CWA 1180 - Calendar

Human Rights Watch

Major gains in compensation in new contract
May 2003

It took a series of visible demonstrations of their resolve and their unity, and at one point they even broke of negotiations, but it the end the 1180 members at Human Rights Watch (HRW) got the message across to management that they were serious about their demand for substantial economic improvements—and they won a contract with double-digit increases in both base wages and raises for current members.

"As far as raises go, we did much better than the average….Yes, we're pleased with the numbers we got," said Dorit Radzin, the shop steward for the Washington office and one of three bargaining committee members. HRW members made a substantial wage increase their overriding priority, because their salaries were not competitive and for too long had not been adjusted accordingly. Minimum base wages in the three-year agreement went up by 13.78% (11.538%, 1%, 1%) and current employees got raises of 14.91% (11.538%, 1.5%, 1.5%).

The new contract included other gains as well, though HRW members did not prevail on the benefits improvements they wanted. "We were disappointed that we didn't get anywhere on benefits," Radzin admitted, but also added that overall, members felt that the process and the contract both made the union a stronger presence at HRW and that that was good for both the union and the organization. Local 1180 members at HRW took coordinated lunch breaks together during the negotiations, wore 1180 jackets, held up signs and talked extensively to other HRW employees about their contract demands.

In addition to Radzin, the other members of the bargaining committee were Emily Letts and Tommy Yeh, both stewards in the New York office. Local 1180 represents workers in New York, in Washington and (one) in Los Angeles, all in the same bargaining unit.

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