|
|
|
Newspaper union decries 'poison pill' attack on seniority
Inquirer and Daily News reporters push back against owners' proposal to undermine seniority.
Newspaper union decries 'poison pill' attack on seniority
Follow on Twitter @DanielDenvir
[updated]
Negotations between the union representing Inquirer and Daily News reporters and the owners of Interstate General Media have gotten nasty pretty fast: the union, in an email to members, accuses management of demanding a "poison pill" that would undermine seniority, even after the union had proposed what they describe as significant financial concessions via a buyout package.
That "poison pill" is, according to the union, a proposed performance review that the union likely sees as a means for the company to dismiss reporters they don't like — including, perhaps, many older ones.
"The employer has asked for the right in the event of a layoff, they could lay-off out of seniority which our current contract does not allow, and is fucking insulting, and not going to fly," says Guild Executive Director Bill Ross.
Last October, Inquirer Editor Bill Marimow reassigned veteran reporters to often less-desirable beats in what was perceived by many to be a measure to push some older reporters to take a buyout.
It was just two weeks ago that the Newspaper Guild agreed to reopen its contract months before it was set to expire, yielding to alleged management threats to "liquidate" the paper [just after City Paper published "New owners bring fear and confusion to Philadelphia’s dailies," 1/17/13]. Already, a contract with the Teamsters has been approved, imposing cutbacks but operating under the assumption that the publications will remain daily for the next two years.
Here's the union email. IGM declined to comment.
**
From: Guild Bulletin []
Sent: Fri 1/25/2013 7:47 PM
Subject: We Thought This Was About Money
A daylong effort by the Guild to help the company reach its economic
goal blew up at 5 p.m. Friday when negotiators from IGM made a proposal
to undermine seniority.

 The Guild had offered concessions to reach the company's targeted
 savings, a key element of which was a buyout package. The company then 
stunned Guild negotiators by tying that buyout package to their 
seniority "poison pill" disguised as a performance review.

 The Guild saw no reason to meet over the weekend and bargaining will
resume Monday morning.
In solidarity,
The Guild Bargaining Committee
Bill Ross
 Executive Director
 TNG-CWA
- ActiVman
- adventures
- Arts
- Ask A Man-About-Town
- Award Tour
- Awards
- Bad Idea Factory
- Beer
- Below the Curve
- Bikes
- Booze
- Brian Hickey
- BRT
- Budget
- Budget Fuss
- Business
- Casinos
- City Council
- City Hall
- CouncilMANIC
- CP Abroad
- CP in the Community
- Criminal Justice System
- Day Tripper
- Death and Taxes
- Delaware River
- Design
- DROP
- Drugs
- Dubious Distinction
- Elections
- End of Days
- Environment
- Fashion
- Film Fest
- Financial Meltdown
- FrackTrack
- Free Library
- Gambling
- Gay Stuff
- Get Lit
- Greenstorming
- guns
- Hall Monitor
- Health
- Health Care
- Hello, Kitty
- Holidays
- Ice Cubes
- Iggles
- Immigration
- In Memoriam
- Labor
- Lawsuits
- Letters
- LGBTQ
- Maps
- Marcellus Shale
- Media
- MMA
- Mummers
- Music
- MUST READ
- Mysterious Mysteries
- Nation
- News
- Non Sequitur
- Opinion
- PA politics 2010
- Parking Wars
- Parks and Recreation
- People Send Us This Stuff
- Philadelphia Police
- Philadelphia Union
- Philaphemera
- Philly From Scratch
- philly madness
- Photos
- Poverty
- PPA
- President Obama
- Print Edition
- Prisons
- Protest
- Readers Write
- Real Estate
- Rock Bottom
- Schools
- Science
- Screwing Philly
- SEPTA
- snow
- So Lush
- Soccer
- Sporting Life
- Sports Complex
- State Politicians
- State Politics
- Street Art
- Strike
- Stuff We Like
- Taxes
- Taxi Drivers
- Tech Fetish
- television
- The Budget Crisis
- The City Paper
- The CLOG
- The Human Condition
- The Mayor
- The Phightin Phils
- The World
- Things that make you go hm
- Tinfoil Hats Off
- Under the Table
- Under the Tables
- Urban Development
- Urban Planning
- urban wildlife
- Video Poker
- We Call Shenanigans
- Weather
- Web Junk
- Weekend Omnibus
- White House
- What We've Found
- Women's Issues
- Flyered Up!
- How 'Bout That Weather?
- it's always sunny in philadelphia
- Stu!
- Shopping
- get out
- 10-track mind
- ArtsFlash
- Bloggity
- Bruce Being Bruce
- Colleges
- Comedy
- Gigantic Surprises
- Hello Canary
- Hello Puppy
- errata
- get lost
- Inside The Fishbowl
- Library Closings
- Local Support
- Movies
- Murder
- Night Moves
- Recycling
- radio
- Scientology
- Sex
- Sixers
- Skeeze Police
- State Politicians Screwing Philly
- That's a cool stencil!
- Theater
- Things We See
- This Week
- This Week in Oates
- University City
- WIN
- What we don't heart
- trailer!
- what we heart
- Feeling Guilty
- Askadelphia.
- Broke in Philly
- Contest
- Dance
- Dear Paper Doll
- Do A Good Thing
- Education
- Film Fest Schism
- G20-20 Vision
- Goodbye
- Gossip
- Great American Heroes
- PATCO
- Pearl Jam Week
- Puppy
- Stars of the Photostream
- sustainability
- Lower Merion Webcam-Gate
- The Cycle
- Equality Forum
- Bureaucrat of the Week
- Animals
- ElectionEar
- Photostream
