Guild's Newsroom Jurisdiction "IS Our Jobs"

By Jerry Sullivan
Editorial Vice Chair

There are times when I feel as if we've been bargaining forever. Actually, when you count the time spent on preparation for negotiations, we've been at it for close to a year now.

It's hard to point to specific accomplishments. At the table and in the workplace, the past year has been one long reminder of the problems that face the Guild. Every time you look around, you identify new ways in which The News has been trying to erode our jurisdiction in the newsroom.

Departmental bargaining was a frustrating but useful exercise on our floor. It allowed Guild members to sit down with management -- including middle managers -- for an open discussion of our problems. We were able to think about them creatively, although it was somewhat discouraging to find just how little regard they have for our jurisdiction.

As we always say, our jurisdiction IS our jobs, and The News is doing its best to erode it. As the company continues to seek new ways to cover the news on the cheap, we need to be increasingly vigilant in protecting our jobs. We must continue to point out the alarming lack of staff and let management know how it is diminishing the quality of the journalism.

The News' demand for increased "flexibility" is nothing more than a desire to further blur the lines of jurisdiction and cover the news more cheaply. That's the main reason bargaining has been such a slow process, because we have refused to back down. I know it's frustrating, but believe me, it was necessary, and it's not over.

As the year ended, the parties were trying to determine the boundaries of jurisdiction in the newsroom -- that is, what work belongs to Guild members. It's a tedious and difficult task, but a useful one.

At a time when when management claims we are overstaffed in the newsroom, and seeks to further downsize an editorial department that is staffed to the bone, it's more vital than ever to resist and to draw the line.

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