CWA Members Fight Back Against Unlawful Firing of Zirrus Activist

Pictured above: CWA members from Locals 3601, 3603, 3608, 3611, 3615, 3616, 3640, 3682 and 3683 rally in support of Zirrus workers in Yadkinville, N.C.

When Tyler Hicks spoke up last week in a captive audience meeting, he knew it was his right to join a union freely. But his employer Zirrus, a telecommunications provider in North Carolina, fired him the very next day. Tyler and CWA have now filed charges with the NLRB alleging that Zirrus fired him for his support of the union.

Within days, CWA members from nine locals across the state organized actions demanding that Zirrus reinstate Tyler and stop unlawfully retaliating against union supporters. CWAers took the fight to the company’s headquarters and retail stores, with a movement that is growing as other unions and the North Carolina AFL-CIO join in support of Tyler.

Since a supermajority of eligible workers petitioned for union recognition last month, Zirrus management has spied on employees engaged in organizing, interrogated employees about their organizing activities, and threatened to eliminate jobs if its workers organize. The workers remain resolved to support Tyler and to join CWA.

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This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.