Working Families Mobilize across the U.S. to Hold American Water Company Accountable for Employee Cuts and Consumer Rate Hikes

All this week union and community members are coming together across the nation to spotlight American Water, the largest for-profit water utility in the United States, as it imposes steep consumer rate hikes and demands huge concessions from its employees despite doling out lucrative pay packages to top executives. American Water has pushed for massive hikes in employee premiums for family health insurance, steep increases in out-of-pocket expenses for medical care, and deep cuts in healthcare coverage.

During 2010, American Water boasted net profits of $268 million on $2.7 billion in total revenues. The top seven executives alone at American Water were granted more than $12.5 million in total pay in 2010, including $3.5 million for former CEO Don Correll.

Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, said, "At a time when American Water enjoys substantial profits, it is proposing rate hikes as high as 56 percent on working families. It's shameful that this company is demanding steep concessions and painful cutbacks to consumers and its own employees while pocketing huge amounts of profit for itself."

From coast to coast, working people are standing together on behalf of consumers to demand corporate accountability and shared sacrifice at the top.

A sampling of events include:

• A "Walk on the Boss" petitioning and flyering in Phoenix, Arizona
• A community march and banner drop in Summerville, New Jersey
• A rally and informational leaf-letting in Charleston, West Virginia