippines and 40% are from Thailand." Here we see the human side of globalization. The wealth discrepancy between sovereign states creates a market for sex trades and a desire by workers to immigrate in search of better jobs. In the so-called civilized societies of the Western Hemisphere, profit-obsessed employers are more than glad to take advantage of women who don't speak the language and have little knowledge of the rights afforded them, in the rare instances where they actually have any. In the United States there are enough problems for women who have entered the country illegally, but some of the most atrocious violations of human rights in this country are committed against the undocumented worker. Employers use the very real threat of deportation as a highly effectual deterrent for immigrant women to organize, join unions, or even file complaints with the governments of the countries where they are working. A report by the AFL-CIO entitled "What Union Members Should Know About the AFL-CIO Policy on Immigration" points out one of the fundamental problems with immigration law enforcement in the United States: the heavy dependence on the I-9 system. "The system of workplace immigration enforcement in the United States, with its emphasis on the I-9 system is broken, it targets workers instead of the egregious employers who exploit them and needs to be fixed." The I-9 system is a perfect example of the legal problems with protecting illegal women workers. Under the I-9 system, which was initially supported by the federation in the mid-1980's, it is illegal to hire undocumented workers. Illegal immigrant women can often face deportation if they are found to have been working in the country without documentation. Employers can also be punished through token fines. These fines are rarely sufficient to serve as a deterrent to hiring a female worker who can be intimidated and underpaid. Under this system workers stand to lose much more than the employer if the government discovers the worker's illegal status. In this way employers can use the threat of deportation against women who would seek to organize in order to achieve better pay, benefits, and working conditions. Of course illegal immigrant women, willing to work for much less money than their domestic counterparts, unintentionally drive down wages for domestic workers in these same countries; and women, more than any other demographic, are feeling those effects. A report from the Women's Environmental Development Organization (WEDO) points out a few of the problems of globalization on domestic workers and the affect those problems have on women. In Canada the deepest job losses have been in the government, health and education sectors dominated by women. The incidence of low-paid employment among Canadian women is now second only to Japan among industrialized nations. In the Ukraine, an estimated 80% of those currently unemployed are women. The aforementioned problems are the human by-product of our new global economy. Women are exploited on an international scale as our world changes for the worse. Women are facing new challenges at the opening of the 21st century, challenges that will undoubtedly take their place alongside all the other complex problems women all over the world face, problems with child care, health, and the threats of violence. In the United States women face the same problems, but the level of exploitation is nowhere near that of workers in the Third World. Something must be done to change the social climate our sisters face all over the world. Who will be their voice? We need to be their voice. Who will fight for them? Our unions provide the greatest hope for the downtrodden and exploited women of the world. A woman's place, here and abroad, is in her union. Political Action In the last couple of years the all-out effort the AFL-CIO has established in the Labor 2000 drive has made a difference in elections throughout the United States. We have increased the union share of the vote in elections to 26% of all votes cast, and increased the percentage of members who vote for union endorsed candidates. Despite these statistics, the current situation is not good. Women hold only 65 - or 12% - of the 435 seats in the 107th United States Congress. To date 198 women, including 128 Democrats and 70 Republicans, have served in the United States Congress. In the Senate, today women hold a record 9% of the 100 seats in the Senate. The group is composed of six Democrats and three Republicans. The number of women serving in state legislature has increased more than five-fold since 1969. The state of Washington has the highest percentage of women state legislators. It stands at 40.8%. Never before has our participation been more needed or more important. Laws and policies are being made or changed weekly that could affect us as working people for the rest of our lives. Examples of positive impact from labor-friendly governors are New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevy signing an executive order on Project Labor Agreements shortly after his election; California Governor Gray Davis, authorizing agency shop for local government, schools and community college and, denying public funds to union busters; and Maryland Governor Paris Glendening signing a law granting collective bargaining rights for public workers. Our victories translate into real change. President Clinton appointed more women to cabinet positions than any other U.S. President, including