Communications Workers of America
Communications Workers of America is a major labor union representing communications, media, technology, public-sector, health-care, education, airline, manufacturing, and other workers in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Communications Workers of America (CWA) is a labor union whose membership grew out of the organization of telephone operators and other telecommunications workers. It was established in 1947 after the National Federation of Telephone Workers reorganized into a more centralized national union following a failed 1947 strike against AT&T. CWA affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1949 and later became part of the AFL-CIO. Although telecommunications remains central to its identity, CWA has broadened substantially since its creation. Its represented workers include telephone, wireless, cable, broadcasting, journalism, newspaper, printing, airline, manufacturing, public-sector, health-care, education, university, financial-services, sports, software, video-game, and other digital workers. The union’s affiliated sectors and unions include the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, NABET-CWA, The NewsGuild-CWA, IUE-CWA, UPTE-CWA, CWA Public, Healthcare and Education Workers, and other specialized organizations. CWA’s expansion reflects both mergers with established labor organizations and organizing campaigns in industries affected by technological and economic change. The National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians joined in 1994, The NewsGuild became affiliated in the mid-1990s, the International Union of Electronic, Electrical, Salaried, Machine and Furniture Workers affiliated in 2000, and the Association of Flight Attendants affiliated in 2004. In 2020, CWA created the Campaign to Organize Digital Employees, known as CODE-CWA, to organize workers in technology, video games, digital media, and related fields. The union operates through locals, sectors, and affiliated organizations rather than through a conventional commercial product portfolio. Its core offerings are collective bargaining, workplace representation, organizing support, contract enforcement, political advocacy, and member services. Its membership spans both private- and public-sector employment. CWA also has a Canadian presence through CWA-SCA Canada, which includes 27 locals and represents approximately 8,000 members. Canadian members historically separated from the American union in 1972 to form the Communication Workers of Canada, although CWA retains Canadian operations and affiliations. Publicly reported Department of Labor classifications have varied over time because the categories included in filings changed. A 2025 figure cited in reference material puts total reported membership at 682,324, including active members, dues-paying retirees, and non-dues-paying retirees, plus workers covered by contracts who are not members. The organization is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and remains active in traditional communications industries while seeking representation rights for workers in emerging sectors such as software, financial services, and video games.
History
The roots of Communications Workers of America extend to telephone-operator organizing during the early twentieth century. In 1918, telephone operators organized through the Telephone Operators Department of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The department initially achieved gains, but its position weakened after a 1923 strike and a subsequent lockout by AT&T. AT&T later created company-controlled employee committees, and the telephone-operator department eventually disappeared. A new organizational phase began in 1938, when telephone workers formed the National Federation of Telephone Workers after the Wagner Act made company unions unlawful. The federation was a loose association of independent local unions. Because it had limited authority over its affiliates, it was less capable of coordinating bargaining and industrial action against AT&T. A major 1947 strike ended unsuccessfully and exposed the federation’s structural weaknesses. Under the leadership of Joseph A. Beirne, telephone workers reorganized that year as the Communications Workers of America, creating a more unified national union. CWA affiliated with the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1949. The organization initially concentrated on telephone and telecommunications employment, but its scope widened as communications industries converged and the structure of employment changed. Canadian members separated in 1972 and established the Communication Workers of Canada, while CWA continued to maintain Canadian representation through later structures and affiliations. The union subsequently incorporated or affiliated with organizations representing workers beyond telephone service. In 1994, the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians merged with CWA and became NABET-CWA, representing employees in broadcasting, cable, telecasting, recording, video, sound, and related work. The Newspaper Guild, founded in 1933, affiliated with CWA in the 1990s and became known as The NewsGuild-CWA. The International Union of Electronic, Electrical, Salaried, Machine and Furniture Workers affiliated in 2000, adding a substantial manufacturing and industrial constituency. In 2004, the Association of Flight Attendants joined CWA as AFA-CWA, bringing flight attendants at multiple airlines into the union’s structure. Other affiliated sectors expanded CWA’s presence among public employees, health-care and education workers, university professional and technical staff, printers, publishers, media workers, and professional athletes. UPTE-CWA represents workers at University of California campuses and medical centers, while CWA Public, Healthcare and Education Workers covers a broad range of public-sector, social-service, education, and health-care occupations. The union also developed organizations for financial-services employees, including Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA. CWA’s twenty-first-century organizing strategy increasingly addressed technology and digital labor. In 2020, it launched CODE-CWA, a campaign focused on technology, video-game, and digital workers. The initiative helped establish CWA as a significant labor organization in North American technology and video-game organizing, including the organization of non-management workers at the Hawaiian digital wireless carrier Mobi in 2022. In March 2025, CWA launched United Videogame Workers-CWA as an industry-wide structure for workers in the United States and Canada. ZeniMax United also represents employees at ZeniMax Online Studios and Bethesda Studios. The modern CWA is therefore a federation-like labor organization with a telecommunications heritage and a diversified membership base. It represents workers through local unions, sectors, and affiliated bodies, combining collective bargaining with organizing, political advocacy, workplace enforcement, and public campaigns. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and is affiliated with the AFL-CIO, the Strategic Organizing Center, the Canadian Labour Congress, and UNI Global Union.
