News

Announcing UCW-CWA's Endorsed Candidates for Fall 2010 Election!

In the Knoxville area, we are endorsing Sam Alexander for House District 18.   If you are interested in supporting the Local's electoral efforts in Knoxville, please contact Thomas Walker, chair of the Electoral Committee, at pinkflags@gmail.com.  Mr. Alexander's responses to our candidate survey and in conversations with members have been very strongly supportive of our issues.  In particular:

  • He is opposed to cutting public services, and supports raising additional revenue.  He wrote, "I am opposed to any loophole that allows any major corporation doing business in Tennessee to avoid paying taxes that fund state services."
  • He is now on record as supporting "equal-dollar raises rather than percentage raises in future university and college budgets."
  • He is "a firm believer in the right to bargain collectively," and supports extending Tennessee State Employee (civil service) grievance policy protections to public higher education employees.
  • He is opposed to outsourcing and privatization of public sector jobs.


In the UT Martin region, we are endorsing Butch Borchert for re-election in House District 75 and Mark Maddox for re-election in House District 76.  If you are interested in supporting the Local's electoral efforts in the UT Martin region, please contact Tim Hacker at hack1999@bellsouth.net.

  • Butch Borchert is a retired union pipefitter.  He supports raising revenue rather than cutting services, and says, "We need to start building back our programs and service for our citizens and start providing for those individuals that help the state provide those much needed services," and he opposes outsourcing higher education jobs.
  • He supports our living wage campaign and stated that he would sponsor or co-sponsor legislation to extend civil-service grievance protection to higher education staff. 
  • He recognizes the importance to the state of strong public higher education:  "Public higher education is going to be the key to Tennessee's future. More and more businesses and industries are looking at a state's educational resources when planning new operations or expanding existing facilities."
  • Mark Maddox supports a living wage and equal-dollar raises for higher education.
  • He is willing to sponsor or co-sponsor legislation to extend civil-service grievance protection to higher education staff.
  • When asked about the state's role in supporting affordable public higher education, he wrote, "Higher education must be funded properly."