Notification of Referenda to Remove IAPE Dues Cap

Dear IAPE Members, 

The board of Directors of IAPE Local 1096 recommends and presents for membership vote the removal of the $22.04 cap to the bi-weekly dues assessment effective with the first pay deposit in January. 

This change requires approval of the majority of members voting in a secret ballot, as outlined in Article XVII, Section A of the union’s bylaws, and will be decided along with the election of officers and directors in the Fall.  

IAPE’s dues assessment of 0.7% of bi-weekly dues is the lowest among our peers, nearly half of what our counterparts at The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times and many other news organizations pay for union representation. Removing the cap, which results in the lower paid members contributing a higher portion of their pay towards dues, is a matter of equity. About 44% of our members would see no change to their dues if this measure is passed. Of those affected, about a third would see an increase of less than $5 per pay period. Going forward, individual dues payments for all members would be adjusted as members’ pay rates increase.

The funds added to IAPE’s operating budget from the dues cap removal would go towards hiring a full-time professional staff employee to serve members, defend our contract and help prepare for an even stronger contract campaign in 2022. IAPE will also be able to invest in more legal support to consult on contract matters and union governance, areas that have not received adequate resources or attention for many years. Additional funding will permit IAPE to continue paying for a robust annual audit of finances and greater scrutiny of our regulatory filings, and allow the union to avoid deficit spending and maintain its healthy reserve funds. 

IAPE was formed by a group of Wall Street Journal reporters as an in-house union more than 80 years ago. For more than half a century, IAPE was completely volunteer run, members negotiated contracts and fought for workplace rights while doing their full-time jobs. The union eventually hired staff to support our operations and to help with member representation, though IAPE hasn’t had the resources to keep more than one full-time permanent position on payroll in its history and the union’s expression has mostly depended on the strength of its volunteer leaders. 

With ever increasing demands on our workforce and the heightened need for union presence in our working lives, the constraints of operating on a volunteer model are no longer sustainable. 

We strongly encourage you to vote YES on removing the dues cap so we can bring equity to our dues structure and invest in the future of the union. 

Important Information: 
Dues Referendum Summary & FAQ
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Town Hall Meetings:
Sept. 15, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET
Sept. 17, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET
Sept. 18, Noon to 1 p.m. ET
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