Madeleine Albright, secretary of State, Alexis Herman, secretary of Labor; Donna Shalala, secretary of Health and Human Services; Carol Browner, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; Aida Alverez, administrator of the Small Business Association; Charlene Barshefsky, United States Trade Representative and Janice LaChance, director of the Office of Personnel Management. CWA members and locals should be involved with our central labor councils, Union City programs, and living wage campaigns whenever possible to create more wins like those previously mentioned. Working through these programs, CWA members can begin to hold our elected officials more accountable. One way to achieve this is by getting candidates to sign on to the statement of principles (below) that is being used by the central labor councils. Working with the AFL-CIO, in several states, CWA officers and members have succeeded, including the governor's race in Virginia. In St. Louis, MO., CWA members and staff helped Brian Fletcher, vice president of Local 6320, win a spot on the Ferguson/Florissant School board. In Colorado, CWA members working with other union members targeted 10 Senate seats, winning seven of them. The goal was to get 80% of union members and their voting family members register and then turn out the vote. In Denver, labor led the charge in electing a union endorsed candidate to the city council along with three union endorsed candidates to the school board. Women and men in CWA are running for offices or being appointed to federal and state positions. This is so important! We need our voices heard so that we can help make changes that will forever protect our jobs and the future of our children. Local elections can often greatly influence our members' lives, because they control school boards, city politics, city work and most of the jobs in the construction industry. CWA members realize this and run for these offices at a greater number than ever before. At last count we had over 100 elected officials at the local, state, and federal level, nearly 30 of whom are women. According to the AFL-CIO there are over 2,600 union members holding elected public offices. The actions of CWA leaders and members raising concerns on Capitol Hill have also paid off. We had an unquestionable impact on Capitol Hill at the Legislative-Political conference in March, alerting representatives and senators about AT&T placing responsibility for its primary telecommunication-switching network into the hands of Indian foreign nationals. AT&T had hired them as replacement workers in anticipation of a possible strike by CWA. Congress took immediate notice. The lobbying help put pressure on AT&T's CEO Mike Armstrong which in turn contributed to an 18-month contract extension. CWA union officers need to stress to our members the difference we can make with political action. The union vote in the last Presidential election was key and can help us take back the House and secure the Senate. A new AFL-CIO grassroots Labor 2000 Plan is unstoppable. If we work systematically each year we will progress and get more members involved. In addition, state and local officials increasingly are making decisions affecting working families. Through Labor 2000 members saw the extent to which central labor councils and state federations must increase their involvement in local grassroots action. In the last 2 years, 1.2 million union voters have been added through voter registration drives. The AFL-CIO cites this as key to wining future elections. But registration alone will not do the job. The methods of good political action are the same as organizing - focusing on mobilization and education, work site visits, member-to-member contacts, mailings, events, and communication through union publications. We need to embrace the AFL-CIO 10-point program (below), which calls for outreach to members. We know when we talk to our members at the worksite we win about our issues. There is no better example of this than the beating back of anti-worker legislation in California and Oregon. Direct worker contact made the difference. We as CWA women believe working families need a stronger voice to protect our rights on the job and to fight for affordable health care, quality education, good jobs at good wages and the right to better our lives by joining together in unions. One of the ways to accomplish this is through political action. Who better than the women of CWA who know the value of these concerns, to hold public offices? CWA locals need to encourage women to register and vote. Reviewing the November 2000 elections, it is clear women voters were critical to Democratic fortunes. Women voters comprised 52% of the electorate in the 2000 President election and were decisive in Al Gore's narrow popular vote victory. There was a historically large 22-point Presidential gender gap in 2000, with women supporting Al Gore by 11 points (54% Gore to 43% Bush) and men supporting George W. Bush by an equally large margin (53% Bush to 42% Gore). Similarly, in close key congressional races, Democrats won because of women voters. In the national generic congressional vote reported in Voter News Service exit polling, women voted for Democratic congressional candidates by an 8-point margin (53% Democrat to 45% Republican), while men voted for Republican congressional candidates by a 10-point margin (54% Republican to 44% Democrat). We can't just talk-talk-talk. We have to go out and do it and keep on doing it until our voices are always present, heard and felt in all of our members' and the public's everyday lives. The best way to accomplish this is through political action. AFL-CIO 10 Point Program 1. Recruit a key contact at each site. 2. Distribute leaflets at all union worksite. 