Lucent to Begin Talks with the IBEW over retiree health care

Lucent to begin fresh labor talks on Oct. 7
Oct. 2, 2004

Lucent Technologies Inc. will begin fresh talks with representatives from unions that represent about 10 percent of its work force on Oct. 7, a company spokeswoman said on Friday. The telecommunications equipment maker plans to hold discussions with the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Washington, said the spokeswoman, Mary Ward. Lucent's existing agreement with the unions expires at midnight on Oct. 31, she said. The company first held talks in June for a new agreement, but could not hammer out a contract in a planned three-week time frame. Some 3,250 workers are represented by the unions. Ward said one of the issues on the table will be the cost of retirees'' health care. Lucent said last late last month that it was planning additional cuts in retirement benefits for management retirees, a move that will affect thousands of former workers. Shares in Lucent were off a penny at $3.16 in late trading on the New York Stock Exchange