MAKE TOWERS GREAT AGAIN — In mid-May, Verizon and NATE announced a contractor-focused agreement facilitated by Chairman Brendan Carr, with Verizon pledging to review unsustainable matrix pricing. T-Mobile, however, took a more decisive step by immediately increasing prices by 6% prior to its pricing overhaul. NATE is now likely in talks with AT&T, aiming to secure similar or greater commitments to support contractors and tower technicians and their vital role in delivering a world-class 5G experience, as T-Mobile’s Mike Simpson emphasized.
A new agreement between NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association and T-Mobile, signed on July 8, promises significant improvements for wireless contractors who have been struggling to maintain a semblance of profitability with current take-it-or-leave-it matrix pricing.
T-Mobile’s SVP and Chief Procurement Officer, Mike Simpson, who led T-Mobile’s team in achieving the landmark agreement with NATE, emphasized the carrier’s continued commitment to tower technicians.
Under the framework, T-Mobile will implement site-specific and regionally adjusted pricing, introduce a transparent “Scope to Quote” tool by September 1, and raise construction rates by 6% until a new RFP process is completed.
Contractors will benefit from 30-day payment terms, upfront billing milestones, and relief from third-party platform fees.
The agreement also establishes protections against underqualified labor, limits on multi-tier subcontracting, and initiates the review and possible phasing out of problematic “turf vendor” and “Super GC” models—reforms expected to foster fairer practices and a more sustainable workforce. An outline of the proposed advancements is provided below.
TWO DOWN TO REALITY, ONE TO GO — While T-Mobile and Verizon have teamed up with NATE to tackle unsustainable matrix pricing, AT&T—the carrier that created the model and drove many contractors into distress—remains silent. Contractors like Tilson Technology, which filed for Chapter 11 in May after losing AT&T-backed Gigapower contracts and $20 million in unpaid invoices, are emblematic of the fallout. Others continue to teeter as they wait for AT&T to step up and help stabilize an industry it helped fracture, according to industry observers. The fragility of the wireless contracting ecosystem caused by matrix pricing is driving many firms out of business—and ultimately, the carrier that is most responsive and provides equitable pricing will be the one that succeeds.
“Over the last several months, NATE’s leadership has been engaged in active negotiations with T-Mobile executives focused on addressing a range of issues and reforms that, when implemented, will lead to a more sustainable and healthier environment for the Association’s member contractors and their tower technician workforce,” said NATE President & CEO Todd Schlekeway.
“NATE is excited to announce that these collaborative meetings have led to an agreement that we believe will lead to positive, impactful reforms for our contractor member companies related to pricing, master service agreements, current 3rd party vendors and mandates, potential changes to the ‘Super Contractor’ model, and workforce integrity requirements,” added Schlekeway.
He said the association extends its appreciation to T-Mobile for coming to the table to negotiate an agreement that will foster a stronger relationship and partnership between the association’s contractor members and those who count T-Mobile as a customer.
Schlekeway said, “NATE is ready to roll up our sleeves on the implementation phase of the agreement, which includes establishing the official working group between our respective organizations.”
In a statement, NATE extended the association’s gratitude to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr and his staff for collaborating with both the association and T-Mobile to help their respective organizations reach an agreement.
“This framework agreement between NATE and T-Mobile will be a boost to help jumpstart Chairman Carr’s Build America Agenda,” said Schlekeway.
T-Mobile’s SVP and Chief Procurement Officer Mike Simpson said, “This agreement with NATE underscores T-Mobile’s continued commitment to tower technicians and the important work they do to ensure we can offer our customers a world-leading 5G experience. We thank Chairman Carr for his leadership in support of the wireless industry through his Build America initiative.”
In correspondence to FCC Secretary Marlene Dortch, Simpson wrote, “Many of the companies that employ these critical workers are members of NATE. As a company committed to fostering a strong and sustainable wireless ecosystem, T-Mobile has appreciated discussing various topics related to tower construction and maintenance with NATE over the last several months.”
T-MOBILE AGREEMENT – July 8, 2025
Pricing:
T-Mobile agrees to give vendors the opportunity to include site-specific conditions in its pricing catalogues to allow for free market pricing adjustments related to recent price reductions and cost shifting to the contractor, until the sub-regional RFP process mentioned below can be implemented. T-Mobile’s Scope of Work (SOW) includes a variety of variable and miscellaneous items to reflect different site conditions. This year, T-Mobile launched a new tool called Scope to Quote that allows our vendor partners to “build” the scope of work that they believe is necessary to complete a certain assignment, subject to T-Mobile approval. We commit to rolling out that tool to all vendors by September 1, 2025. T-Mobile commits to appropriate training so that all vendors can realize the maximum benefit from Scope to Quote.
T-Mobile agrees to sub-regional, market-level pricing to reflect cost variation across geographies. In addition, T-Mobile will institute a sub-regional RFP process based on our catalog pricing structure to allow vendors to account for inflation, with further details to be developed in the working group process. T-Mobile will complete the new RFP process by year end 2025 (December 31, 2025). Until the completion of the new RFP process, T-Mobile will increase its construction catalog pricing by 6%.
T-Mobile agrees to make the methodology of its annual pricing review available to NATE members.
Master Service Agreements:
T-Mobile will offer payment terms of 30 days for its field services vendors with a billing milestone of 50% of initial purchase order invoiced at start of construction.
Subject to working through any antitrust concerns, T-Mobile agrees to participate in a working group with NATE members and other vendors to start by September 1, 2025, to discuss changes to the terms and conditions of master service agreements. After completion of the working group on master service agreement terms, T-Mobile agrees to periodically check in with NATE members and other vendors to help determine whether the working group should reconvene in the future.
Third-Party Vendors and Operational Mandates:
T-Mobile agrees to: (i) establish a process to provide a credit for the amount of Avetta, Ariba, and PaymodeX platform fees paid by a small business supplier, unless a free version is offered. As part of the working group discussions, T-Mobile will consider whether direct billing to T-Mobile is a viable option to the crediting described in (i).
Workforce Integrity
Use of undocumented, uncertified or 1099 workers is a violation of T-Mobile’s MSA, and T-Mobile takes action when such violations are discovered. T-Mobile agrees to provide a reporting mechanism when it is suspected that T-Mobile vendors are using undocumented, uncertified, or 1099 workers in violation of T-Mobile’s MSA. Furthermore, starting September 1, 2025, T-Mobile agrees to maintain a process for ensuring that such non-compliant vendors are prohibited from bidding on T-Mobile jobs. We take these issues seriously and will not tolerate vendors who violate our restrictions.
Turf Vendor Models:
Subject to details to be discussed in working group meetings, T-Mobile agrees not to use “turf vendor” models, and it will discuss in working group meetings whether to limit or phase out other “Super General Contractor” models whereby a large company manages a large portion of the project, and the self-performing companies only get the subcontracted portion of the tower deployment/site activity work. Additionally, moving forward, T-Mobile work generally can only be sub-contracted out one tier below the general contractor level, with implementation discussed in working group meetings.