3. Maximize contact through union publications. 4. Maximize communication from local presidents. 5. Maximize impact of union phone calls. 6. Update local's membership lists with the state federation or international. 7. Increase registration by 10%. 8. Get out the vote. 9. Build rapid response network in the workplace. 10. Link politics to organizing. STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES FOR PUBLIC OFFICIALS The Freedom to Choose a Union As an elected official or candidate for office, I am committed to making our community a better place to live and work. I believe that unions contribute to the economic vitality of our country by playing a key role in making and maintaining good quality jobs that are essential to creating and sustaining thriving communities. I respect the right of every working person to pursue equality, opportunity, a voice on the job and a better life by forming a union. I understand that the decision to join a union should be the free choice of an employee, absent employer coercion. I believe that employers who interfere with, harass, threaten, or fire workers for trying to form a union - or who deliberately manipulate the legal system to prevent or delay organizing - are harming not only their employees, but our entire community. Such tactics have the effect of denying workers their basic human right to organize and bargain collectively, and drive down standards for the community as a whole. o I fully support the principle that all workers are entitled to freedom of association at work, as recognized by the ILO, a United Nations-related body, and I support the right of workers to form a union and bargain collectively - in an environment free of interference, intimidation, coercion, harassment, reprisals or delay. o I will publicly support workers who are forming unions by reaffirming the importance of unions to our communities and by taking actions such as issuing public statements, attending rallies supporting organizing, sponsoring public forums, and the like. o I will urge employers to respect their employees right to form a union, to remain neutral during union organizing campaigns, to recognize a union voluntarily when a majority of their employees choose to form one, and to bargain in good faith and reach an agreement. Name (print): Signed: Office Held/Sought: Date: Source: AFL-CIO Web Page Women's Health Women's health issues have changed at an astonishing pace throughout the past century. At the start of this century, the average woman did not live much beyond her childbearing years. Strides in public health have given women an extra 30 years of life. However, these bonus years have also brought a host of chronic conditions. The top three causes of death for women are: heart disease, lung cancer and stroke. In addition, many women of this "sandwich generation" are experiencing increased stress. Therefore, women must embrace healthy behaviors at all ages to increase their chances of living a life of good quality into their older years. Efforts must be made to educate women about these diseases and the effects on their health. This education needs to be extended to include our children. Heart Disease Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death of women in the United States. During the course of a year, nearly a million women will develop coronary heart disease. Facts: One in six American women will die of breast cancer, but one in TWO will die of heart disease. A woman's risk is greater if a parent or sibling has been diagnosed with heart disease, especially at a young age. Death rates from coronary heart disease for African-American women are 14.6% higher than those for Caucasian women. Forty-four percent of women who have a heart attack die within one year. Sixty-three percent of women who die suddenly of heart disease have had no previous evidence of the disease. Differences between men and women: While coronary heart disease is often perceived as a man's disease, it is clearly not. Nearly equal numbers of men and women die from this disease each year. Much of what is known and popularized about heart disease has come from research done on men. Women are the family caretakers and tend to neglect their own health and disease symptoms. Virtually none of the commonly used heart medications, and their effects, has been studied in women. Studies also have shown that diagnostic tools are often less accurate in women than in men because the tests were originally designed for men. Women are more likely to suffer from "atypical" symptoms of a heart attack. Instead of crushing chest pain, women may experience the following: indigestion, nausea, weakness, and pain in other locations such as the neck, shoulder or jaw. Physicians are slower to recognize and diagnose heart attacks in women because the characteristic symptoms of chest pain and changes on electrocardiograms are present less frequently. Moreover, after heart attacks, women are less likely than men to receive therapies known to improve survival, including cardiac rehabilitation. While many of the causes linked to heart disease are the same for men and women, there are some factors that are unique to women, such as postmenopausal hormones and birth control pills. Many of the risk factors for heart disease can be controlled through diet, exercise and life-style changes. Some of these risk factors are: smoking, high blood pressure, and high blood cholesterol. Some of the risk reductions are: not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, eating a healthy diet, and being active. Issues that need to be addressed: 1. As advances in medical diagnosis and treatment are developed, they need to be designed and evaluated with women in mind, and we must address the accompanying ethical and legal issues. 