Guild Facts

Vol. 10, No.4           

Dec. 12, 2002

Happy New Year: Laid off members to return Jan. 5

Like the Grinch in the Dr. Seuss tale, the Post-Gazette showed that it, too, has a heart in this holiday season.

The company notified us that II laid-off Guild members will be recalled the week of January 5. With the recall in September of copy editor Helen Fallon, this means that nearly all of the 15 Guild members who were laid off Jan. 28 will be back at work to start the new year.

Unfortunately, the company has decided to eliminate the jobs of three parttime proofreaders, who worked 4-5 hours per week, so those employees will not be recalled.

Four reporters were scheduled to be recalled in early February as part of the resolution of a recent grievance, but we’re certainly delighted that the company decided to bring hack our other members a month earlier.

It seems the company, at the urging of Labor Relations Director Ray Burnett, finally agreed with the Guild’s position that the recall of the laid off workers would have such a minimal impact on the company’s financial operation as to be barely noticeable.

If you recall, as part of the austerity measure to save $1 million in the newsroom, the

Guild and the company agreed in January to a deal in which employees who worked fewer than 19 3/8 hours per week would be laid off, but continue to be paid the same salary as stringers.

Under that arrangement, the company’s only savings was a minimal amount in federal employee

taxes.

The Guild argued then, and continued to argue throughout the year, that our people should be recalled at the earliest opportunity because the arrangement was basically a shell game to satis1~ bankers while the PG’s corporate parent was refinancing its debt.

Those who will be recalled are: Ruth Ann Baker. Barbara Cloud, Judy Laurinatis, Mark Madden, Adrian McCoy, Gretchen McKay, Mary Niederberger, Marlene Parrish, Marilyn McDevitt Rubin, Bob Schwerin and Jane Vranish.

Let’s welcome them hack. And let s be glad there's joy in Whoville after all.

 The Guild wishes to extend a warm welcome to our new executive editor, David M. Schribman, who comes to us from another Guild paper, the Boston Globe. We’re looking forward to building a mutually-beneficial and harmonious relationship between labor and management in the newsroom.

Just remember -- leave the curse of the Bambino in Boston!

Off The Record II benefits food bank, unions’ scholarships

A lot of people were surprised, perhaps the organizers most of all, when the first Guild-AFTRA Off the Record turned out so well in October 2001.

There was less surprise when Off the Record II did even better at the Byham on Sept. 26. The production staff led by Chris Rawson doubled the number of Post-Gazette employees (primarily Guild members) on stage in a show that produced howls of laughter throughout, with wicked emcee John Mclntire jump-starting the evening uproariously.

Some 625 tickets were sold, an increase of about 25, and new corporate sponsorships boosted fund-raising so that about $3,000 in additional revenue was generated. The new money boosted the assistance to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, which received $13,000 with great gratitude this year.

The two unions’ scholarship funds shared the remainder, with $1,500 being used for the first time to cover one of the Guild’s scholarships. Look for Off the Record III in early October 2003, with planning to begin in May.

If you haven’t been involved in the behind-the-scenes tasks and planning before but would like to join your Guild colleagues in that very fun activity next spring and summer, please let coordinator Gary Rotstein know

Happy Holidays and Best Wishes for the New Year