July 17, 2009 · 2:29 pm

Bargaining set for Aug. 6-7, important developments

The Indianapolis News Guild has some important new developments to share with you regarding our ongoing effort to craft a final contract that both negotiating teams can accept and that you, our duespayers, can ratify soon.

Acting on the advice of our parent union, TNG-CWA, we proposed to the company that we involve a federal mediator at this stage of the negotiations. Having received no objections from our verbal and written communications about the mediator, we contacted Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Commissioner Conrad Bowling and requested possible meeting dates from him. He offered Aug. 6 and 7 and we have accepted those dates. The company has agreed.

Also, we have filed a charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against the company, based on threats that management made to the Guild in the course of discussions over possible bargaining dates. The company threatened to issue a “last, best and final” proposal if we would not agree to certain bargaining dates. When we informed them that we were unable to agree to the certain specific dates that management was demanding, the company issued that “last, best and final” proposal. This violates labor law on several counts. Bargaining dates must be mutually agreeable and not something that one side dictates to another. In addition, a “last, best and final” proposal is something that is normally given after all attempts at a mutual agreement have been exhausted. It is not supposed to be used as a punitive tool to force the union to meet before it is ready to resume discussions. We believe the company’s actions are premature, punitive, regressive and illegal retaliation for our refusal to be unnecessarily rushed back to the table, as well as retaliation for Guild members daring to reject their previous package offer. We are contemplating additional charges with the NLRB.

The company did this after accusing the Guild in a meeting last Friday of “stalling” after we asked for an extra week to reconstitute our bargaining committee, which was devastated by layoffs of team members Sylvia Halladay and Michelle Watson. Simply put, the company still wants at least a 12 percent pay cut from the Guild-represented employees. See below for more details about what the company is now seeking. We also asked management to provide us with answers to an information request that they have had for many weeks now, and the company told us that their response to our request for information was contingent on our agreeing to their bargaining dates (another violation of labor law). They did eventually provide us with a response but it is lacking in any substantial details.

Star management and Gannett corporate lawyers want people to believe that we are unduly dragging out negotiations. Given the circumstances, we firmly believe we are acting appropriately in seeking the time to fully reconstitute our bargaining committee and seeking more information about the company’s supposed financial needs. We have NEVER refused to bargain; we have not agreed to the company’s timetable as to when the next meetings will take place and as a result, they have resorted to bully tactics. By the way, the company has never given us any explanation why they feel the meetings must take place right away.

Our motto since talks began in January is “Negotiate, don’t dictate” and we have sacrificed our pay through two furloughs and lost valued comrades. Given the economic climate, we believe that Guild members would agree to a wage freeze for two years and might accept some type of pay cut – especially if that cut isn’t permanent, or would improve when Gannett sees ad revenues improve.

But Gannett is claiming economic needs without providing proof, and they have so far failed to provide any relevant information to us regarding their justification for a double-digit percentage pay reduction. Guild President Tom Spalding asked Indy Star Publisher Michael G. Kane for an explanation of the numbers and was rebuffed, as many of you heard.

The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service is an agency of the United States government that handles arbitration and mediation of labor disputes and contract negotiations. We are hopeful that the neutral mediator will be of assistance in reaching understandings that can lead to a finalized tentative agreement that both sides can accept. As we said before, we’re waiting to see if the company will accept the mediator’s invitation to meet.

Further complicating these negotiations is the fact that the company has been sending out mixed messages. They started on April 17, when we were told in a memo: “While Star Media has seen similar economic impact on our local business, we were able to fare better than the company as a whole.” They continued July 16, when Robert J. Dickey told analysts during a Gannett 2nd quarter earnings call: “I would tell you that our interstate group, which is Indianapolis, Midwest portion of the country, right now is our strongest performer.”

Another issue: The copy of the company’s last, best and final contract offer was purported by their side to (except for the wage proposal) to be identical to the tentative agreement previously provided to the Union – the deal that membership rejected 97-9 on June 30. Upon review, however, we find that the proposal is nowhere near identical and in fact we have identified a number of significant differences between this proposal and the previous package that was presented to Guild membership for a vote. This makes us wonder if we have received an incorrect version of their offer or if the company is being disingenuous.

