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51: April/May 2009

After delay, contract bargaining back on
Rally set for 25th anniversary
Guild membership exceeds 70% of newsroom
Clearing up confusion on personal days
News in brief
Some good news came out of vote

After delay, contract bargaining back on

A year after bargaining was supposed to start on the Milwaukee Newspaper Guild’s next contract, we’re at the beginning — for the fourth time.

Much has happened in the past year, including our wrenching decision to accept wage cuts to avoid layoffs. But much work remains to be done before our contract can be ratified and signed.

In April, Guild members voted 86-46 to reduce our own pay by 6.6% through at least early May 2010, in exchange for 10 paid personal days in 2009 and a guarantee that no one in our bargaining unit would be laid off through Sept. 30 of this year. Every element of the agreement — the wage cut, the personal days and the no-layoff guarantee — was unprecedented.

We negotiated that deal under a threat from Journal Sentinel Inc. management to lay off as many as two dozen of our colleagues immediately unless we cut $1.2 million in payroll expenses. The issue went to the membership with no recommendation from either our Bargaining Committee or our Executive Board.

Earlier, our negotiators persuaded the company to offer voluntary buyouts first. Nine of our colleagues agreed to leave, reducing the cost-cutting target to $763,200. That was the third round of buyouts offered to Journal Sentinel newsroom employees in less than two years. With those buyouts and the layoffs of the staff of the now-defunct MKE youth-oriented weekly, our local has lost about 55 of the employees that it represented.

Officially, the talks on the wage-cut agreement were separate from regular bargaining. But because its terms will be incorporated into the next contract — subject to further negotiations — we can consider that to be Phase 3 of bargaining.

Negotiations were to start May 1, 2008, on the contract taking effect Jan. 1 of this year. But because of schedule conflicts, face-to-face talks were postponed until July 8. Meanwhile, company and Guild negotiators worked on reorganizing the contract by incorporating side letters into the main body of the contract.

In July, bargaining started in traditional fashion, with the exchange of proposals followed by talks on noneconomic issues. But it was hardly business as usual. A buyout was under way as talks opened, MKE was closing, and other Journal Sentinel departments were shrinking or being outsourced.

Then in November, as we seemed close to finishing up the non-economic issues, the company called a halt to reassess its bargaining strategy. The hiatus lasted until late April, interrupted by the wage-cut negotiations.

Regular bargaining resumed April 29-30, with the Guild presenting an updated comprehensive proposal that included the tentative agreements to date.

The company offered its proposal for the length of the contract – two years, in contrast to the four years sought by the Guild, the first time management has ever proposed a shorter contract than the union. The management team has said it will unveil its updated comprehensive proposal June 2.

Key issues still ahead:

• Job security: The company wants to cut our compensation for downsizing — now two weeks of severance for each year of service, plus 60 days notice or 60 days pay — to one week of pay for each year and no notice pay except in major layoffs, as governed by federal law. We will fight to keep our current protections.
• Benefits and time off: We want to maintain some guarantees for our health insurance and expand our paid time off. The company wants total control of all benefits and has not yet presented a vacation proposal.
• Wages: Neither side has presented a complete wage proposal. Bargaining sessions are set for June 2-3, June 29-30 and July 7-8.

Rally set for 25th anniversary

The Milwaukee Newspaper Guild is turning 25, and our union leadership thinks that’s a milestone worth marking.

Local 51 was founded on June 1, 1984. Given all the industry turbulence that Journal Sentinel employees are dealing with, our local’s Executive Board decided a party might not be appropriate.

Instead, the Guild is inviting members to a rally at noon on June 1. Jack Norman, who helped found Local 51 and led it through some troubled waters, including the merger, will reflect on the anniversary. President Greg Pearson and Bargaining Chair Larry Sandler will make a few remarks, and we’ll discuss what lies ahead in negotiations.

The rally will be on the second floor of Turner Hall (use the north stairs off the parking lot; the restaurant will be closed). Lunch will be served — and, of course, birthday cake.

Guild membership exceeds 70% of newsroom

Here’s a bright spot amid all of the industry’s gloomy economic news: The membership of Local 51 has grown significantly in the past three months.

We signed up 17 new members, so now membership stands at more than 70% of the newsroom’s post-buyout total.

Although Journal Sentinel Inc.’s pressure on the Guild hasn’t been pleasant, it has helped bring union members together: United we bargain, divided we beg.

Newly signed membership cards started trickling in after Publisher Betsy Brenner raised the specter of furloughs in February.

The company’s demand that we cut pay or face immediate layoffs led more newsroom workers to join, with six cards arriving on the last day to join before the vote. Some people had been mulling the decision for a while; a few were a total surprise.

