Fort Worth, Texas ? Thousands of striking SBC Communications workers were to return to work today, as negotiators for the union and company continued talks toward a new contract.

Members of the Communications Workers of America were scheduled to complete a “limited” four-day walkout at 12:01 a.m. today. The strike began early Friday.

During the walkout, SBC and the CWA kept up their meetings at four regional tables. The CWA represents 102,000 U.S. workers at SBC.

Health care costs, wages and job security are the key issues in the dispute, the union said.

The San Antonio-based company released a statement last week holding the union to a contract proposal, which, if not accepted, would prompt the company to begin a new round of negotiations with a clean slate.

Candice Johnson, a CWA spokeswoman, said SBC’s midnight Monday deadline for accepting the proposal was probably moot.

“We have been working nearly ’round the clock over the weekend to try and reach some sort of an agreement,” Johnson said. “We’ve moved beyond the proposal, and my sense is that the bargaining process will just move forward.”

The CWA launched the strike after breaking out of national talks overseen by a federal mediator in Washington. The union said it was frustrated after more than three months of negotiations.

SBC mobilized some 40,000 managers, contract workers and retirees to cover key operations for the striking workers. The strike resulted in longer-than-usual delays for directory assistance and some interruptions of routine residential phone calls.

A severe storm hit parts of Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin over the weekend, causing flooding and damaging phone lines in the region. The severe weather conditions, combined with the strike, forced SBC to bring in more contract workers, SBC spokesman Walt Sharp said.