Guild's Drama, Democracy
Work for Members

by Phil Fairbanks
Vice President

We may debate. We may argue. We may fight among ourselves. But for all its warts, the Guild is democratic.

And that's what I enjoy most about an institution that can also rival your favorite soap opera for melodrama.

But guess what? It's ours and it can work. Not always. But the Guild has a long record of changing the status quo at The Buffalo News. I've seen it happen.

The changes are sometimes big like 1993 when the Guild lifted one of the caps on the News pension plan and provided retirement benefits to employees who didn't have them. More often, the changes are small like when Guild members in Classified and Circulation received back pay that the News had tried to withhold from them.

Over the coming year, the Guild will reach out to its members, the people who combat under staffing and disrespect in their daily quest to put out a quality newspaper. The goal is to make the Guild more relevant.

The effort, thanks to former president Bob McCarthy, already is under way. His strategic planning committee has many tasks and one of them is answering that nagging question:

What do people want their union to be?

In Editorial, the Guild will work to bring about the Newsroom Forum. The concept of an ongoing, open forum with Editor and Senior Vice President Murray B. Light was part of a past agreement with News management. For some reason, the idea was never carried out.

This grand plan for grass roots involvement follows 18 months of protracted bargaining, a roller coaster ride that resulted in important gains and big disappointments.

Many are quick to blame our failures on the Guild's "lack of will," an inherent reluctance to fight the good fight. More than anyone else in this Local, I've been involved in this union's workplace and community actions.

Yes, some of the criticism is valid. Much of it is not.

What's important at this point is to identify what we did right and what we did wrong. And then fix it. To dwell on past failures is unproductive.

If you are one of those people who prefers to sit around and point fingers for the next five years, fine. Just get out of the way. We'll move ahead without you.