Monthly Archives: November 2007

Taking our message public

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On Friday, about 12 Guild members passed out 600 leaflets at the Schuster Center to concert-goers on their way in to a performance of Mama Mia. The show was sponsored by Miami Valley Brides, a Dayton Daily News publication.

The leaflet, very simply, went over the remaining issues on which the company has refused to move in any meaningful way.

We’re telling the community what we’re doing at the bargaining table — fighting for fairness at the Dayton Daily News. We’re simply suggesting the people of Dayton ask themselves, what’s wrong with this picture?

–Wage freezes: The company has proposed capping the base wages of up to one in three editorial workers despite strong profitability.

–Kangaroo court: The Dayton Daily News insists on disputes resolution without an impartial judge. The company should have nothing to fear from traditional arbitration if managers play fair with their workers.

–Phantom health care: Hardworking part-timers are going without affordable coverage, putting their lives — and the lives of their families — at risk.

–Benefits raiding: The Dayton Daily News is seeking drastic reductions in personal and sick time.

–”Green” with hypocrisy: The cost for the comany’s celebrated “Go Green” push has been foisted on its workers.

–It’s about time: The Dayton Daily News has spent 20 years stonewalling workers who want a fair deal. It’s time for fair contract.

Until the company begins to have meaningful conversation with our bargaining team over these crucial issues, expect to see us leafleting more Dayton Daily News sponsored events and other community activities.

DNG’s story an international inspiration

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You know, here in Dayton sometimes things can seem a little frustrating. After all, it’s been 21 years since our last contract and our latest bargaining effort, while making progress, has taken the better part of a year and we’ve still not completed the deal. And now the company’s stubbornness has forced us to step up mobilizing to a new level.

But if you’re tempted to feel a bit down about things, let us lift your spirits. The great news is we are not alone. Not only do we have friends across the continent who are ready to rally around us, they’ve actively begun to pledge their time, their own sweat and even their money toward our fight for fairness here in Dayton.

Why? Because to many of our brothers and sisters in the International Newspaper Guild and the Communication Workers of America, it’s OUR story that inspires THEM!

This past weekend, Dayton Newspaper Guild President Lou Grieco and Vice President Amelia Robinson spent three days in Chicago for the a joint meeting of regional councils of the International Guild. With five of the six regional councils in attendance, this meeting brought together Guild leaders ranging from Canada in the north to Puerto Rico in the south and from Denver in the west to Boston in the east.

Lou and Amelia’s report on Dayton was one of the big hits of the meeting, bringing loud cheers as they described how our local Guild weathered dark days and tough company tactics for two decades, only to rise to today’s striking show of strength — close to 85 percent active membership and about 90 percent of our next contract tentatively settled.

They loved ideas like “Guild Bingo” and scoffed at the company’s “Kangaroo Court” arbitration proposal. Other Guild leaders thanked Lou and Amelia for their inspiring presentation and asked for specific ideas and advice. In short, the Dayton Newspaper Guild is rapidly gaining an international reputation for innovation.

But the good feelings didn’t stop there.

When our regional council — made up of Guild locals in the Great Lakes states — met, they took an unexpected and deeply appreciated vote. Without Lou or Amelia even asking, the Great Lakes Council approved a $500 contribution toward our mobilizing efforts.

Our newspaper union network will be even more important as we move ahead with serious mobilizing. Besides money, we’ve got close friends nearby who have run very effective mobilizing campaigns of their own and who have already promised to aide our efforts. They’ve even offered to come to Dayton to help!

On an even bigger scale, we are fortunate to be connected to the CWA, which offers grants and significant financial assistance for mobilizing and legal aid. Already, we’ve begun the process of tapping those resources.

So remember, as we go forward and the work of mobilizing gets harder, that our friends are ready to help.

A glimmer of hope on part-time health care

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One of our greatest frustrations in bargaining so far has been part-time health care. This is one issue the Guild and the company have worked very hard on. We very much want our part-timers to have quality, affordable health care coverage so they can be worry-free at work, not fretting that a freak illness or accident could devastate them or their families. But both sides recognize the high cost of health care is a huge challenge.

Well, last weekend at the International Newspaper Guild’s multi-council meeting in Chicago we saw a glimmer of hope on part-time health care.

We got a lead on an IUE-administered insurance program that other CWA unions are using to provide options to their members. As you know, both IUE and the Newspaper Guild are part of CWA, so we could be eligible. Apparently, the program offers cheaper insurance, since, unlike most HMOs, it is not trying to make a large profit. Some locals are reporting that the savings are so great that during negotiations, companies are not only willing to move their employees to this program, they are asking to insure their managers as well.

We’re in the process of evaluating whether the IUE plan could be an option for our part-timers. This is the sort of creative new idea we’ve been hoping to find, since the company so far has been unwilling to either allow part-timers into its affordable Aetna plan or to make its expensive HMO affordable, effectively leaving nearly all our part-timers without health insurance. In fact, the HMO gets more expensive every year, moving out of reach for more and more part-timers.

Stay tuned while we evaluate the IUE plan to see if it is a viable option for our members.

