After almost a month, Guild members are still awaiting a response to the union’s July 31 proposal to settle the entire contract.

On August 14, Guild President Tim O’Brien sent Publisher George Hearst an email asking when a response could be expected. The publisher never replied.

On Tuesday, O’Brien went into human resources to ask Ruth Fantasia when a reply could be expected. She said the company’s proposal would be reviewed at a corporate meeting next week.

“Our members have waited seven years for a raise and six for a contract,” O’Brien said. “We have made a fair settlement offer, and the Company needs to stop the foot-dragging and give us a response.”

Friday marks seven years since Times Union employees last had a raise, but the Newspaper Guild made a new push Thursday to settle the entire contract.
The union gave the Company a proposal that was off-the-record for all but communication purposes, meaning we can tell you what we offered. Here’s a a quick summary:

RAISES: A 2 percent raise retroactive to August 1, 2010; 2.5 percent raises effective August 1, 2014; August 1, 2015, August 1, 2016; and August 1, 2017.

HEALTH CARE: Agree to pay 24 percent of health care costs on January 1, 2015, and 25 percent on January 1, 2016.

LAYOFFS: The Company could choose whomever they want for layoffs, but those let go out of seniority would get enhanced severance of three weeks per year of service with no cap. An added bonus would be paid based on seniority, ranging from $5,000 for people with 10 to 14 years of service up to $20,000 for those with 26 or more years of experience. (Employees between 55 and 65 would risk a hit on their pensions if discharged early.)

OUTSOURCING: As under the imposed conditions, the Company would have to negotiate over any outsourcing. (The Company wants to be able to outsource our work without negotiation.)

PENSION: The Guild proposed increasing the multiplier for calculating pensions from 1.5 percent to 1.75 percent, which would raise the pensions slightly. We also proposed reducing the early retirement penalty from 5 percent a year to 2.5 percent, so someone who retired at 55 would get a 25 percent reduction, not a 50 percent cut.)

The parties had a lively discussion of the proposal. (For legal reasons, details have to remain off the record.) The Company took our proposal seriously and in the spirit in which it was given.

Publisher George Hearst said the Company would review the proposal and prepare one of its own shortly. A meeting date was not set, but Hearst said he would try to schedule one as soon as possible.

Guild Treasurer Marianne Mahr provided some excellent context for the discussion by presenting some numbers on how costs have increased for employees. Since 2007, she noted, grocery prices have increased 21.5 percent, rents have increased from 14 to 22 percent depending on the size of an apartment, gas prices are up 23 percent just from April 2010 and health insurance costs at the Times Union have gone up $1,730, which amounts to 3 percent of a $50,000 salary.

Looking at cost of living adjustments for people on Social Security over the past seven years, she showed that the Times Union was lagging by 16.2 percent. In real dollars, employees have not only not had raises. They’ve had a very real cut in income.

In a complete turnabout, the Times Union is losing staffers to its smaller rival in Schenectady, the Daily Gazette.

Advertising salesman Rick Barber on Monday became the latest to make the move. His departure follows a few weeks after another salesperson, Larry Flynn, made a similar leap.

Managers Michelle Wright of Circulation and Randy Lewis of Advertising also left for the smaller competitor in recent months. Lewis is now director of advertising for the Gazette.

In addition, the Gazette ad sales staff is stocked with a half dozen other employees who left the TU in recent years.

“In 26 years at the Times Union, I have never seen this happen before,” Guild President Tim O’Brien said. “People have gone from the Gazette to the larger paper but never in reverse. We are training these people, helping them build a list of clients and then losing them to a rival.”

The union cited two reasons for the migration: Times Union employees have not had raises in seven years, even though the Hearst family was recently declared by Forbes to be the sixth richest clan in the country with a net worth of $35 billion.

Even more critical has been a devastating change in the work atmosphere in the Times Union advertising department. Employees petitioned Publisher George Hearst to address what they described as a hostile work environment. The company sent one of its lawyers to “investigate” but no action was ever taken except that the Company fired the union leader who brought the matters to light.

“Employees no longer feel valued and respected especially in advertising, and more and more of them tell me they want to leave,” O’Brien said. “Rick is the latest person to leap to the Gazette but unless the Times Union makes major changes, he may not be the last.”

The Guild is grateful to our members who came over to the Desmond Wednesday to give their views on our planned settlement proposal.

Immediately afterward, our union asked for a bargaining date to discuss the proposal. The Company responded quickly to offer next Thursday, July 31, and the union quickly agreed.

The employees who will represent their colleagues at the table are Marianne Mahr of advertising, Adam McAvoy of circulation, and Brian Nearing and Tim O’Brien of editorial.

We will provide any details we can after that session, and we thank our members for their continued support.

The Guild will host a “Thank You, Lindsay!” event from 5-9 pm Friday at Wolf’s 1-11 on Wolf Road.

The event will be cash bar, and we will provide some snacks.

Come on down to show your support for our wonderful colleague.