The Contract
The Guild contract defines your rights and benefits at
the Sun. It was negotiated with management by your colleagues who are Guild
members, and approved by a membership vote. The contract covers major employment
issues. They include:
Salaries
Pay scales depend on type of job and experience. The
company may not pay less than the minimum, but it may pay more. The contract
also provides for guaranteed pay raises.
Health benefits
The medical coverage includes dental, medical and vision
insurance. Your share of cost is withdrawn from your paycheck by the company.
The rate is dependent on which coverage plan you select.
Vacations
Vacations are two weeks the first full year, three weeks
through the fourth year, and then four weeks.
Holidays
Employees receive the following paid holidays: New Year's
Day, Martin Luther King Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day,
Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and two floating holidays. You receive holiday
pay at twice your basic rate if you work the holiday day. |
Sick leave
Full-time employees accrue one day of sick leave for
every 17 days of work for a maximum of 110 days. Part-time employees accrue
sick leave at the rate of one hour for every 17 hours of paid time.
Job Security
After your six-month probationary period, the company
may at no time dismiss you without just and sufficient cause. In economic
hard times, the company may reduce the labor force, but only in reverse
order of seniority, after negotiating with the Guild. Laid-off employees
receive severance pay, go on a rehire list for two years, and must be offered
a job when the company rehires in that job category.
Retirement
You are eligible to enroll in the company 401(k) savings
plan after a year of employment. You become fully vested in the Sun-Guild
joint pension plan after five years of service.
Dues
Union dues are generally withdrawn automatically from
your paycheck. They cover a variety of expenses, including the salaries
of professional Guild staff, Guild publications and legal counsel. Dues
are figured on a sliding scale according to your salary. |
Stewards
Stewards are union members who volunteer to help you
resolve workplace problems and who serve as liaisons between Guild officers
and members. If you have a question about the contract or have a work-related
problem, see your steward for advice. If you are being questioned by your
supervisor and fear that your responses may lead to discipline or other
adverse consequences, you have a legal right to request the presence of
a union representative. If your steward is not available, see one of the
other stewards or Guild officers.
Problem solving
Guild representatives often can resolve a work-related
problem by simply discussing the issue with the parties involved. But when
that fails, an official complaint called a grievance may be filed by the
Guild. Grievances may cover several areas, among them contract violations
and discrimination. If a grievance can't be resolved with the company,
the disagreement can be decided by a neutral third party, an arbitrator. |
