Contract Trivia: Layoffs (Again)

Congratulations to New York member Natalia Barr, the latest winner of our 2023 trivia contest and a $50 prize. Natalia’s entry was selected from several correct responses to last week’s question about our contract’s Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) provision. Natalia knew that the maximum “extra” COLA increase allowable when inflation exceeds negotiated pay raises is 0.75%, with all numbers rounded to two decimal places (see Article IV - Compensatory Increase, Section D).

That’s definitely a contract benefit we want to improve upon this year.

Also a priority for IAPE is improving upon the contract’s job security provisions, especially in light of the ten new layoff notices Dow Jones delivered to the union during the past week. These latest cuts bring the total number of IAPE-represented positions lost through layoff in 2023 to 52.

Current IAPE contract proposals call for changes in how seniority protection is defined. Currently, seniority is determined according to an employee’s hire date, relative to others in an affected job classification, in a department and at a location. A “job classification” generally means a single job title, but not always.

During layoffs at Dow Jones, which three job titles are considered to be the same classification?

Email your response to union@iape1096.org. If you are not certain of the answer, scroll through our contract posted on the IAPE website to find the relevant section. Members in good standing* will have until Thursday at midnight  to find the answer within the current collective agreement between IAPE and Dow Jones, and email that answer back to us. Next Friday, one winner will be selected at random from all the correct responses, and that winning member will receive a $50 prize from IAPE.

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*The IAPE contract trivia question is a weekly contest for members of the IAPE/DJ bargaining unit in the United States and Canada, working under the terms of the collective agreement between Dow Jones & Company Inc. and the Independent Association of Publishers’ Employees (IAPE) TNG/CWA Local 1096, AFL-CIO,CLC, in effect from July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023. IAPE officers, IAPE directors, IAPE staff, fee-paying non-members and non-members in right-to-work states (or new employees not yet paying dues to IAPE) are not eligible for prizes. Contest period lasts through 11:59 PM Eastern Time each Thursday. On Friday, one winner will be selected from the previous week’s correct answers by a random drawing. Winners are limited to one prize every thirty days.

IAPE Supports Sabrina Siddiqui

The Independent Association of Publishers’ Employees (IAPE), Local 1096 of The NewsGuild-CWA, strongly condemns the online violence directed toward our member, Sabrina Siddiqui, a respected and accomplished reporter for The Wall Street Journal.

Since June 22, when Sabrina questioned Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a White House press conference and asked what steps Modi and his government would be willing to take “to improve the rights of Muslims and other minorities ... and to uphold free speech” in India, the harassment of Sabrina from online trolls, and even party officials associated with the Modi government, has been relentless.

We are surprised and saddened to feel the need to remind people that these types of attacks against journalists around the world seek to discredit fact-based reporting.

There is no place in society for these gutless and despicable actions. Sabrina has been attacked for doing her job—and for doing it very well. We stand in support of Sabrina, our trusted colleague and friend, and in solidarity with journalists everywhere engaged in holding the powerful to account, even in the face of attempts to intimidate and censor.

Bargaining Update: It’s a Marathon, not a Sprint

Representatives from IAPE and Dow Jones have reached their first tentative agreement of the current round of contract negotiations.

In a response to a proposal from the union, management has agreed “to clarify the contract” and confirm that meetings where employees will be notified of their discharge will be deemed “disciplinary.” Union-represented staff will be entitled to union representation during those meetings.

The item from Dow Jones was included in a two-page proposal document addressing “select issues.” The proposals were provided to the union during a brief negotiation meeting earlier today.

In total, management responded to four of the union’s 79 proposals with today’s document.

Dow Jones did not present a wage increase offer today, but did propose increasing the threshold salary for determining minimum compensatory raises to $1,300 per week, or $67,600 annually.

Also known as the “minimum dollar increase,” a minimum raise is determined by applying the negotiated compensatory raise to a threshold salary. In 2022, the negotiated 4% raise and $1,000 weekly threshold meant the smallest raise an IAPE member could have received was $40 per week.

Dow Jones made small adjustments to original management proposals on excluding interns from the IAPE bargaining unit and regarding the amount of notice provided to an employee and to the union in advance of disciplinary meetings.

IAPE and Dow Jones will break from negotiations until next Wednesday, July 5.

