A sharp 4-3 split signals this broadband wage fight is far from over
Verizon lost its bid to change wage classifcations for broadband workers in Pennsylvania, a ruling with real stakes for employers on infrastructure projects.
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania on March 6 upheld a decision requiring employers on publicly funded broadband projects to pay fiber optic cable workers at the electric lineman prevailing wage rate, rather than at the teledata worker rate that Verizon had sought.
The case stems from Pennsylvania's Broadband Infrastructure Program, a statewide initiative launched in 2023 to extend fiber optic networks to unserved and underserved areas of the Commonwealth. The program was funded in part through the COVID-19 American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and required awardees to cover at least 25 percent of project costs. In April 2024, the Broadband Development Authority awarded work on 53 broadband projects to entities across 42 counties, including to Verizon Pennsylvania LLC and Verizon North LLC.
When the Bureau of Labor Law Compliance issued prevailing wage determinations for those projects, it classified the work under the electric lineman category. Verizon objected. The company, along with the Broadband Communications Association of Pennsylvania, argued that the work involved deploying and splicing low-voltage fiber optic cable, tasks they said were better suited to teledata lineman and teledata worker classifications that Verizon wanted the Secretary to...
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