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Trouble on our doorstep. Read all about it in the summer/fall edition of The Frontier Reporter
We had some political mayhem and the close of Lee Enterprises’ fiscal year, all of which has spelled trouble for the Guild. Check out new features and all the Guild news you may have from the summer and fall in the latest edition of The Frontier Reporter newsletter.
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Two-year Guild contract secured after 10 months of negotiations
On Thursday, April 20, Guild members voted overwhelmingly to ratify a two-year contract with The Buffalo News, concluding one of the longer and more unorthodox periods of bargaining in recent Guild history.
During 10 months of negotiations, the bargaining team took a methodical and systematic approach against a series of harsh proposals from The News. Most notably, they poured hundreds of hours into a series of attempts to save the Classified Advertising department that ultimately came up short.
However, in an industry and company experiencing worrying declines in print advertising revenue, the team secured the continuation of affordable health insurance for members as well as our first raise in more than seven years. The first phase of that raise began appearing in members’ paychecks in late April, and the second will take effect Aug. 1. (more…)
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Guild to host NewsGuild Multi-District Council meeting in June
The Buffalo Newspaper Guild will host the NewsGuild-CWA’s 2017 Multi-District Council on June 24 to 25 in the Millennium Hotel in Cheektowaga.
The meeting, said NewsGuild Executive Vice President Marian Needham, will serve as an important precursor to the CWA Convention and Guild Sector Conference to be held in Pittsburgh in August.
The meeting will feature a Saturday workshop to familiarize members with a CWA-wide project that will help officers and organizers reach out to current and prospective union members.
“The Guild’s Special Assignment Organizers will conduct a skills-building workshop to help local leaders increase the effectiveness of their outreach to members and non-members alike, to help build our numbers and increase the strength of our union,” Needham said.
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Guild executive committee minutes: Wednesday, March 15, 2017
President Sandy Tan called the meeting to order at 5:07 p.m, Wednesday, March 15, 2017 at The News’ second-floor conference room, One News Plaza.
VP for Contract Administration Aaron Besecker issued his committee report.
Two grievance meetings have been held on the classified commission issue; there is a management meeting this week. We will talk it over with classified.
Another issue the committee is exploring is a claim that district manager shifts are being passed over for seniority. The grievance committee voted to file that grievance.
There are a few additional issues we are pursuing and researching (more…)
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Guild executive committee minutes: Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2017
President Sandy Tan called the meeting to order at 5:07 p.m, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2017 at The News’ second-floor conference room, One News Plaza.
Tan welcomed guild members and committee meeting newcomers Scott Scanlon, Matt Furey and Mike Tatko.
VP for Contract Administration Aaron Besecker issued his committee report.
The grievance committee met prior to this meeting about a bunch of ongoing issues. (more…)
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Guild members participate in annual shoreline cleanup
Guild members once again bundled up and braved the mid-April cold to participate in a shoreline cleanup for the sixth year in a row.The cleanup was held at Father Conway Park and the Ohio Street Boat Launch in the Old First Ward, a large piece of land that encompasses railroad tracks, the shoreline and a large, open field. Guild members were thankful for sunshine and dry ground as they fanned out across the park to pick up trash and debris. Many large garbage and recycling bags were filled to the brim by the end of the morning.
The annual Spring Shoreline Cleanup was organized by Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper, which involved more than 1,500 volunteer at 40 sites along the shoreline.
Guild members participate annually in memory of our late friend, reporter and Guild leader John “Jay” Bonfatti. Jay, who died in 2008, loved the outdoors and believed strongly in caring for the natural wonders of Western New York.
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Guild members approve new contract
Guild member Melinda Miller casts her ballot as Jay Rey and Matt Gryta staff the ballot box. Members of the Buffalo Newspaper Guild approved a new two-year contract on Thursday by a vote of 104-16.
The bargaining team, which unanimously endorsed the agreement, was pleased by the excellent turnout. Henry Davis, member of the bargaining team and former Guild president, thanked everyone for the support throughout the process.
“It was a long and difficult negotiation, and I’m gratified that so many of our members ultimately showed their support for the tentative agreement,” said Guild President Sandra Tan.
The two-year contract includes an effective 2.5 percent raise for full- and part-time bargaining unit employees for the first time in seven years. Under the deal, members will pay 9 percent of the Guild base 20/20 health insurance plan in 2018.
“I want to echo my thanks to all the members of the bargaining team, all of the volunteers who staffed the ballot box and all the Guild members who did their part to bring negotiations to a satisfactory end,” Tan said.
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Guild schedules contract vote for April 20
The Guild has scheduled a ratification vote on the proposed contract with the News for Thursday, April 20. Members may vote between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. in the News fifth-floor cafeteria. Guild representatives will also be on hand from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. at the zone offices in Depew, Buffalo, Hamburg and Tonawanda.
The tentative agreement, unanimously endorsed by the Guild’s bargaining team, includes an effective 2.5 percent raise for full- and part-time bargaining unit employees for the first time in seven years. It also includes exit packages for members of the Classified Department that doubles what the News originally offered. Under the deal, members will pay 9 percent of the Guild base 20/20 health insurance plan in 2018.
More details on the agreement are in a flier distributed in print and via email last week to members and posted on Guild bulletin boards.
Given the declining economic state of The News, Guild leadership strongly believes that this contract represents the best deal possible under difficult circumstances and urges members to vote for it. Please make an effort to cast your vote on Thursday, no matter your position, and thank you for all you do on behalf of the Guild.
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Company updates employees on State of the News
In a New Year’s message to readers, Buffalo News President and Publisher Warren T. Colville boasted about the newspaper’s strength and dedication to maintaining high editorial standards.
“It is no secret that the newspaper industry has seen many challenges in recent years,” Colville wrote in the full-page ad that ran on Jan. 1. “I am proud to tell you The Buffalo News remains one of the strongest papers in the country.”
The picture News executives painted during the company’s annual State of the News address on Jan. 19 was somewhat less rosy. Even so, the session made clear that the newspaper continues to reap significant profits that put it far ahead of other American newspapers and maintains a profit margin that is the envy of a battered industry. (more…)
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Tan succeeds Davis as Guild president
The Guild’s Executive Committee nominated and elected Sandy Tan as the Guild’s new president, replacing Henry Davis, who decided not to run for a third three-year term.
Former Guild President Henry Davis Davis served as president of the Guild from 2010 through 2016. He served on or headed Guild bargaining teams since the late 1990s. He became active in the Guild in 1989, initially as co-chairman of a Guild health and pension committee.
“It has been a privilege to serve as Guild president,” Davis said. “The experience was challenging, but interesting and rewarding, a great personal journey. Looking back, I’m proud of how we maintained members’ standard of living in an era of significant industry decline. (more…)
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Guild members rally outside News building
The Buffalo NewsGuild rallied outside The News Dec. 13, demanding a fair contract as negotiations that started back in mid-May headed toward 2017.The rally was one of several mobilization events that have ramped up over frustration with management’s negotiating position on health care. The Guild has agreed to pay for a portion of premiums after decades of fully paid health insurance, but management insists workers who have gone seven years without a raise must dig into their pockets deeper still. (more…)
Buffalo Newspaper Guild CWA Local 31026 