Guild members are asking many questions about the company’s proposal and what would happen if we vote it down and an impasse is declared. We will be providing you with detailed answers next week as well as a complete response to the publisher’s latest email.We are also discussing whether it would be helpful to have a membership meeting in advance of the vote so that people could get their questions answered.

We do want to make a couple of quick responses to what George has said today. First, it is absolutely true that no other newspaper union has been asked to give up all protections against outsourcing, not even in San Francisco. It is also true – and George does not rebut this – that no other union in the plant has been asked to surrender seniority and allow any of their jobs to be outsourced.

George also states that the launch of magazines has created new jobs here.  The only new jobs created were two exempt positions. When the union filed a grievance, the company moved one existing employee into a part time position. All of the magazines are entirely written by freelance writers.

George also states, regarding outsourcing, “that certain areas would be more efficiently handled elsewhere.” The company has refused to provide us any information on what jobs or how many would be handled elsewhere and it has set absolutely no limits on the number of positions it could outsource. Again, no other union in the plant has been asked to agree to such language.

Next week, we intend to get all of you a copy of all of the language being proposed so you can review it all for yourselves.

Dear colleagues:

I want to share with you an important fact I learned this week. We all know about the turmoil in the newspaper industry across the country, and we know it has had an impact at the Times Union. But at no other unionized newspaper in America is the ownership demanding workers give up any and all protections against outsourcing.

Let me repeat that: At no other unionized newspaper in America are workers being asked to let the Company lay them off and outsource their jobs.

Last night, Channel 10 news quoted Publisher George Hearst as saying the other unions in the plant had agreed to similar contracts. The other unions agreed to money-saving concessions, as we have offered to do, but no other union in the plant agreed to give up all seniority protections and no other union in the plant has agreed to give the company the power to outsource any and all jobs. Not one.

The bottom line: What the Company is demanding from you is unprecedented nationally and at the Times Union. That’s a fact you won’t be reading in one of George Hearst’s Friday evening e-mails.

In Brockton, Mass., when the Company there gained some ability to outsource work, it eliminated all the district manager’s jobs. All of them. Here at the Times Union, you could ask a driver about the exception made that allowed their jobs to be outsourced. The only problem is: You won’t be able to find one. All their jobs were outsourced. All of them.

This is why we have launched an unprecedented public education campaign with considerable assistance from the CWA. And the response is tremendous. Every day, we are getting calls offering assistance. If you look at the City Brights page at timesunion.com, you’ll see many community leaders speaking out on our behalf.

On Sunday, June 14, we will vote on the Company’s proposal. You must be present to vote. There are no absentee ballots. The reason is simple: We need to talk. We need to listen. You need to hear what your colleagues have to say. We know some of you may have other plans. Change them. (Trust me, my family knows all about sudden changes of plans caused by the situation we face.) If you’re working, we’ve asked the Company to allow you to come and participate.

This battle will not be won by the bargaining committee or the mobilizing committee. It will require each of us to be as active as possible, to be as outspoken as possible. If you’re concerned about your job being subject to outsourcing, as many of you have told me you are, then please go share your concerns with someone who works in an area who thinks they are ‘safe.’  (In reality, none of us would be safe.)

We are all in this together, and the community is behind us. If we stay together, there is nothing to fear.

Thank you. See you June 14.

Tim

Chicago-area publisher believes in showing the numbers to all staffers

Three Four Five more contributors to the City Brights blog are showing their support for the Newspaper Guild.

Albany County Comptroller Mike Conners won’t stop blogging but says he’ll use the space to tell about his family’s experiences with the Guild. Conners’ first post in support of the Guild can be read here and you can see the letter he sent to Publisher George Hearst here.

“What you are doing to the union will backfire economically on your family’s proud traditions and enormous wealth,” Conners wrote to Hearst.  “Please reconsider the path you are upon for it bodes poorly for our local economy and your paper’s future.”

UPDATE: Common Council President Shawn Morris, a Democratic candidate for mayor in Albany, just joined the ranks of the bloggers speaking up in support. You can read her comment here.

Mark Mishler, president of the Albany City Council PTA, told his readers why he won’t be blogging until a fair contract is reached here.

Teacher Valarie Karas also let everyone know that she is standing by our union. You can read what she has to say here.

And Mitch Messmore, founder of Art Night Schenectady, weighs in here.

Those four five join Albany Common Council member Corey Ellis, who is also running for mayor in Albany, in supporting the Guild.

Albany Common Council member Corey Ellis, a Democratic candidate for mayor, is taking a stand in support of members of the Newspaper Guild.

Visitors to his blog on timesunion.com found a message explaining that he will be taking a hiatus from posting until a fair contract is reached. The Guild is very grateful for this show of support. Ellis was also among the council members who sponsored and approved a resolution in support of the Guild.

Troy Mayor Harry Tutunjian, a Republican, turned down an offer that he join the bloggers under the TU’s City Brights. He too said he could not do so while the Company is mistreating the Guild.

The support in the community is building every day, and we appreciate all of it.

Here’s a local blogger who explained why he is not commenting on Capital Confidential any more. We hear from more and more members of the community who support the Guild and are letting their voices be heard, even if it’s not on the TU site.