Improved Vacation Time
Bargaining Bulletin #6:
It will take fewer years to get more vacation time under a tentative agreement reached by the Albany Newspaper Guild and the Times Union negotiating teams.
Long-time employees will no longer have to wait until their 25th year of employment to get five weeks of vacation. That will kick in after the 14th anniversary. New employees will receive their first two weeks immediately. Three weeks of vacation comes after two years of working and four weeks after nine years.
The vacation agreement was among three contract sections agreed to after bargaining resumed following a month’s hiatus due to vacations and the start of printing of the Hearst Connecticut papers at the Times Union.
Besides the Vacation Section, both sides reached agreements on language in the Overtime Wage Rate and the Guild Shop Sections.
“After 13 years without bargaining on a new contract, we are making steady progress. We have reached agreement on 12 contract sections and have held in-depth discussion on many more,” said Local President Ken Crowe, who has been at the table with Vice President Ty Stewart and Shop Steward Wendy Liberatore.
Extensive discussions have been held on getting more holidays add to the contract, expanding funeral leave, expenses, driving records and cell phones. Both sides have also talked about improving diversity.
The next bargaining sessions have been scheduled for the first and second weeks of August.