2. In the new century, we must work to provide access to health care for all Americans. 3. We must strive for economic and educational equity for all women, since socioeconomic status is one of the most powerful predictors of health. 4. Continuing recommendations for medical education curricula must be disseminated to help ensure that future physicians are sensitive to gender differences in etiology, treatments, and prevention of disease. Recommendations: CWA must raise awareness about heart disease as the number one killer of women. We need to encourage and motivate women to take heart health seriously, reduce their risks, and take part in clinical testing for women. CWA must form partnerships with government and non-government entities, including consumer groups, health advocates, professional organizations and industry to promote women's health objectives for the 21st century. Lung Cancer Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer related deaths in women, not breast cancer. Lung cancer claims the lives of 67,000 women each year. Facts: Lung cancer is expected to account for about 25% of all female cancer deaths in 2002. Most people who develop lung cancer die within five years after diagnosis. Smoking causes 90% of lung cancer cases. Having a family history of lung cancer appears to double and possibly even quadruple a woman's risk of the disease. Smoking related health problems cost our nation's health care system up to $73 billion annually. To date scientists have had little success with the early detection and treatment of this disease. Approximately 15% of all lung cancers are detected in the earliest and most treatable stage. The odds of surviving lung cancer rarely exceed 50%. Differences between men and women: Strong evidence suggests that for the same number of cigarettes smoked, women are more susceptible than men to the carcinogenic effects on their lungs. Already linked to breast and ovarian cancers, estrogen may promote the growth of lung tissues containing genes damaged by tobacco smoke. A build-up of gene damage in lung tissues can lead to the uncontrolled growth of a tumor. Minorities: African Americans are less likely than Caucasians to be diagnosed with cancer at a localized stage, when the disease may be more easily and successfully treated, and are more likely to be diagnosed with cancer at a distant stage of disease. Recommendations: CWA must encourage government and scientists to find a good screening test and build the capacity to more rapidly translate research progress from the bench to the bedside. CWA must encourage increased patient participation in cancer clinical trials and also promote the creation of a nationwide cancer registry. Stroke Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States. It is a feared disease, not only because it claims the lives of nearly 100,000 women each year but also because it is the leading cause of long-term disability in the United States. The word alone evokes pictures of those victims who will need help in completing life's daily tasks - eating, dressing, walking. Of those who survive a first stroke nearly half lose much of their personal independence and over two-thirds experience problems on the job over the long-term. Facts: Thirty percent of stroke victims die within one year after the event. Up to 25% of stroke survivors develop dementia following a stroke. Every minute in the United States an individual experiences a stroke. Every 3.3 minutes an individual dies from one. Those who have had a heart attack are at higher risk of having a stroke, too. Differences between men and women: While men are slightly more likely to have a stroke than women, women are much more likely to die from the event, possibly because they tend to develop the disease at an older age, when the body is less able to handle the trauma. At all ages, more women than men die of stroke. Use of birth control pills and pregnancy pose special stroke risks for women. Minorities: African-American women are about twice as likely to have a stroke as white women and they also tend to have more severe strokes and to have them at younger ages. African-American women are more likely to possess important risk factors for stroke, such as hypertension, obesity and diabetes. What to do if you have a stroke: Call 911 immediately. The warning signs for stroke are: sudden numbness or weakness of face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body, sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding, sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes, sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination, sudden severe headache with no known cause. Sometimes the warning signs last for only a few minutes and then disappear. This could be a mini-stroke, called a transient ischemic attack (TIA). Although they don't last long, TIAs are a symptom of a medical problem. Don't