The Guild received the results of a federal audit of its spending between Oct. 1, 2010 and Sept. 30, 2011.

The review looked back at a challenging year, when dues collection had been cut off and was restored. It was the year we sent out refund checks to boost the number of members in good standing. It came as we fought successful legal battles on several fronts.

And the federal audit cited only a handful of minor recordkeeping violations, all of which the Guild was advised how to solve. The auditor accepted the union’s assurances it would address those issues and required no further action.

The union took in receipts of $90,598, but the audit showed issues with only $326 in spending. All were cases where receipts were missing, though the union knew what each expense was. The biggest was $150 paid to Brown’s Brewing Co. in Troy, a donation for a party held in honor of longtime photographer Luanne Ferris when a disability forced her to retire. The union provided $48.55 in pizzas and soda from Inferno to members who had to work during the 2010 holiday party, but the receipt was lost.

There were two instances of lunches for a grand total of $73 where the receipt was misplaced. One was at the Gateway Diner when the union hosted International President Bernie Lunzer; the other was a meeting at Professor Java’s. Otherwise, the union had records documenting every penny. The union does not often buy lunches, but does sometimes when lawyers or International officials visit or if members agree to serve on a committee.

The Guild also was advised to revamp the form for lost time, which is when the union pays officers or members for time taken off from work for union business. The form the union had used for decades let people check off boxes to explain what they were doing: attending a conference, preparing for a meeting, or negotiations. The government advised that the forms should provide more details rather than a checklist of options. The union has already revamped the form.

The auditor also advised the Guild that its receipt records should include the date money was received. The records show the date the union deposited money and the date a check was issued to it. Again, that change has already been made.

The union also was told to be more timely in filing a two-page form with the federal government each year. The union has an independent financial review done every year, and we’ve relied on the firm to file the form. The auditor recommended the union file the form directly to guarantee its timeliness.

The auditor told Officer Manager Dan Roesser, treasurer during the audit period, that since he had successfully and accurately calculated the dues paid and refund to every member, he was very capable of completing the form himself.

“I want to extend my personal appreciation to CWA Local 31034 for the cooperation and courtesy extended during this compliance audit,” the auditor, Jennifer Rudewicz, concluded.

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Guild members are ready to start taking action to convince the company it’s time to reach a contract with us.

At a membership meeting at lunch time Thursday, 25 members attended. They learned that discussions to reach the final settlement in the NLRB case are nearing completion as the numbers owed to the 11 workers are being finalized. Health care and pension information has been shared as the parties work to finalize the settlement based on the agreement in principle that has been reached.

Members discussed how to convince the company that employees deserve raises after 5 years without salary hikes, and to show management that giving away our bargaining rights is not an acceptable path. Members shared ideas on mobilizing, both internally and externally. We’ll share those ideas as we’re ready to implement them.

“We tried to use the NLRB case as leverage to get a contract, but the company wasn’t interested in compromising,” Guild President Tim O’Brien said. “Now the members will once again have to actively mobilize to show they are hungry for a raise, and people are committed to doing so. Five years is too long especially with all the added work people are asked to do as more and more staff has been cut.”

The union also discussed the fact that a U.S. Labor Department auditor will be reviewing the Guild’s record-keeping in early June. This is a common occurrence, as many Guild locals have been through the process. Our local last underwent such a review in 2003.
The Guild has an outside firm examine our books every year, and that information is still in boxes that will be made available to the federal auditor. The union will let members know the results of the review.

In a way, the review is well-timed. The Guild’s office manager, John Piekarski, is leaving to take a full-time job, and the Executive Board voted Thursday to hire our former treasurer, Dan Roesser, to replace him.

“We will miss John greatly both personally and professionally. He is a very creative person, and his new employer is very lucky to have him,” O’Brien said. “We’re lucky too, in that Dan was available and is well acquainted with the union and how it functions. Since he was treasurer during the year the auditor will review, he will be able to be in the office with her and answer any questions she has.”

Members ended the meeting with a moment of silence in memory of Teamsters Local President Michael Cipollo, who led his union at the newspaper for 40 years.

The Newspaper Guild of Albany is deeply saddened to hear of the loss of Teamsters leader Mike Cipollo.

”Mikey was a tough negotiator who really looked out for his members,” said Guild President Tim O’Brien. ”Every year we would sit down together to talk to the company about health care costs. Despite his gruff, working class exterior, Mike was an incredibly smart guy who would sit there doing all the math in his head. He was amazingly sharp. Nothing got by him.”

The Guild sends its condolences to Mike’s family, friends and members.

More than 80 members of the Guild showed Wednesday that they are “hungry for a raise.” Workers came to the cafeteria to show that five years is too long for these hard-working employees to go without a pay increase. We rewarded them with cupcakes, but what they really want is respect for their bargaining rights and a show of appreciation in their paychecks.