Princeton Shuttle Alternatives

As more IAPE members resume three-day-per-week in-office schedules, we’re paying close attention to how our workplaces have changed since the beginning of the pandemic. For example, at the Dow Jones campus in Princeton, NJ, members are keenly aware of the lack of cafeteria services.

Not quite as well known is a recent decision by Dow Jones to accommodate Princeton employees who  previously relied on the company shuttle to commute to and from the Princeton Jct. rail station.

In response to a question from IAPE about plans to resume shuttle services when in-office schedules increased this month, management informed the union, “employees who need transportation from Princeton Junction to the campus should use a ride sharing service and submit the expense for reimbursement in Concur.”

When asked whether the company planned on announcing this to Princeton staff, management replied, “Given that we estimate the employee population at issue here is fairly small we are looking at options to share this information with those who need to know including posting the information on the Princeton Location page of the Source.”

We encourage members relying on transportation to and from Princeton Jct. to follow this directive and submit receipts for reimbursement. If you have questions about submitting or problems with approval for your expenses please let us know at union@iape1096.org.

Of course, IAPE also has a contract proposal addressing Princeton shuttle services:

“The Company shall maintain shuttle service between the Princeton Junction, NJ train station and its offices in the Princeton, NJ area. In the event shuttle service cannot be offered, Employees commuting to and from the Princeton Junction train station may submit taxi, Uber or Lyft expenses for reimbursement.”

IAPE and Dow Jones resume negotiations on this and all other topics Tuesday morning.

Wednesday: Steward 101
If you are interested in getting involved in all things IAPE, including being a key point of contact for members during contract negotiations, consider joining your union colleagues on Wednesday afternoon for IAPE Steward 101.

This one-hour Zoom class is your chance to find out more about joining the ranks of IAPE stewards. A strong steward and leadership structure is extremely important at all times, but especially during a contract bargaining year. If you’ve ever considered being involved with IAPE, you might be just the person we’re looking for to join our steward group!

To find out more about becoming an IAPE steward, please join us for IAPE Steward 101 next Wednesday, June 28 at 2:00 p.m. EDT. Visit the IAPE Events Page to register.

Contract Trivia: COLA

Congratulations to New York member Nick Guy, today’s 2023 trivia contest winner of a $50 prize. Nick’s entry was selected from several correct responses to last week’s question: the weekly shift differential rate for employees who work night shifts is $140 (see Article III - Job Classifications and Wages, Section G).

We hope everyone has caught up on contract negotiations updates from yesterday and today. IAPE and Dow Jones negotiators have now had three meetings to consider proposals, especially respective proposals over the same subject. The existing Cost Of Living Allowance (COLA) provision is one such contract section, with Dow Jones presenting a proposal to eliminate COLA protection.

IAPE, on the other hand, has explained that COLA protection is a priority for union members and has proposed eliminating the existing cap on COLA adjustments to wage increases. So, for this week’s trivia question, see if you can tell us:

Under the current contract, what is the maximum “extra” COLA increase allowable when inflation exceeds negotiated pay raises?

Email your response to union@iape1096.org. If you are not certain of the answer, scroll through our contract posted on the IAPE website to find the relevant section. Members in good standing* will have until Thursday at midnight  to find the answer within the current collective agreement between IAPE and Dow Jones, and email that answer back to us. Next Friday, one winner will be selected at random from all the correct responses, and that winning member will receive a $50 prize from IAPE.

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*The IAPE contract trivia question is a weekly contest for members of the IAPE/DJ bargaining unit in the United States and Canada, working under the terms of the collective agreement between Dow Jones & Company Inc. and the Independent Association of Publishers’ Employees (IAPE) TNG/CWA Local 1096, AFL-CIO,CLC, in effect from July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023. IAPE officers, IAPE directors, IAPE staff, fee-paying non-members and non-members in right-to-work states (or new employees not yet paying dues to IAPE) are not eligible for prizes. Contest period lasts through 11:59 PM Eastern Time each Thursday. On Friday, one winner will be selected from the previous week’s correct answers by a random drawing. Winners are limited to one prize every thirty days.

Bargaining Update: Talking About Our Proposals

IAPE negotiators resumed discussions with Dow Jones counterparts yesterday and took the opportunity to address company comments about the union’s proposals.

The IAPE team emphasized the importance of the union’s carefully crafted proposals, citing membership survey results showing demands for real wage increases and protection against inflation as overwhelming contract priorities.