ignore a TIA - see your doctor right away. Recommendations: CWA and CWA members need to go on record and continue to support The Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act of 2001. This act authorized important public health initiatives to help patients with symptoms of stroke receive timely and effective care. Advances in imaging, interventional radiology, pharmacology and other disciplines provide hope that more effective stroke treatments will be found. Also improving the delivery of existing therapy can have a marked effect on the morbidity and mortality caused by stroke. Education of CWA members and their families on the symptoms of stroke could help with effective treatment, as an early response is crucial. CWA must promote through legislative actions the continuation of "Stroke Centers." Stroke centers form part of an integrated system of stroke care to ensure that a patient receives the optimal therapy at the time when it is most effective. The Sandwich Generation The Sandwich Generation is defined as those who are sandwiched between aging parents who need care and/or and their own children. The home now consists of a teenage son, or college student, perhaps a recently divorced daughter with an infant child, and an elderly parent who needs an increasing amount of care giving. It appears that the "empty nest" is now cluttered and bursting at the seams. There are issues that arise for the Sandwich Generation. People worry about the loss of their own independence and their duty to their own children versus their duty to their parents. Ultimately role reversal will occur within the family, and it may be difficult for both elderly parents and caretakers to adjust. Concerns regarding family finances and physical resources combine to create a stress level and overload of great concern. Difficult decisions may need to be made when placing elderly parents in appropriate care centers at a time when at-home living is no longer possible. Thus, the Sandwich Generation must become knowledgeable about the details of Medicare, what it pays for and what it doesn't, as well as HMO's and parents' company health care plans. Women's roles in the Sandwich Generation: Just as childcare has largely been the responsibility of women, primarily women perform elder care also. In virtually every culture the caregiver role belongs to women. This is enforced in sociologic, cultural and religious traditions. Care taking is not only expected by society, but by the women themselves. In conclusion: Working women and men need more workplace flexibility to meet family care giving demands. Such new practices should be supplementary to those included in the Family and Medical Leave Act. With life expectancy continuing to increase, social and government institutions need to find ways to provide caregiver support to Sandwich Generation families. Increased availability for assisted living units and long term care facilities is needed. Low-income individuals feel more stressed about their responsibilities and are less able to take time off work to help care for family members. Recommendations: CWA must encourage employers to offer elder care benefits, paid or unpaid leave, and long-term care insurance in collective bargaining agreements. Social Security President Franklin Roosevelt, who was responding to an overwhelming national need to address economic insecurity in old age, signed the Social Security Act into law in 1935. Over the past six decades, Social Security has lifted millions of older Americans out of poverty and has provided enormous relief for widows, widowers, children and the disabled. Social Security is more than a retirement plan. It is the heart of our social insurance system providing nearly universal coverage for workers and their families. One-third of the program's beneficiaries are not retirees, but they also include children, widows and people with disabilities. Reliance on Social Security. Women have a high stake in Social Security. They represent 58% of all aged Social Security beneficiaries and approximately 71% of beneficiaries age 85 and older. At the end of 2001, women's average monthly Social Security benefit was $756, while that of men was $985. For unmarried women, including widows' age 65 and older, Social Security comprises 51% of their total income. In contrast, Social Security benefits comprise only 37% of unmarried elderly men's retirement income and only 34% of elderly couples' income. Seventy four percent of unmarried elderly women depend on Social Security for at least one-half of their income and 26% depend on it as their only source of income. The poverty rate among elderly women is 12.2%, while elderly men have a poverty rate of 7.5%. Without Social Security, however, the poverty rate of elderly women would be more than 52.5%. Several aspects of the current program help women. Through the annual cost-of-living adjustment, Social Security provides a guaranteed inflation protected benefit that last as long as one lives. The current benefit formula provides a higher proportion of pre-retirement earnings to lower earning workers, who are more often women. Social Security provides dependent benefits to spouses, divorced spouses, elderly widows, and widows with young children. Life expectancy: Women reaching age 65 in 2000 are expected to live, on an average, an additional 19.1 years compared to 15.7 years for men. Life expectancy rates at age 65 are anticipated to increase to 20.3 years for women and 17.3 years