AT&T unions work with no new contract; talks continue

Union contracts for 40,000 AT&T workers expired at midnight, but a strike was averted with officials saying early Sunday that talks were continuing.

The expiration left the union, the Communications Workers of America, free to call a walkout, but spokeswoman Candice Johnson said employees would report for work without a contract.

"Workers are keeping their option to strike open," she added.

AT&T spokesman Marty Richter also said talks were ongoing. He said earlier that managers and vendors would step in to keep service running if there is one.

Four separate contracts in the Eastern, Midwestern and Western regions covering some 40,000 workers in total expired.

The workers are on the shrinking local-phone and long-haul data side of the business. On Long Island, AT&T primarily provides cellphone service.

At issue in the negotiations are job protection clauses and health care premiums and co-payments. AT&T wants employees to shoulder more of their growing health care costs and more leeway to downsize its shrinking landline operations. Some workers have contracts that guarantee them job offers at different parts of the company if they're laid off.

Union organizers point to the overall financial health of the company, which posted a profit of $4 billion for last year.