How it shakes out (this is our initial review of their proposal and should not be considered a complete inventory of changes at this time):

  • An immediate 12 percent pay cut for all Guild represented employees, rather than a split 8% and 4% as in the rejected offer.
  • No pay increases for the two-year term of the contract, same as rejected offer.
  • Wage scales remain but no one advances for term of contract, same as rejected offer.
  • It completely eliminates merit pool language; rejected offer kept the merit pool language but the merit pool went dormant. New language would give managers a great deal of discretion regarding future merit pay increases.
  • Seniority language related to layoffs is much worse than the rejected offer.
  • Same 10 jobs lose OT.
  • More Guild positions become exempted than in rejected agreement.
  • Still allows paraprofessionals to write stories.
  • Still adds “custom publications” to management rights section.
  • Still adds “flexibility” language that leaves advertorial/editorial decisions to sole discretion of publisher and now does not include any exclusions of any classifications; rejected agreement excepted reporters, copy editors and photographers from advertorial work.

Changes from current contract there were not in rejected offer:

  • Outsourcing language has been put back in the offer; this was not in the rejected contract offer.
  • It eliminates the language that outlined how previous experience was used to figure out where new employees would start on the pay scale.
  • Adds a clause to sentence on poor review not being reason to reduce pay that says, “unless the Employer determines that a consistently poor performance rating in a current job classification merits a job transfer to a lower classification in lieu of termination.”
  • Employees who are removed from their positions by the company may move into lower paying jobs but only with Employer approval; current contract left decision to leave position for lower paying job to the employee.
  • Changes notification time of permanent change in work day (8 to 10 hours or 10 to 8 hours) to two weeks; current contract calls for 30 days notice.
  • Eliminates daily overtime.
  • Call backs guaranteed 3 hours of straight time minimum; current contract calls for 3 hours of OT minimum.
  • Allows scheduling of split days off for reporters based on requirements of beat.

View a PDF copy of the company’s contract proposal

And finally, it is uncertain whether the company is still demanding that the Guild drop our current arbitration on the December layoffs.

We’ll continue to fight on your behalf.

We are planning an internal survey to reassess what our members can live with.

Sincerely,
Tom Spalding
President, Indianapolis Newspaper Guild

In consultation with our International

Leave a comment

Filed under 2009 Contract Negotiations, Grievances/Arbitration, Layoffs/Buyouts

July 15, 2009 · 2:09 pm

Employee meetings with publisher Michael Kane

We are asking all members to show their support for the Guild during contract negotiations by going as a group to Thursday’s employee meetings with publisher Michael Kane. If possible, we would like all members to attend the 4 p.m. meeting. That is when day and night shift members along with building services personnel all will be in the building. Wear your Guild lanyards, your Guild hats, or something red to show your support.

We will begin assembling at 3:55 p.m. at Guild president Tom Spalding’s desk in the business department. For those coming from the zones, the business department is on the second floor of the Star building and to the right past the mailboxes as you exit the employee entrance elevators. At 4 p.m. we will all take the stairs down to the meeting room in the basement, file in and sit together as a group.

The Guild officers and stewards understand that, for whatever reason, we have members who have not felt comfortable showing their support for the Guild by wearing lanyards or displaying signs on their desks in the newsroom. But after seven months of contract negotiations in which the company has refused to negotate and has presented progressively worse proposals at the bargaining table, after two weeks of unpaid furloughs, after three rounds of layoffs in less than a year in which the company disregarded the seniority provisions of our contract, there comes a time when you have to show the company which side you are on. This is one of those times.

The Guild will be compiling questions for the Q&A session that will follow Kane’s presentation. If you have a question you would like asked, send it to the Guild in a response to this e-mail.

Finally, the Guild executive committee has appointed steward Adam Yates to temporarily fill in as the Guild secretary in place of Sylvia Halladay, who was one of the employees laid off July 8 and 9. We are seeking volunteers to fill the remainder of her term, which expires in July 2010. If you are interested, or would like to become involved as a Guild steward, contact Tom Spalding or any officer or steward.

Leave a comment

Filed under Events/Meetings

July 10, 2009 · 1:44 pm

Aftermath of layoffs

We lost 14 Guild members over a 2-day period, and almost all of them were duespayers. On Friday we will begin the process of making sure those names are removed from the payroll deduction list. Guild officers also have begun to dissect the layoff list to check it against seniority guidelines as outlined by our contract, and to ensure that severance is paid out without any tricks or traps.

I want to personally express my condolences to those who were terminated. Some, I got to say goodbye to over the phone or in person today. Others, I did not. Those who are “left behind” are at a loss to come to grips with the unnecessary cuts and at the same time are skeptical of our own future. No matter what excellence we produce journalistically, anyone’s number could come up the next time corporate wants to slash payroll.

