Contract Talks: A Primer

The Sun and the Guild will sit down at the end of this month to negotiate a new contract to succeed the current four-year agreement that expires in June.

Many Guild members --- both long-timers and those new to the Sun --- may not have a full grasp of what is at stake nor understand the long, proud history of Guild activity at this newspaper.

The best way to appreciate the Guild, of course, is to read the contract. Thumb through the 108-page red book and you'll find one guaranteed benefit after another. Among them:

* Pay raises. Guild-represented employees receive specified salary increases at specific dates each year. For those who are still climbing the pay scale steps, there are raises each anniversary of their hiring date. Additional "merit" raises beyond these minimums are permitted and encouraged --- and cannot be taken away once granted.

* Paid leave. Full-time members are guaranteed seven paid holidays and two floating holidays each year; part-timers get paid holidays that fall on their scheduled workdays and one floating holiday. Employees who work on a holiday get double time. Employees accrue up to 22 weeks of sick leave and earn up to four weeks of vacation a year. Members who need to take time off have that right.

* Job security. The company cannot fire employees without a good reason, and all kinds of disputes between employees and management are subject to binding arbitration by a neutral third party --- a powerful tool to ensure fair treatment in the workplace.

* Predictable schedules. Employees must have reasonable notice of schedule changes, and those who work late-night shifts earn more for the inconvenience. Those who work more than 40 hours in a week have the right to collect overtime pay calculated at time and a half.

* Health insurance and pensions. The company picks up the bulk of the cost for health insurance, and Guild employees are covered by a pension plan overseen by Guild members and the Sun.

How we got here

We take so many of these benefits for granted. But none arrived due to the generous impulses of the newspaper's owners. The Guild won them through contract bargaining and rigorous monitoring of the company's activities to make sure management lived up to the language of the agreement.

Three times in the last 40 years, the two sides have failed to reach agreement at the contract deadline. Guild members, deciding that the issues were worth fighting for, voted to strike.

In 1965, a long strike led to guarantees about Guild jurisdiction in the commercial side of the newspaper, as well as a requirement still in place today that at least 80 percent of all new hires join the Guild and pay their fair share in dues. In 1978, there was a three-day strike, again over jurisdictional issues.

Finally, in 1987, the Guild struck over a company demand that employees absorb all future increases in health insurance costs. After a six-day walkout, the company agreed to pay a proportional amount. Imagine what our insurance costs would be today without that sacrifice by members 16 years ago.

How would your work life be different without the Guild?

Consider the experience of employees at the Los Angeles Times in recent years. When payrolls had to be cut, managers chose whom to fire --- with no regard for long-time service. By contrast, under our contract, layoffs can only be accomplished in reverse order of seniority and with severance pay for affected employees.

Tribune's Role This year's negotiations mark the first since the Sun was bought by the Tribune Corp. There are only a handful of newspapers in the Tribune chain with the breadth of union representation we enjoy in Baltimore. It's no secret that Tribune would prefer not to have to deal with a union here, especially one as strong as ours. But neither did Times Mirror or the Abells want us to have union protection. In fact, they resisted us at nearly every turn. But our right to bargain collectively is guaranteed by federal law. We have overcome hostility at the bargaining table before and, if called upon, will do so again.

It's a certainty that in the coming talks Tribune will be as focused on the bottom line as we will be on the well-being of our members. There may well be a push to bring our benefits in line with those at other Tribune newspapers. This could lead to rough bargaining because we enjoy benefits, achieved through many rounds of bargaining over the years, our non-union colleagues at other papers don't have. And we don't intend to give them away.

The next several weeks will be important ones for all us, members and non-members alike. Both sides will make preparations. The company has already told its managers not to schedule vacations for the second half of June. Training will soon get underway for them on how to get out a paper in the event of a strike. The Guild, too, is preparing for the worst --- while working for the best. This is all part of the process of collective bargaining and should alarm no one. Remember, what we are all trying to achieve is a fair and decent contract.

If you are a member, consider how you can get involved. Serve on a committee, help mobilize other members or write a bulletin or two. If you are not a member, maybe it's time to reconsider that position, after all, you enjoy the same benefits and job protections Guild members have worked hard to achieve. Joining now sends the powerful message to the company that we are united. And make no mistake about this: Our strength comes from our unity.

- Stephanie Shapiro and the bargaining committee