The union also responded to the company’s opening proposals yesterday. Addressing management’s proposal to delete cost of living allowance protections from the contract, IAPE President Jodi Green said, “In IAPE surveys, improving COLA protection was the number two priority for members. I can’t see how deleting COLA protection would pass a membership vote.”

IAPE also informed Dow Jones that members are not interested in health insurance premium, deductible or cost-sharing increases that could significantly diminish any negotiated increases in wages.

Dow Jones balked at union proposals to establish employee intellectual property rights. Green noted that union members have concerns about “new revenue streams and the company’s use of content they provided, and that they aren’t seeing sufficient reward for what might even be extra work.”

The response from Dow Jones was swift: “That’s the company’s property. The employee did not provide that, the company created it. The company owns it. It’s not the property of the employee to give to the company. It’s the company’s property.”

Discussions around non-economic items also caused tension around the virtual contract table. Dow Jones reps again objected to an IAPE proposal to clarify the current practice of delivering data reports to the union, claiming to fear union charges at the National Labor Relations Board if the company failed to deliver a timely report of newly hired employees.

The company strenuously objected to IAPE’s proposal to reduce probation—that initial period of time when the contract’s just cause protections do not apply to a new employee—from nine months to six months.

Responding to an IAPE complaint that the company fails to properly notify new employees of their probationary status, one Dow Jones rep said, “what would you have done differently if you knew you were probationary, you would have worked harder? You would have tried to get to that nine months before slacking off?”

There were some attempts to find compromise. Dow Jones has expressed a willingness to increase retraining allowance sums—education funding available to employees when they are laid off from their Dow Jones jobs—and both sides agreed that more discussion is needed on IAPE and Dow Jones proposals for providing employees with advance notice of disciplinary meetings.

IAPE and Dow Jones did have constructive conversations about some company proposals. Dow Jones clarified its proposal to restrict pay increase eligibility to “only employees on active payroll” applies to former employees, perhaps those recently laid off from Dow Jones, and not to anyone on an authorized leave of absence such as disability or parental leave. The union also committed to taking a closer look at other company proposals concerning payout of unused vacation upon separation from Dow Jones and self evaluations for performance reviews.

Dow Jones and IAPE meet again on June 27.

Thanks to all members who sent in feedback after reading yesterday’s bargaining update. If you would like to share your comments about these negotiations—or if you have a message for the company you would like IAPE to share at the bargaining table—our email inbox is always open. Send your questions, comments or concerns to union@iape1096.org.

Dow Jones Responds: No

IAPE and Dow Jones representatives met Wednesday for the first time since trading opening proposals on June 14. Company negotiators spent two and a half hours responding to the union’s proposal package, but the majority of their message was very simple: No.

Oh sure, they used several other phrases, like, “the company is satisfied with the current contract language.” Or, “this is not an issue we are interested in.” Or, “we don’t see a compelling need for this.”

They saved their best for IAPE’s opening wage proposal: “We don’t think it is at all appropriate or supportable.”

On health insurance, management reps reminded the union team of the company’s proposal to remove any contract references to benefits and coverage. “We do expect cost increases,” they said.

The IAPE committee heard that the company needs to “manage expectations” and that the union should do the same with respect to its members.

We believe we are.

IAPE proposals reflect priorities identified through membership surveys and feedback. What IAPE members expect is a contract addressing the needs of the union-represented workforce, with clear workplace rules and protections, fair wage increases and protection against inflation.

IAPE and Dow Jones reps return to the bargaining table this afternoon. If you have any “expectations” you would like us to pass along to management, please let us know.

Contract Trivia: Shift Differential

Congratulations to Princeton member Ana Riazantseva, the latest winner of our 2023 trivia contest and a $50 prize. Ana’s entry was selected from several correct responses to last week’s question about union membership and dues payments. Ana knew that most employees who are hired or transferred into IAPE-represented positions must begin paying dues or fees to the union within 30 days of their hire or transfer, or within 30 days of the effective date of the contract, whichever is later (see Article X - Union Membership, Section A).

With contract negotiations between IAPE and Dow Jones finally underway, members have started to weigh in with thoughts on the company’s first proposals. Not surprisingly, the feedback has not been positive. One in particular that has attracted criticism is management’s proposal to eliminate shift differential—the extra payment required when employees work evening or overnight shifts—when employees work those shifts from their homes.

If you already realize how ridiculous this proposal is, then you likely know the answer to this week’s trivia question:

Under the current IAPE contract, what is the weekly shift differential rate for employees who work night shifts?