I also want to again publicly express my dismay that James Keough, VP of HR, on this day of all days, asked me this afternoon when the Guild was ready to resume negotiations. I told him we are in a state of shock; our contract bargaining team took a hit. We lost news researcher Sylvia Halladay, who was a devoted, dutiful, irreplaceable record-keeper whose meticulous notes kept management accountable for over five years. Her attention to detail made her an absolutely top-notch Guild secretary. She was also a vital secretary on the contract negotiation team, and we cannot continue until we find a replacement. Holding an election fror Syl’s replacement will be an even more burdensome task as we lost Renee Petrina, an up-and-coming Guild member who co-coordinated our June 30 contract vote so ably; and Michelle Watson, a steward, was the E-inkling and print Inkling copy editor and yet another wise hand who attended EVERY bargaining session during contract talks and was committed to making the Star a great workplace.

We’ll have more in coming days as we try to make adjustments. Wishing everybody the best —

Tom Spalding
Guild president

Leave a comment

Filed under Layoffs/Buyouts

July 8, 2009 · 9:24 pm

Latest layoffs expected to start

Based on an e-mail all of us Gannett properties received last week, we expect some bad news to strike the newsroom by Thursday, with the possibility (based on reports on various blogs) that some employees could receive word of a layoff as early as this evening. Your Guild has tried to become part of the process, including requesting that the actual number of layoffs be reduced by requesting that the Indy Star “count” staffers who had already planned to exit. We also asked for details in advance, but were told that we will have to ferret that information out on our own. We intend to do precisely that, and you can help by letting us know what you hear.

Also, this afternoon Guild president Tom Spalding sent the following letter to Indy Star VP/human resources James Keough:

This is an information request filed on behalf of the members of the Indianapolis News Guild Local 34070. We are seeking the following information as soon as possible:

  1. The names and titles of all Guild-covered employees whose jobs are being terminated by July 9, 2009 as part of the layoffs announced last week by Bob Dickey. You are welcome to provide those to us at this e-mail address, individually, or to me by cell phone (340-7836) after each of the affected workers is notified.
  2. The approximate total amount of savings that these cuts of Guild members will generate.
  3. The manner in which the company intends to pay out severance. To remind you, our contract calls for one week of pay for each year of seniority in the event of layoff. New Gannett spokeswoman Robin Pence confirmed to Gannettoid in an e-mail that the company has hired Total Management Solutions to handle severance payments for this round of layoffs.

Like before, when the dust settles the Guild intends to be heavily involved — both in ensuring seniority is followed but also staying in immediate contact with our coworkers who are let go. Guild officers plan to meet Thursday afternoon to discuss if there’s a way to mitigate the damage.

Meanwhile, we know many of you have angst, and we sought to quantify that angst. Consider these ugly statistics:

  • Aug. 15, 2008: The first official company announcement of layoffs. Layoff day occurred Aug 19.
  • Oct. 28, 2008: Another announcement of layoffs. Layoff day occurred Dec. 3, about five weeks later.
  • Jan. & Apr. 2009: Furlough votes for 1Q and 2Q respectively. We were threatened with layoffs if we didn’t agree to the unpaid furloughs.
  • Beginning of June, 2009: July layoffs were leaked on Gannett Blog. That’s about five weeks from when they are to actually occur.

So, there have been about 11 weeks total within the past 42 weeks that we’ve been in the middle of being threatened with being laid off. That’s 1/4th of the time. That’s a significant percentage of the past several months that we’ve been right in the middle of being threatened with being laid off. That’s not a good thing.

From a guild perspective, we’re at a historically bad moment right now — a voted-down contract June 30 and a company that has threatened 15% pay cuts if negotiations go to impasse, with layoffs going on at the same time. Really, it’s a crisis on several fronts. Guild membership, however, is at a historically high level – the highest percentage in the past five years, possibly one of the highest percentages in the past 20 years, and quite a few people have been very active with the union. We have a healthy guild in extraordinarily unhealthy times. This guild would have had a harder time weathering this storm several years ago. We thank you for your solidarity.

Leave a comment

Filed under Layoffs/Buyouts

July 2, 2009 · 7:10 pm

Gannett seeks to delay arbitration hearing

Gannett has contacted the representative from the international Newspaper Guild who will present our case in the arbitration for seven employees laid off in December, seeking to postpone the hearing set for July 28. The lawyer for Gannett contacted our representative the morning after our membership voted 97-9 to reject the company’s contract offer and its demand that the Guild drop the arbitration. The lawyer for Gannett said he needs more time to prepare.

The Guild officers instructed our representative to stenuously oppose this postponement. Our position is the company has known for six months this arbitration was coming and that is more than enough time to prepare. We asked him to stress to the arbitrator that we are representing seven employees who were improperly laid off seven months ago, creating a severe financial hardship for all of them. We are prepared and ready to proceed July 28.

Our representative informed us he expects the arbitrator to grant a reasonable postponement regardless of the Guild’s opposition. At this point, we await the arbitrator’s decision.

Leave a comment

Filed under Grievances/Arbitration