for men in 2030. It is essential to ensure that Social Security's guaranteed benefits continue for women and their families. But the reality in privatization of Social Security is not good for workers and their families. It is especially not good for women. For a complete view of this issue, we recommend the report "Social Security Privatization, A False Promise for Women," prepared by the Older Women's League, 1-800-825-3695; 202-783-6686; fax 202-638-2356 or www.owl-national.org. Family and Medical Leave Act The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) became effective on August 5, 1993. If a collective bargaining agreement was in effect on that date, FMLA became effective on the expiration date of the collective bargaining agreement or February 5, 1994, whichever was earlier. The law contains provisions on employer coverage, employee eligibility for the law's benefits, entitlement to leave, maintenance of health benefits during the leave, and job restoration after the leave, notice and certification of the need for FMLA leave, and protection for employees who request or take FMLA leave. The FMLA allows employees to balance their work and family life by taking reasonable unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons. The FMLA seeks to accomplish these purposes in a manner that accommodates the legitimate interests of employers, and minimize the potential for employment discrimination on the basis of gender, while promoting equal employment opportunity for men and women. Senator Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) introduced a bill (S.489) to amend FMLA called the Family Medical Leave Clarification Act. The Family Medical leave Clarification Act weakens the FMLA in several ways: It repeals the Department of Labor's current regulation for "serious health condition" and includes language on what types of medical conditions, such as heart attack stroke, spinal injuries, etc., supposedly were intended to be covered. Gregg states that "serious health condition" is not meant to cover short-term conditions (injury, illness, or impairment), for which treatment or recovery is brief. The bill amends the Act's provisions relating to intermittent leave to allow employers to require that intermittent leave be taken in minimum blocks of four hours. The bill shifts to the employee the responsibility to request the leave be designated as FMLA leave and requires the employee to provide written application within 65 working days of providing notice to the employer for foreseeable leave. With respect to leave because of the employee's own serious health condition, the bill permits an employer to require the employee to choose between taking unpaid leave provided by FMLA, or paid absence under an employer's collective bargaining agreement or other sick leave, sick pay, or disability plan, program, or policy of the employer. The Family Medical Leave Clarification Act seeks to destroy a law that is paramount in helping workers balance work and family life. Domestic Violence Domestic abuse crosses all ethnic, racial, age, national origin, sexual orientation, religious and educational backgrounds and income levels. According to statistics from the Department of Justice, nearly 4,000 women die each year as a result of domestic violence. Violence will occur at least once in two-thirds of all marriages. It affects more women every year than are affected by breast cancer, heart attacks and strokes. Domestic violence is part of the union agenda because it is a family issue, a public health issue, a community issue, and a social justice issue. Domestic violence can increase absenteeism, undermine job performance, affect job security and raise the risk of violence in the workplace. Unions are key in helping members stay safe, healthy and employed so they can retain their dignity and remain economically self-sufficient. Unions can and do play a positive role in preventing and addressing abuse through training and intervention. In District 1, CWA, Verizon and Cornell University jointly developed a domestic violence training initiative that will be offered to all management and craft groups on company time. The training session not only includes materials that help identify abuse, but also offers resources and agencies that can assist members in need of support. As of April 2002, CWA and Verizon have conducted train the trainer sessions in all of Downstate N.Y. as well as Albany and Boston, and there are sessions scheduled for Syracuse and Buffalo. To date, over 1,000 CWA Local 1105 members have already gone through this training, and several other CWA locals presently are starting the training process. Unions should strive to bargain benefits such as employer contributions to fund legal services, social services, safe homes and an emergency fund to assist domestic violence victims and negotiate contractual language that guarantees our members authorized time off with pay for court appearances, legal consultation and relocating. In 1999, Senator Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.) and Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) introduced the Victim's Economic Security and Safety Act (VESSA), a comprehensive bill to address the tremendous economic barriers women face when they leave abusive relationships and set out to establish new lives for themselves and their children. The bill provides needed funding for shelters for victims of domestic violence through the McKinney Homeless