Local Edge workers to become employees
Guild to represent them; no more separate staff selling SEO

The Guild learned Tuesday that employees who have been working for Local Edge and selling ads into the Times Union will become Guild-represented employees.

Two of the employees are being let go by Local Edge, while the other four will join the Times Union officially effective July 1, Human Resources Director Ruth Fantasia told the union. The Company recognized that the Guild would have rights to represent them as part of the bargaining unit.

Local Edge was the successor to the Talking Phone Book. When Hearst got out of the telephone book business, it kept the staff and had its employees sell search engine optimization. While the Guild had always watched closely to be sure that Local Edge’s efforts did not displace any of our positions, outsourcing that would have required negotiation, we are glad these workers will become part of the operation and will welcome them aboard.

What will Obamacare mean for 2014?

Leaders of the Guild, mailers and pressmen’s union met with the Company Tuesday for a preliminary discussion of what the health care changes that take effect in 2014 could mean.

Of most immediate interest is the plan’s stipulation that large employers either provide affordable coverage or pay a penalty. The “affordability” standard is that individual premium rates may not be more than 9.5% of an employee’s total household income. The Company raised a concern that it’s possible a Guild employee could meet that threshold. If an employee did and sought to buy coverage through a state-based health insurance exchange, an employer could face a penalty of $3,000 per employee who receives the federal subsidy.

The health plan administrator, Rowlands and Barranca, said some employers may choose to offer multiple choices so that at least one of them meets the standards.

All of this discussion was interesting but changes may be made before the plan takes effect or its effective dates could be changed. The Guild and other unions appreciated the information presented Tuesday, and the conversations will resume in detail in the fall when more information is known.

Guild members enjoy themselves at the 2013 Guild picnic.

For the past several months, the Guild has been quietly meeting with the Company in the hope of bringing to an end the years of stalled negotiations and to finally get employees the long overdue raises they deserve.

For legal reasons, the talks have remained off the record – which means their contents cannot be disclosed – to avoid the possibility of the Company being able to impose a new set of changes.

On Thursday, it became clear that those talks, despite the Guild’s best efforts, would not yield an acceptable agreement at this time. No further talks are currently scheduled.

Guild President Tim O’Brien was joined in the talks by Treasurer Marianne Mahr, Chief Steward Brian Nearing and International Representative Jim Schaufenbil.

“We have been and continue to be willing to offer flexibility on the issues of out-of-seniority layoffs and outsourcing,” O’Brien said. “We have offered all kinds of compromises. But our members deserve and need a say in such decisions.”

At a time when the Chicago Sun-Times saw fit to lay off every photographer, and when ad sales people are understandably nervous about Local Edge encroaching on sales, it would make no sense to surrender bargaining rights on outsourcing.

Likewise, the Guild was and is willing to offer flexibility in layoffs. We even would be willing to explore the idea of laying off out of seniority in return for enhanced severance for those who would suffer a pension hit. Unfortunately, under the law, if you agree to such a change, the Company could come to the table at the next negotiations, say it wants to keep the ability to lay off whomever it pleases but eliminate the enhanced severance. The Company could then legally impose that change. It cannot legally impose giving itself unfettered rights to lay off anyone without members’ consent now.

“Our members continue to be better off under the imposed conditions,” O’Brien said. “We remain willing to talk whenever the Company is willing to be flexible, and our members remain deserving of raises they have been denied for far too long.”

The Newspaper Guild of Albany is thrilled about the new press that will display our work like never before.

We congratulate the Hearst Corp. for making this major investment at a time when many others are abandoning daily delivery. It shows a real commitment to the future. We took out a congratulatory ad to show our appreciation for this historic investment.

At the same time, the Hearst Corp. has not shown a similar commitment to its employees. Without them, the new press would be printing blank pages.

It has been more than 5 years since Times Union employees have had raises and four years since we have been without a contract. The Guild has met and will continue to meet with the Company to continue to discuss getting our members the raise they have long since deserved.

We welcome Frank Bennack and Steve Swartz today, and we hope the commitment to a new press will also lead to a renewed commitment and investment in the people who helped make the Times Union the 2012 Newspaper of Distinction.

The Guild’s Executive Board will meet at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday in the cafeteria to discuss whether to buy an ad in the special edition the first day the new press operates.

Guild leaders and members can also give their thoughts on what an ad should say.

The union has received strong feedback from members. Some have said we should not buy an ad since we have not received raises in more than five years.

Others have said we should buy an ad as the latest sign we are willing to bargain in good faith — without mentioning the lack of a contract. Still others have argued with equal passion that while we should hail the Company’s terrific investment in a new press, we should also note that the time is overdue for investing in employees too.

After all, it was employees who earned the TU the Newspaper of Distinction Award. Without us and our hard work, the pages would be blank.

Whatever you believe, come to the cafeteria Tuesday to share your views.

Advertising employees are being asked to shoulder extraordinary burdens, prompting the Guild to ask for information about how workers can reasonably be expected to do all that is being asked of them.

Ad sales staff are being told they must make 5 in-person sales calls every day.

“Making a sales call not only requires travel time and time spent making the sales presentation, it also includes time spent researching the client to make an effective presentation, time to complete the paperwork for any ads sold or follow up information requested, as well as time the client may leave the advertising salesperson waiting,” Guild President Tim O’Brien wrote to HR Director Ruth Fantasia.

At the same time, the ad sales staff must spend time selling other products such as SEO, magazines, etc.  They must also provide quality customer service to their current customer base, expand growth potential of their customer base, while their goals are being raised and commissions lowered.

In addition, sales staff must attend a meeting every day, Monday through Thursday.

The Guild has asked for information on every employee who has been put on a performance improvement plan and will seek a meeting with Company leaders once that information is in hand.

“How is a salesperson supposed to manage five sales calls a day 5 days a week every week while meeting these other demands?” O’Brien wrote. “We understand there have been instances where ad sales staff were forced to cancel appointments with customers so they could spend their time booking future appointments. We have serious concerns about the legality of disciplining employees under these circumstances that we wish to discuss with you.”

The union also asked about the policy on managers sending emails and texts to employees, asking what the appropriate and inappropriate times of day are for managers to do so.

The Guild also is seeking information on what work is being done by Local Edge, whose employees are now attending sales training at the Times Union and are identifying themselves as Times Union employees. The manager of Local Edge is now supervising the SEO staff.

“For these reasons, we have concerns that the Local Edge team is now encroaching on Guild jurisdiction,” O’Brien wrote. “Please provide details on what Local Edge is permitted to do.”

If advertising employees have additional concerns they want to raise to the union,
please contact us at office@albanyguild.org or by messaging our Facebook page at Albany Newspaper Guild.

Guild members approved the health care rate for 2013 by a 59-2 margin.

A little more than 120 members are on the company insurance, so the vote represents about half the membership who take company health care. Some colleagues were out sick or off Wednesday and notified the union leadership that they could not make the vote.

The members will pay $43.90 a week, up $6.14 or 16.3 percent, from the current $37.76. The company had originally started with a proposal that called for increasing the weekly payment by more than $9. By questioning the numbers, the union was able to reach an agreement for a lower rate.

The increase will take effect with the pay period that begins Monday, January 21.

The Blue Shield plan will remain unchanged, with the same $750 deductible paid by employees and the same 90/10 split when employees reach the top of the company share of the deductible. (That is $2,000 for a single person, $4,000 in a family plan.)

The Company also agreed to provide a monthly report of how much is paid out in reimbursements and to start the conversation on health care by October 1. Those two steps will help the Guild to prepare earlier for this discussion next fall.