Qwest, union reach new tentative agreement

Oct 13 (Reuters) - Phone company Qwest Communications International Inc (Q.N) said it reached a new tentative agreement with a labor union over wages and health care issues, ending the possibility of a planned strike if talks had fallen through.

Qwest and the Communications Workers of America (CWA) reached the new four-year tentative agreement less than two weeks after a previous three-year tentative agreement was rejected, the company said in a statement on Saturday.

The new agreement includes a general wage increase of about 12.6 percent cumulative over the life of the contract, compared with a 9 percent rise that had been offered in the three-year agreement in August, Qwest said.

The new agreement calls for a $75 per month contribution for family coverage and a choice of plan designs, besides also including a 3 percent hike in pension for eligible individuals retiring after Oct 12, this year, the company said.

The ratification vote on the new agreement, covering about 57 percent of Qwest's employees, is expected by the end of the month, the company said.

"This agreement is reasonable and fair in terms of wages and holding back the towering rise in health care expenses," Louise Caddell, vice president of CWA District 7 said. (Reporting by Savio D'Souza in Bangalore; Editing by Kim Coghill)