Some other notes from Chicago:

–On a sad note, the leaders from the Cincinnati Guild gave their final report. The end of the Cincinnati Post also marks the end of the union, and many people teared up during an emotional presentation by its officers. We have offered to help those displaced workers any way we can.

–Aside from the local reports, much of the time was spent on politics.

As some of you may know, the International’s Secretary-Treasurer Bernie Lunzer is challenging incumbent President Linda Foley. Both have two running mates: Lunzer is running with Secretary-Treasurer candidate Carol Rothman, who is from the Philadelphia local, and International Chair candidate Connie Knox, who is from Washington-Baltimore. Foley is running with Scott Stephens, from Cleveland, and Lois Kirkup, from Ottawa.

Dayton Newspaper Guild Vice President Amelia Robinson and President Lou Grieco spent time with all six candidates. Bernie and Linda are already familiar with our struggle. Both came to the GLDC meeting we hosted last year, and both said they are getting regular reports from International Rep Jay Schmitz, who is on our bargaining team.

Amelia and Lou also had dinner with some members of the Toledo Newspaper Guild, including President Lillian Covarrubias, who is a candidate for Region 3 Vice President.

This kind of face time is important. Guild officers learn from each other’s tactics and compare notes about companies’ proposals and policies. Plus, locals can start to work together. DNG is already planning events with officers from Toledo and Akron, who want to help us obtain a fair contract.

Keeping plugged in with the international is critical for our success. We have a mighty giant in our corner, offering us the chance to apply for more money for mobilization and legal services. You can see why the company prefers independent unions, and why company officials were so angry when we joined up with the Guild 21 years ago.

… and “contract” was it’s name-o!

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Ready to have a little fun, maybe win a prize and send the company a message that its editorial workers demand a fair contract?

If so, take your meal break in the cafeteria at noon or 7 p.m. Friday.

Wear your red and be ready to shout “Guild” when your chips line up! We hope everyone will come and play along. Invite your friends in management or other departments to get in the game, too.

Our version of “contract bingo” is open to everyone and there WILL be valuable prizes!

DO give to the United Way, but do it through the Guild

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The Dayton Newspaper Guild is asking its members to donate to the United Way campaign through the Guild this year and NOT through the company.

We support the United Way very strongly, but we CANNOT, in good faith, support a fundraising campaign led by a company that has demonstrated a desire to financially wound its employees.

We CANNOT support the efforts of a company that is attempting to deny us universally accepted contractural protections.

We CANNOT support the fundraising efforts of a company whose actions undermine the United Way’s mission of building a stronger greater Dayton area and helping the hopes and dreams of area residents come true.

We have contacted the United Way and come up with a plan to keep our contributions flowing in an effort led by the Guild. Plese read carefully and follow these directions:

–You should have two forms in your mailbox for the United Way campaign — one from the Guild and one from the company.

–Look carefully at the forms. Stop your contribution through the company by writing “0″ in the “My Contribution” field on the COMPANY form and return it to Patty Marcano.

–On the GUILD’s form, place your desired contribution amount in that field and return the form to Stephanie Gottschilch, the Shock and Awe squad captain.

–We believe there may be a way to contribute weekly by automatic payment to the United Way in a method similar to payroll deduction. We are exploring that option. But the easiest way to get this done right now is to make a one-time cash gift to the united way by check.

–You may also mail your form directly to the United Way at 184 Salem Ave., Dayton, Ohio, 45406.

We cannot emphasize enough that we DO NOT want to harm the United Way’s fund-raising effort. If you follow these steps, your actions will have NO ILL EFFECT on the United Way.

Don’t let a company that wants to treat you unfairly take credit for your hard-earned money and generosity.

Mobilizing kicks into high gear

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Our patience has run thin.

While negotiations with the company continue and progress is being made on some fronts, the company’s consistent resistence to move off its unworkable positions on other issues has convinced the Guild’s leadership that holding back on mobilization is no longer a sensible position.

So we’re moving forward. Expect to be hearing much more from us in the coming days and weeks about our efforts to communicate through new avenues our concerns about the company’s positions.

Specifically, this is why its time to mobilize:

–Wage freezes: The company has continued to push for a wage plan that caps the pay for up to one in three editorial workers despite Cox’s strong profitability

–Kangaroo court: The company has insisted on a first-of-its-kind arbitration provision unlike anything the International Newspaper Guild has ever seen. It requres dispute resolution through a process that is rigged to favor the company and makes our contract unenforcable.

–Phantom health care: Our hardworking part-timers deserve affordable coverage so they can work and live without fear that a sudden illness or injury could devastate them or their families.

–Benefits raiding: The company, so far, expects us to accept dramatic reductions in personal and sick time without any consideration for our real concerns that their system creates bad incentives that harm editorial workers and inhibit newsroom efficiency.

–Protections stripped: If the company has its way, some of our most loyal, high achieving and longest tenured workers would be left without contract rights that should apply to all of us.

–”Green” and mean: The hypocrisy of the company’s “pro-environment” talk while forcing employees to bear the burden and expense of increased company travel under a plan that puts more cars on the road — and more pollutants in the air — is truly appalling.

We will need many people to pitch in and help with our mobilzing efforts. Expect to be hearing from our mobilizing captains about roles you can plan in this contract push.