Act, and rental assistance to victims trying to establish permanent housing safe from the batterer. The bill protects women in the workplace by allowing them to use the Family and Medical Leave Act to take time off to deal with the problems arising from leaving a violent relationship. The measure promotes employment stability, economic security, and workplace safety. The Wellstone/Murray legislation is strongly supported by numerous national women's and family violence prevention groups including the Coalition of Labor Union Women. The AFL-CIO has resolved to support the passage of VESSA and will work to ensure its quick passage. The National Women's Committee recommends that you urge your members of Congress to become cosponsors of the Economic Security and Safety Act. Work and Family The struggle to balance work and family continues today but unions are negotiating benefits that have been instrumental in assisting our members in easing these burdens. Through contract negotiations, CWA and Verizon North have bargained to continued two major programs that are useful in accomplishing this goal. One program is known as the Dependent Reimbursement Fund that helps members defray the cost of childcare and eldercare by reimbursing the employee up to $50 per week, per child or elder dependent, of which $5,000 per year is tax free. The other program, called LifeBalance, offers free resources to assist with all issues of daily living, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The service provides personalized, confidential consultation, individualized referrals to resources in communities, free booklets, audiotapes and tip sheets. A complete range of services includes relocation, budgeting, planning for retirement, adoption, single parenting and blended families, senior health, selecting a care provider, finding tutors and estate and probate law. The program is designed to help members manage the demands of everyday life. It also includes workplace seminars for our members covering a range of work and family topics. CWA has also negotiated a program called Kids in the Workplace both at Verizon North and Verizon South which provides on-site child care at the workplace for school-aged children on school holidays and during the three school vacation weeks. At CWA and Verizon North there are nine locations successfully established and CWA/IBEW and Verizon South have expanded their Kids in the Workplace program to 60 locations. This is a great example of a win for both sides. Our members can work more productively knowing that their child is receiving quality care with age-appropriate activities at their work locations at no charge to them. The employer benefits as well since more parents of school-aged children are working on school holidays. In the past our members were frequently forced to take time off for lack of childcare. CWA, in conjunction with childcare coalitions, has been successful in attaining free summer camps for union members within the public school system, diversity groups and charity organizations. Education Women and all workers should have the opportunity for self-improvement through education and training. We encourage you to fight for legislation and bargain for educational benefits, in addition to working for the betterment of our public education system. Many companies offer education assistance to employees that will not only improve their job skills, but will also make them successful and confident leaders in the community and in their unions. The number of online distance learning programs is increasing. We should make full use of programs that were bargained for by CWA such as: Tuition Aid and Partnership Programs in some contracts, which will give financial assistance to employees. The Alliance for Employee Growth and Development, Inc. This is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to enhance employment security for all AT&T, Avaya Inc., Lucent Technologies and other employees represented by CWA and IBEW. The Alliance offers career and personal development training and educational opportunities to more than 88,000 eligible workers. Pathways is the education and training benefit program for eligible Qwest employees, bargained for by CWA and Qwest. The program enables employees to take courses, workshops and seminars in subject areas of their choice on their own time. National Advisory Coalition for Telecommunications Education and Learning (NACTEL). Representatives from CWA, Verizon, SBC, Qwest, Citizens and IBEW formed NACTEL, an industry coalition dedicated to telecommunications education and learning. The program offers an Associate's Degree in telecommunications. The George Many Center for Labor Studies offers a variety of labor education courses in the areas of organizing, arbitration, collective bargaining, communications and union building. You will find more information on offerings by the George Meany Center at www.georgemeany.org. The American Association of University Women is a national organization that promotes education and equity for all women and girls. The organization's educational foundation is the largest source of funding exclusively for graduate women in the world. It supports aspiring scholars around the globe, teachers and activists in local communities, women at critical stages of their careers, and those pursuing professions where women are underrepresented. Career and Technical Schools provide the vocational and technical training needed to meet the current