News' Intransigence Cited
in Grievance Onslaught

The Guild is moving toward an unprecedented number of arbitrations with The Buffalo News and all of them from one department - Circulation.

Union leaders cited The News' recent attack on its jurisdiction and its unwillingness to bargain as reasons for the high number of arbitrations.

Just how bad is it in Circulation?

At last count, 21 separate issues - many of them formal grievances - had been raised by Guild leaders in the department.

The News has responded in writing to the Guild, refusing to negotiate settlements on all but two of these grievances. In the words of Assistant Circulation Director Dominick Bordonaro "no contract violation, grievance denied."

At least 6 of the 21 issues deal with jurisdiction and job security, the lifeblood of the union and its members.

To help with the large number of arbitrations that may be forthcoming, the Guild is exploring the use of the CWA's legal services division. These services are provided to the Guild as part of its new relationship with CWA. The Local will also continue to rely on local counsel, Robert Reden.

The grievances in Circulation range from the firing of a Guild member to The News' use of managers and non-employees to do work normally done by Guild members.

"In my 12 years at The News, I can't ever remember this many grievances and complaints in one department," said Phil Fairbanks, vice president.

The outstanding issues include:

• The News' unilateral decision that all district managers be required to work until at least 8 p.m. each day, a violation of a previous grievance settlement and the Flex-Time clause in the contract.
• The Guild's claim that the newspaper violated state labor law by unilaterally freezing the wages of three members.
• The News' creation of a second single copy sales management job when only one is allowed under the contract.
• The paper's refusal to honor the $6 per shift increase in the differential for clerks. The upgrade was part of the recent contract settlement.

In some cases, the News' actions may warrant an attempt to achieve in the workplace what it could not win at the bargaining table. The Guild's lawyers are studying those instances with an eye toward deciding if they represent a violation of federal labor law.

Union leaders view the arbitrations as a last resort, the only option available given The Buffalo News' unwillingness to bargain over issues as basic as compensation and jurisdiction.

"After several meetings with News management to try and settle some Circulation grievances, we are at a stonewall - a dead stop in regards to a clarification of what work is normally and presently performed by Guild members," Dick Fay, vice chair for District Managers said. "We will have to arbitrate these issues to protect the jurisdiction of the entire Guild -- the Buffalo News is leaving us with no choice."

"This is an attempt by the Buffalo News to tear at the very heart of Guild jurisdiction," Local president Tina Destro said. "I am, to say the least, disheartened at the News' change in its willingness to participate in meaningful dialogue with the Guild on contractual issues. If this is a test, the Buffalo Newspaper Guild/CWA is more than prepared to meet the challenge."