NLRB Sustains Guild Charge
on Cafeteria Changes

The National Labor Relations Board has asked The Buffalo News to resume nighttime cafeteria hours or face a formal complaint and hearing over its unilateral change in service.

The federal government's ruling, a major victory for the Newspaper Guild, is the first indication that an independent, third party agrees that The News violated federal labor law.

By ruling in the Guild's favor, the NLRB has told the company to return to its original cafeteria hours and bargain all future changes with the Guild and its other unions.

The ruling, which amounts to a settlement offer by the NLRB, follows a four-month investigation by the government.

The News can comply with the settlement offer or ignore it and face a formal complaint from the government. The case would then go to an administrative law judge for a hearing.

Robert Reden, the Guild's lawyer on the case, said the government has informed him that The News will not sign the settlement offer; therefore the matter will go to a hearing.

"I'm confident the administrative law judge will agree with us and find that The News violated the law when it unilaterally changed cafeteria hours and service," Reden said.

The order is the result of an Unfair Labor Practice charge filed by the Guild and two other unions at The News.
From Day One, the Guild has maintained that cafeteria service is a mandatory subject of bargaining and therefore union leaders should have been involved in making those changes.

The changes, which include the elimination of nighttime service on the 5th floor and all service on the 2nd floor, have left nightside employees without a suitable alternative.

Most of the restaurants near The News are closed in the evening and, even if they were not, many nightside employees are unable to leave the building because of deadlines and their half-hour dinner break.

Before filing the ULP charge, the Guild attempted to bargain a settlement with company executives. The goal was to maintain, at the very least, a minimal level of nighttime cafeteria service.

At every meeting, The News said "no."

"Obviously, we're very happy with the ruling," said Local President Bob DiCesare. "It verifies that there's a process that needs to be followed and that The News circumvented that process."

On one minor point, the Guild did lose. The board rejected the Guild's claim that The News was involved in "direct dealing" with union members. Leaders from the Guild and the other two unions are pleased with the overall ruling and will not appeal that aspect of the decision.