Email your response to union@iape1096.org. If you are not certain of the answer, scroll through our contract posted on the IAPE website to find the relevant section. Members in good standing* will have until Thursday at midnight  to find the answer within the current collective agreement between IAPE and Dow Jones, and email that answer back to us. Next Friday, one winner will be selected at random from all the correct responses, and that winning member will receive a $50 prize from IAPE.

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*The IAPE contract trivia question is a weekly contest for members of the IAPE/DJ bargaining unit in the United States and Canada, working under the terms of the collective agreement between Dow Jones & Company Inc. and the Independent Association of Publishers’ Employees (IAPE) TNG/CWA Local 1096, AFL-CIO,CLC, in effect from July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023. IAPE officers, IAPE directors, IAPE staff, fee-paying non-members and non-members in right-to-work states (or new employees not yet paying dues to IAPE) are not eligible for prizes. Contest period lasts through 11:59 PM Eastern Time each Thursday. On Friday, one winner will be selected from the previous week’s correct answers by a random drawing. Winners are limited to one prize every thirty days.

IAPE, Dow Jones Trade Day One Proposals

Representatives from IAPE and Dow Jones opened 2023 contract negotiations on Tuesday and traded initial proposals for a new collective bargaining agreement. Not surprisingly, the differences between the respective opening positions are stark and significant.

IAPE negotiators—President Jodi Green, VP Laura Casey, Directors Jess Bravin, Doug Cameron, Patricia Corley, Ted Mann, and Ariana Vera, and staffers Kaitlyn Frarey and Tim Martell—presented a proposal document seeking improvements in almost all areas of the contract, including a 15% wage increase in the first year of the deal. That first-year figure, in line with the recent contract agreement at the New York Times Co., is intended to make up for ground lost to inflation over the past two years and maintain Dow Jones as an industry-leading workplace.

The union package focused on improving seniority protections, called for a cap of three mandatory in-office working days for the life of the contract, and proposed new contract language defining book and other derivative rights for employee-created work and protections against advancements in artificial intelligence. The union also introduced proposals addressing member concerns regarding the coverage of specific healthcare services including doula coverage, increased mental health coverage, and support for seeking gender-affirming and reproductive care.

Simply put, it is a proposal for contract enhancements and protection from inflation that IAPE-represented employees deserve.

On the other hand, Dow Jones proposed clawing back many of the benefits and rights our members have won in past years and rely upon today.

The company presented a disappointing and unrealistic package calling for the elimination of cost-of-living provisions, along with proposals to give management unilateral power to reduce health benefits and increase premiums, limit parental and child-care leave, and cut severance pay, among other items. The company proposal package also reintroduced a proposal the union has seen before, to use what it calls “merit-based criteria to determine layoffs,” at its sole discretion, effectively eliminating members' earned seniority rights. Dow Jones's proposals would significantly erode many of the protections of previous contracts and leave employees more vulnerable to the whims of their managers.

Dow Jones made no offer on wages in its initial proposal. However, company representatives at the bargaining table took exception to IAPE’s wage proposal when the union cited the recent Times Guild and New York Times agreement as a benchmark.

IAPE members can follow along with all proposals during negotiations by visiting the union’s Contract ’23 webpage.

Negotiations will resume in Princeton on June 21, with virtual meetings planned for June 22, 27 and 29. In the meantime, the bargaining committee will be working on responses to company proposals and will finalize additional proposals around job classifications, health and safety, and DEI.

What do you think of management’s first proposal? We’d love to know! Email us your feedback at union@iape1096.org.

Negotiations Begin Tomorrow—Show Your IAPE Support!

Tomorrow morning, 43 days after IAPE delivered a demand to begin contract negotiations, Dow Jones representatives will finally sit down with the union bargaining committee and trade proposals for a new collective bargaining agreement.

Negotiations will kick off at the Princeton Dow Jones campus at 11:00 a.m. EDT.

Wherever you are working tomorrow, please show your support for your IAPE contract team. With summer-like temperatures upon us, tomorrow would be a great day to wear an IAPE t-shirt. IAPE buttons are must-have accessories. And if you have an IAPE water bottle or coffee mug in your cupboard, be sure to reach for that first when pouring your morning beverage.

We would love to see photos of all your IAPE support. Email your pics to union@iape1096.org or tweet us @iape1096. #contract23