news

  • Agreement reached on company cell phone stipend policy

    April 20, 2018 /
    In response to a new company mobile phone stipend policy, members of the Newspaper  Guild met this week with company representatives to discuss concerns over what appeared to be company access to the personal phones of our members, up to and including the potential review and deletion of any and all data if the company felt any company email on the phone had been compromised.
    Accordingly, the policy no longer contains any requirement that our members install any company app that can provide access to the phone and its contents.
    Our members will be required to report to the company upon learning their phone is lost or stolen, which then affords the company the ability to act to protect that email account, most likely by changing the internal email password to prevent unauthorized access.
    Due to the imminent upcoming payroll accounting software upgrade, the stipend agreement forms that some of you may have already signed that contain this now-inoperative language will be allowed to stand, although a revised agreement form reflecting this change will become available shortly. Anyone who has already signed a form can later sign and submit an updated form to Human Resources.
    The requirement that workers must respond to calls from supervisors during working hours is tempered by HR acknowledgement of special circumstances (such as courthouse rules, or lack of service). However, a pattern of non-response could be raised by the company as a disciplinary item, and the Guild would be able to investigate the specifics of any such claims.
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  • 2018 Health Insurance Update

    November 29, 2017 /

    The news for the 2018 health insurance coverage is a mix of good and bad. First, the good: The company’s health insurance consultant, the local firm of Brown and Brown, was able to negotiate a 4.9 percent premium increase from our current provider, MVP. There will be no need to change health care providers.

    Given the current uncertainty in the health care market, due to the current political outlook on potential changes in the federal Affordable Care Act, a premium increase in the low single digits was very favorable.

    Now, for the bad news. As you know, the Guild has long maintained a so-called “composite” health care rate, in which separate rates for single (one person), double (two people) and family (parents with children) coverage are blended in a single rate that applies to all members. Guild policy has been to use a blended rate so that all members are treated equally, with risks and benefits shared, regardless of family status.

    Unfortunately, an increasing proportion of highest-rate family members covered in the Guild plan, which is being driven by a steep decline in the number of single members, has resulted in a larger percentage increase in this blended rate.

    Accordingly, the total MVP monthly blended rate will increase from $958.97 to $1,054.98, an increase of 10 percent.

    There is also going to be a premium increase in the dental insurance component, driven by claims filed for dental coverage in 2017. However, that increase is being mitigated by a change in the dental insurance carrier, from Cigna to Guardian.

    The current Cigna rate is $50.77 a month, while the new Guardian rate will be $63.53 a month. Remaining with Cigna would have resulted in a monthly rate of $82.60.

    Use this search tool to find dentists who accept Guardian coverage in the Capital Region: https://www.guardiananytime.com/fpapp/FPWeb/dentalSearch.processNews about your

    Accordingly, the new MVP rate, combined with the Guardian rate, will result in a total monthly premium increase from $1,185.82 in 2017 to $1,294.59 in 2018.

    As has been the case since 2008, the Guild contract requires our members to cover 23 percent of this cost. So, the current weekly deduction will be increasing from $62.95 to $68.71, an increase of slightly more than 9 percent. Over the course of the year, that will be an extra $300 per employee.

    Current individual deductible levels of $2,000, with the employee being responsible for the first $750, remain unchanged. Prescription out-of-pocket will also remain unchanged from current levels of $10/$30/$50.

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  • Guild Annual Membership Meeting and Vote on Proposed Bylaw Changes

    October 5, 2017 /

    The Newspaper Guild of Albany will hold its annual meeting at 12:30 p.m. Tuedsay, October 17, at the Colonie Public Library. There will also be votes on two proposed bylaw changes.

    Amendment 1: Amendment Notification Requirements
    Currently, any change to the bylaws requires all members to receive notice by mail at least 30 days’ prior to a vote of the exact language to be changed. We had sought an opinion from the international on whether we could send out postcards informing members of the vote and refer them online to the wording of the question. (We would provide written copies to anyone who did not have Internet access.) Ironically, we were told doing so would require an amendment of the bylaws. Therefore this amendment remedies that situation. The exact language changes are shown below.

    Amendment 2: Officer Title Changes
    This amendment would save the Guild money on workers’ compensation costs by merely changing the titles of two of the vice presidents to board member at large. The exact language changes are on the reverse of this flyer.

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  • What kind of contract do YOU want to see?

    August 7, 2017 /

    As part of renewed efforts to negotiate a potential new contract and end the wage freeze, which just marked its tenth year, the Guild wants to know what you think.

    This short survey asks members asks members what kind of issues would be most important to them in a new contract. The survey also optionally asks to provide an email point of contact, which would be used to advise members of news and events as the Guild ramps up its social activity.

    CLICK HERE to fill out our survey

    Please take the time to complete the survey. It will help provide the Guild negotiating team with insights into what members would like to see.

    If you have any questions, ideas, or thoughts to share, please reach out to any of your Guild officers, which include President Brian Nearing (x5094); Chief Steward Rob Gavin (x5064), Vice Presidents Mandy Fries (x5353), Jeff Boyer (x5429); and Jennifer Rodd (x5597) Treasurer Marianne Mahr (x5589); and Secretary Mark Hempstead (x5675).

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