needs of business and industry. Programs can be short-term courses, certificate programs, diplomas, two and four-year degrees. There are many other educational programs and forms of assistance available to women and their families. Grants and scholarships are available from many sources. Several are made possible through CWA. Self-improvement and leadership skills are end products of taking advantage of the education opportunities and assistance available to us. Oppose School Vouchers. We need to become leaders in making sure that our children are not deprived of the education and skills necessary to prepare them of college and careers. Improving our education system should be top priority for government at the federal, local and state levels. Today many legislators, school boards, education professionals, parent groups, and community organizations are attempting to implement school voucher programs. School voucher programs or similar programs are the wrong choice for our public education system. The standard program would distribute monetary vouchers (typically between $2,500 and $5,000) to parents of school-age children, usually in troubled inner-city school districts. Parents could use the vouchers towards the cost of tuition at private schools. Vouchers would help some students, but not all. With the help of taxpayers' dollars, private schools would be filled with well to do and middle-class students and only a handful of the best, most motivated students from inner cities. Some public schools would be left with fewer dollars to teach the poorest of the poor and other students who, for one reason or another, were not private school material. Such a scenario can hardly benefit public education. We should dedicate ourselves to finding solutions to benefit all students. Coalition of Labor Union Women In March of 1974, more than 3,200 women from around the country came together in Chicago to create an organization that would shake the foundation of the male dominated Labor Movement. Thousands of women flew, trained, bused and drove from all corners of the country to meet with their sisters and form the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW). While some of the more enlightened men joined with our sisters in this effort, most believed that when the "ladies" got together they would "swap recipes" and go home. How wrong they were. For CLUW's Statement of Purpose, the women agreed that: The primary purpose of this National Coalition is to unify all union women in a viable organization to determine our common problems and concerns and to develop action programs within the framework of our unions to deal effectively with our objectives. The women developed four objectives for CLUW: Organizing the Unorganized Women, Affirmative Action in the Workplace, Political Action and Legislation, and Participation of Women within their Unions. For the last twenty-eight years, CLUW has been the voice of women in the labor movement in the United States as it continues to speak out for childcare, pay equity, labor law reform, national health care and reproductive freedom. It has provided a network where women can find support, education, and action on issues that are important to women in the workplace. For the last twenty-eight years, CWA has been an integral part of CLUW and today has Larraine Darrington from District 9 as a Vice President on the National Officer's Council and Gloria Johnson as the organization's President. The members of CWA's Executive Board are also members and have been very supportive of CLUW. With the demise of the Women's and Education departments of the AFL-CIO, CLUW once again becomes the sole vehicle to carry the needs of working women to the forefront of the labor movement's and indeed, the entire country's agenda. Presently CLUW is: Working with the UFCW on their Wal-Mart campaign, which asks union shoppers to let management know that union members object to the company's anti-union propaganda, pressure and fear tactics to which their employees are subjected and to let the employees know that we support their right to a voice on the job. In the midst of the Contraceptive Equity Project that is working with the AFL-CIO, the state federations of labor and unions to achieve comprehensive contraceptive coverage in all union health plans. Continuing to work to reenergize labor's response to HIV/AIDS by conducting meetings with the Labor Leadership Forum and Project Advisory Committees, to develop a CLUW Tool Kit and implementing a national partnership initiative. Working with state federations, central labor councils, and international unions to register working women to vote and to ensure a massive GOTV effort for the November, 2002 elections. The CWA National Women's Committee urges all CWA locals to educate their members about CLUW, encourage all of their members to join CLUW, become active in their CLUW chapters and use the information provided by CLUW to advance women's issues on the job. Respectfully submitted, Anne Holland McCauley, Secretary-Treasurer CWA Local 1106 District 1 Nancy L. Brady, Vice President CWA Local 2222 District 2 Arlene Jefferson, Vice President CWA Local 3406 District 3 Kimberly Gallardo, Vice President CWA Local 4013 CWA District 4 Jennifer M. Case, Vice President CWA Local 6320 CWA District 6 Terri Newman, President CWA Local 7214 CWA District 7 Kathleen Kinchius, President CWA Local 9415 CWA District 9 Carol Coultas, Executive Vice President CWA Local 13500 CWA District 13