Washington Post Guild Unit -- Feb. 2, 2004 Bulletin

Feb. 2, 2004

Post Guild Veterans Take Buyout: They Built Guild

By Peter Perl

We join in wishing a warm and hearty—although sad—farewell to the 43 loyal Guild members who are among the 69 veteran Post employees in Guild-covered jobs who are taking advantage of the company’s buy-out.

We are happy that our colleagues will be able to benefit from a generous offer that will bring them added security in the next phase of their lives. We particularly want to recognize and applaud some former Guild officers and stalwart unionists who have helped keep the Guild going over the years, among them, former unit chairs Bob Levey and Eugene Meyer, and longtime officers and all-around sparkplugs and activists: Claudia Levy, Vernon Henery, Bob Asher, Linda Wheeler, Henry Allen, Ed Walsh, Dan Morgan, and Chris Swerda.

We will be marking the departures of all our Guild colleagues at a party later this year. But meanwhile, we should remember that it took strong bargaining by the Guild to win pension improvements for all of us in the last negotia-tions.

And it was the Guild that raised to a higher profile the issue of the Post’s dramatically over-funded pension plan. The Post agreed not only to the new across-the-board improvements, but has now moved to finally use the overfunding for a beneficial purpose for those who were able to take advantage of the buy-out.

For those of us who remain, we must take note that nearly two-thirds of our departing veteran colleagues had the
integrity and wisdom to support the Guild. This loss of membership means that we all have to redouble our efforts
in our “open shop” workplace to persuade our younger colleagues that joining the Guild is in their own best interests.
It is the only way to assure the best work life for all of us, and not just a chosen few. (Watch for our upcoming bulletins on
Post “Merit Pay” data.)

Meanwhile, let’s all join in wishing the best to our other Guild colleagues who will be moving on, including:
In Commercial—Carolyn Scott, Cherry Daniels, William Ehmer, Johnness Lundgren, Diane Seeger, Douglas Dozier, Edward “Smitty” Smith, Victor Lyon, and Ronald Lattanzio.

In News: Bill Raspberry, Abigail Trafford, Michael Dirda, William Stewart, John Oravets, Don Phillips, Ronalie Peterson, Peter Harris, Julie Dear, Patricia Rogers, Chuck Allen, Kim Klein, Bart Barnes, Mason McAllister, Mary McGrory, Helen Dewar, Kathy
Sawyer, Frank Johnston, Ray Lustig, Ken Denlinger, Bill Gildea, Ben Forgey, Rita Kempley, and Dukette Rutherford.

YOU’RE INVITED!

Honor Our Guild Buyout Retirees at a
Wine & Cheese Reception
Thursday, Feb. 26
5 PM until 8 PM
Metro AME Church
1518 M St, NW

Bob Levey on the Guild

I’m one of the Buyout Babies. I leave The Washington Post after more than 36 years, with a heavy heart.

But it’s not as heavy as it might be, because my decision and my path were made possible by a great organization, The Newspaper Guild. I’ve been a member since my first day at The Post.

Management didn’t offer that boatload of buyout bucks out of sheer love. The money came from our pension fund. Yes,
“our.” Local 35 of TNG negotiated the fund into existence more than 30 years ago.

I know. I was there when it happened.

When extra millions became available (thank you, Wall Street), they sent a message more forcefully than I ever could.

This union works.

It provides for its members.

Its contracts produce real benefits.

And the biggest, loudest message:

You are better off if you’re a member than you’d ever be if you rely on the tender mercies of the seventh floor.

The Newspaper Guild has made The Washington Post a place to have a life as well as a career. I could never have owned a house, raised a family or provided for my old age without the contracts that this union negotiated.

When I needed $50,000 worth of medical care in 1997, I could never have counted on getting it or paying for it without
the protections and provisions in “that little booklet.”

When I worked on national holidays, the Guild saw to it that I received extra pay.

When my mother died, I got a day of bereavement leave, with pay. It didn’t fall from a tree. The Guild assured it for me.

You would have to go a long way to find an organization that’s more democratic, more fair or more effective. I’m proud to have been a member.

If you don’t belong, I urge you to sign a card, today. It’s your union. It’s your future. Some day, it may be your buyout, too.

Continuous News Update

By Rick Weiss

A team of representatives from the newsroom, including Rick Weiss, Ann Gerhart, Tom Ricks and (the recently bought out) Don Phillips had its second meeting with news managers Steve Coll, Bob McCartney and others in December. While the first meeting had focused on issues of journalistic quality and training in the age of ever quicker news posting on the Washington Post’s Web site, the second meeting focused more on the issue of compensation — a topic that has consistently scored high in Guild surveys about reporters’ and editors’ continuous news concerns.

A few different approaches were discussed. One general idea under consideration is to allow Washington Post employees to own shares in the Web site or otherwise share the profits that are anticipated to emerge from The Post’s Web operation, as a way of getting people to feel they have something directly to gain from their ongoing contributions to washingtonpost.com. Another approach, aimed more at rewarding individuals directly for their contributions, would involve a system of monthly “bonuses” to be paid out to those employees who had contributed more than a certain designated amount of work for the Web site in the past month — a system separate from Merit Pay and with more clearly established rules for compensation. These two options are not mutually exclusive and other ideas were raised and considered as well.

Management has so far appeared open-minded — though decidedly noncommittal — with regard to both the general notion of
compensation and the specific models proposed so far. A third meeting is scheduled for February 5.

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