Frank Karl, Important CWA Leader in AT&T Long Lines

Frank Karl, an important CWA leader in AT&T Long Lines, passed away November 15, 2014.

We are sad to announce the death of Frank Karl, former President of CWA Local 1151.  Frank was born in South Bethlehem, New York, just outside of Albany. Later the family moved to Albany, where he attended school. He was a veteran of the United States Air Force serving during the Korean War from 1950 to 1954. He was a lifetime member of the Saranac Lake Veteran’s Memorial Association, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #3357, and the American Legion Post #447.

He graduated from Hudson Valley Community College with an Associate’s degree in 1956, and soon went to work for AT&T (and joined Communications Workers of America, Local 1151) involved in Albany. He became actively in union affairs in 1958, during heated debates over whether the Local should support a Western Electric strike that was on at the time. In the same year he was elected President of the Local, a position he was to hold for the next 33 years.

Frank Karl retired from both AT&T and the CWA in 1990.  He served on the CWA's national bargaining committee, which successfully negotiated six successive contracts on behalf of 87,000 AT&T Long Lines employees. In 1978, he was instrumental in establishing one of the first AT&T/CWA labor-management Common Interest Forums; he then served as the Forum's co-chair through 1990; he was also co-chair of the National AT&T/CWA Safety Advisory Council. In 1980, Karl helped to design and implement the first joint labor-management Employee Assistance Program (EAP) in the Bell System, a program that provided a range of counseling and support services to union members.  He was also the first chair of the AT&T Ad Hoc and was instrumental in training many new Local leaders.

After retiring in 1990, Frank Karl and Barbara, his wife of 50 years, realized a lifelong dream of building a house in the Adirondack Mountains. He soon got involved in local politics, and was elected Town Supervisor of Franklin, NY, a post he held for two consecutive terms. He later served on several local boards and committees to work on veterans' rights and environmental issues. He was instrumental in the establishment of the new VA clinic in Saranac Lake, NY.

Karl earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Labor Relations, as well as a Masters Degree in Labor and Policy Studies, both from Empire State College (SUNY).

He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Barbara, and five children.