- 2025
United Videogame Workers-CWA is launched
[1]CWA launched an organization intended to cover video-game workers across the United States and Canada.
- 2023
Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA is formed
[1]The new CWA division recorded its first branch-office organizing victory in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
- 2022
Mobi workers organize with CWA
[1]CWA organized non-management workers at Mobi, a digital wireless carrier in Hawaii.
- 2020
CODE-CWA is launched
[1]CWA created the Campaign to Organize Digital Employees to organize workers in technology, video games, and digital industries.
- 2004
Association of Flight Attendants affiliates with CWA
[1]The Association of Flight Attendants joined CWA and became AFA-CWA.
- 2000
IUE affiliates with CWA
[1]The International Union of Electronic, Electrical, Salaried, Machine and Furniture Workers affiliated with CWA as IUE-CWA.
- 1995
The NewsGuild affiliates with CWA
[1]The Newspaper Guild became part of the CWA structure and is now known as The NewsGuild-CWA.
- 1994
NABET joins CWA
[1]The National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians merged with CWA and became NABET-CWA.
- 1972
Canadian members form the Communication Workers of Canada
[1]CWA’s Canadian members separated from the union and established the Communication Workers of Canada.
- 1949
CWA affiliates with the Congress of Industrial Organizations
[1]CWA joined the CIO, strengthening its position within the organized labor movement.
Products and positioning
A broad-based labor union rooted in telecommunications and positioned as a representative organization for workers across communications, media, technology, public services, aviation, manufacturing, education, health care, and emerging digital industries.
Labor representation · 1947
Collective bargaining and contract representation
CWA negotiates collective-bargaining agreements for represented workers and helps enforce contractual provisions. Its bargaining coverage extends across telecommunications, media, aviation, manufacturing, public services, education, health care, technology, finance, and other sectors.
Worker organizing campaign · 2020
CODE-CWA
The Campaign to Organize Digital Employees is CWA’s organizing initiative for workers in technology, video games, digital media, and related industries. It represents the union’s effort to apply traditional collective action and bargaining models to newer forms of digital employment.
Labor organization · 1994
Sector and affiliated-union representation
CWA delivers specialized representation through affiliated organizations such as AFA-CWA for flight attendants, NABET-CWA for broadcasting workers, The NewsGuild-CWA for journalists and media workers, IUE-CWA for industrial workers, and UPTE-CWA for university professional and technical employees.
Marketing campaigns
- 2025United Videogame Workers-CWA
United States · Canada
CWA launched United Videogame Workers-CWA as an industry-wide organizing structure for workers in the video-game sector.
- 2023Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA organizing campaign
United States
CWA supported organizing among Wells Fargo branch employees through the Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA division.
Outcome. The division’s first reported victory took place at a branch in Albuquerque, New Mexico, followed by organizing at additional branch offices.
- 2020Campaign to Organize Digital Employees
United States · Canada
CWA launched CODE-CWA to organize technology, video-game, and digital workers, broadening the union’s organizing focus beyond legacy telecommunications and media employment.
Outcome. The initiative contributed to CWA’s expansion among technology and digital workers, including organizing efforts involving Mobi and video-game studios.
Brand decisions
2020
Prioritize digital-worker organizingStrategyBackground
Technology, digital-media, and video-game employment had grown while union representation in those sectors remained limited.
Action taken
CWA created CODE-CWA to coordinate organizing among digital employees.
Aftermath
The union expanded its organizing profile into technology and video games and later launched dedicated video-game worker structures.
2004
Affiliate with the Association of Flight AttendantsM&ABackground
The Association of Flight Attendants was an established union representing airline cabin crews.
Action taken
AFA affiliated with CWA and became known as AFA-CWA.
Aftermath
The affiliation added a large airline-worker constituency to CWA’s wider labor organization.
1994
Merge with the National Association of Broadcast Employees and TechniciansM&ABackground
CWA sought to expand beyond telephone employment into broadcasting and related communications industries.
Action taken
NABET merged with CWA and became NABET-CWA.
Aftermath
CWA gained a dedicated sector representing workers in broadcasting, cable, telecasting, recording, video, and sound-related occupations.
1947
Reorganize the telephone-workers federation as CWAStrategyBackground
The National Federation of Telephone Workers had limited authority over its independent local unions and suffered a major defeat in its 1947 AT&T strike.
Action taken
Under Joseph A. Beirne, telephone workers created a more centralized national union, the Communications Workers of America.
Aftermath
The new structure provided a stronger basis for national bargaining and enabled CWA to affiliate with the CIO in 1949.
Recent events
AT&T seeks further job cuts amid contract bargaining[3]
Reported:
The article reports that AT&T was seeking to cut additional jobs while bargaining with the Communications Workers; the article characterizes the further cuts as a company plan, not as completed layoffs.
Sources3 sources
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