Inescapable issues: a labor look at joint health care cost containment

"When an employer talks of labor-management cooperation, hold on to your wallet," goes an old union saying. In the case of the Communications Workers of America and AT&T, however, it's the health care providers who need to watch their pocketbooks. In implementing their joint health care cost containment program, the company and the union have had to confront--and keep discussing--seven controversial issues--issues that the authors believe must be faced openly by anyone who considers a similar effort. What they are and how the union stands on these issues is the topic discussed by the Director and Associate Director of CWA's Development and Research Department.