And another member signed up after the vote, noting that he wouldn’t have joined if the Guild hadn’t voted to protect jobs right now.

Strong membership now is more important than ever: It shows the company that we do represent the whole newsroom, and it gives us more people who can weigh in on bargaining and demonstrate support for the Guild.

Thanks go to everyone for keeping the voterelated dialogue respectful, but especially to webmaster Craig Nickels for setting up the Google discussion board that helped members share their reasoning. (If you still want to join the discussion board, which will continue for bargaining, tell Karen Samelson.)

Thanks, also, to all who helped recruit their co-workers — please keep up the good work.

And yes, individual dues are being reduced to reflect the 6.6% pay cut.

Clearing up confusion on personal days

There have been a number of questions about the 10 personal days we will get in 2009 as part of the pay cut. Here are the basics:

These are paid days off. In a week when you use personal days, you will be paid the same amount as in a week when you work five days.

This arrangement means we cannot collect unemployment, even if we use five personal days in a week. This is one reason the Guild negotiating team pursued unpaid furloughs, a move rejected by Journal Sentinel Inc.

The 10 personal days have to be used in 2009. They will not be rolled over into 2010 or paid out if you should leave the company. This is why you should schedule personal days before vacation days. Vacation days are paid out when you leave.

The personal days are not accrued on an earn-as-you-go basis, as vacation is for some newsroom employees. You got 10 personal days effective May 3. And if you quit the day after you used the last one, you would not have to pay the company back for any of them.

Some employees have expressed concern about being able to use all 10 personal days as well as vacation days. Departments will have to live with less staffing than they have in the past. The 10 personal days are part of the deal for taking the pay cut. If you are getting hassled about scheduling them, let a Guild representative know. Employees who have five weeks of vacation still can bank a fifth week for use at a later time, or to be paid out when you leave.

Whether we will get personal days in 2010 is not yet clear. It likely will be discussed during our ongoing contract negotiations.

News in brief

COBRA subsidy affects recent buyout-takers

In early April, the federal government released a clarification stating that people who take buyouts are eligible for the COBRA subsidy that was part of the economic stimulus package. Under the subsidy, the federal government pays 65% of COBRA costs for nine months.

The timing on this was a bit unfortunate as this information was not available to people before our recent buyout window ended. Both Journal Sentinel Inc. and Guild lawyers had said the subsidy was not available to those taking the buyout, but those opinions changed once the federal clarification was released.

The company has said it will contact anyone from the past two buyouts affected by this change. The subsidy is in place for anyone leaving a company’s payroll after Sept. 1, 2008, so a handful of people who took last summer’s buyout are eligible, as are people who took this spring’s buyout. The Guild also has been in touch with former employees affected by this change to ensure they are aware of their eligibility.

Victories on substitution pay, tuition reimbursement

The Guild went to bat for some employees on two recent issues.

The first was Journal Sentinel Inc.’s announcement this winter that it was ending tuition reimbursement. The Guild immediately filed a request for information to find out who was affected by this change.

That request led to a discussion with Human Resources. Within a couple of days, the company said it would continue tuition reimbursement for those currently enrolled in programs. Because of that change, two Guild members now in school received their reimbursement for the spring 2009 semester.

Since then, the company again has announced it is suspending its tuition reimbursement program. This issue is expected to be a topic in current contract negotiations.

Also, the Guild made a request that members who fill in on the national desk receive substitution pay when running the desk. Substitution pay is $20 per shift.

Our rounds of buyouts have left the national desk with only two full-time employees, requiring employees of the copy desk and design desk to fill in more often on the national desk. Often, a person from one of those desks is running the desk alone on a Sunday.

After some discussion, the company agreed substitution pay should be given in such cases.

Members win Milwaukee Press Club honors

Several Local 51 members were winners in this year’s Milwaukee Press Club competition.

Those winners were:

Joe Koshollek, first place, sports action photograph.

Tom Silverstein, first place, sports story.

Ben Poston, second place, investigative story. Two interns from 2008, Keegan Kyle and Grant Smith, worked with Poston on this story.

As it has in recent years, Local 51 sponsored contest entries for Guild members.

Some good news came out of vote

Greg Pearson

From the president

A pay cut or a cut in jobs.

Now that’s a happy choice.

And it’s not one any us wanted to make, but it was what we faced when we voted April 23.

Even if you supported passage of the proposal, our approval of a 6.6% pay cut brought no joy. The decision we faced is a reflection of a battered industry.

Looking back on the vote, though, I did find some uplifting factors: