Gallego Urges Frontier Communications to Address Pay Disparity for Navajo Workers

WASHINGTON - Today, Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) called on Frontier Communications to negotiate in good faith with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) toward a fair contract.

"My constituents serving the Navajo Nation are the backbone of your company's essential infrastructure. Frontier Communications workers on the Navajo Nation deliver essential telecom services to keep our communities connected and working, ensuring that families, schools, healthcare providers, and businesses remain connected-often under more difficult conditions than in other parts of the state due to geography, weather, and limited resources," Senator Gallego wrote in a letter to Frontier Communications CEO Nick Jeffery. "Yet, despite performing the same highly skilled work as their counterparts elsewhere in Arizona, employees on Navajo Nation have raised concerns about a longstanding pay gap compared to Arizona employees in other parts of the state."

Frontier's contract with the CWA, the union representing its Navajo workers, expired on March 29th. The union has been in prolonged contract negotiations with Frontier Communications to close the longstanding wage gap and ensure the workers on Navajo Nation are paid fairly for the essential services they provide.

"The low pay for these 27 employees both harms their ability to live the American Dream and causes harm for their immediate families at a time of high costs for necessities like food and housings. The long-standing pay gap also reinforces economic inequalities in native country," the Senator continued. "These contract negotiations present an opportunity to ensure fairness for Indigenous nations, strengthen workforce retention, improve service reliability, and build lasting trust with the communities you serve."

"I urge your company to engage in good-faith negotiations toward a fair agreement that adequately reflects the contributions of Navajo Nation employees," the Senator concluded.

Read the full letter HERE.

9/30/25