'McCarthy Commission'
Moving Forward

by Phil Fairbanks
BNG Vice President-Elect

If you start to hear Guild members talk of the "McCarthy Commission," don't be skittish. Be hopeful.

For the record, it's not a reference to Joseph McCarthy, the former U.S. senator who hunted down alleged Communists, some of them union leaders. No, this committee is headed by former Guild President Bob McCarthy and the goal is to plan for the union's future.

McCarthy, with the approval of the local, has put together a Strategic Planning Committee, an attempt to make the Guild stronger as it prepares for future contract negotiations.

"I see this committee as the catalyst for a 'refounding' process," said McCarthy. "It will look at everything from structure to how we do business."

By the time you read this, chances are good the committee will have formed and started its work. The tasks range from building up the union to making it more relevant to members.

The committee was created after the last round of negotiations - an 18-month process that resulted in what some members view as a disappointing economic settlement. McCarthy has promised to consider all suggestions and concerns before issuing a formal set of recommendations on possible changes and reforms.

"We're going to make lots of recommendations about how we must act more as a union in the truest sense of the word." McCarthy said. "And much of that will be how to make the Guild more relevant.

"But the most important thing it will do is to find ways to bring us together. In the end, we all have the same interests. We just have to define them, agree upon them, and stick to them."

McCarthy's committee will include representatives from each Guild-represented department at The Buffalo News and, at some point, may request money to hire a consultant.