Support For Dow Jones Vaccine, Testing Plans

82% of IAPE members say “Yes” to vaccine requirement

IAPE TNG-CWA Local 1096 welcomes today’s announcement from Dow Jones CEO Almar Latour and Interim People Advisor Meredith Lubitz concerning the company’s plans for reopening U.S. offices on a voluntary basis.

Dow Jones plans to restrict building access to those who have been vaccinated against Coronavirus or have received a negative Covid-19 test during the seven days prior to an office visit. In addition, the Phase 2 date for volunteering to return to a Dow Jones office has been pushed back to Sept. 13.

Details of the company’s plans were shared with IAPE representatives on Monday, after IAPE President Jodi Green called on Dow Jones to tighten vaccine requirements.

“We note that Article XIX of the collective agreement states, ‘The Company will comply with federal, state and local standards to provide a safe and healthy workplace,’” Green wrote, in an Aug. 13 email to Dow Jones Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Tom Maher. “On the subject of vaccination requirements, we believe IAPE and Dow Jones should adopt a higher safety standard and demonstrate the leadership necessary to ensure the safety of all employees.”

The union supports these Phase 2 measures, even though they fall short of the “vaccine mandates” implemented at other businesses and favored by 81.8% of those who responded to an Aug. 10 IAPE survey.

Employees who opt for in-office work during Phase 2 will be required to complete a health screening questionnaire prior to entering a Dow Jones location, and must attest to being vaccinated for Coronavirus, or if not, have been tested and received a negative result prior to coming into the office.

Failing to provide honest questionnaire responses will be considered a violation of the Dow Jones Code of Conduct. Code infractions are addressed under the “Compliance” section, which reads, in part: “The matters addressed by this code are sufficiently important that any lapse in judgment within the areas covered here may be considered serious enough to warrant discipline up to and including dismissal.”

IAPE remains concerned, however, about Dow Jones plans for Phase 3 office reopenings, described in today’s Latour/Lubitz note:

“Additionally, we continue to prepare for our official re-entry launch for all of our global locations. While we are still confirming the details, we know that it will include a compulsory, but flexible working experience. More details will be shared soon. We will provide at least a month’s notification to allow for you to plan appropriately.”

IAPE has repeatedly insisted that it must be included in discussions of any plans affecting the union-represented workforce, and calls on Dow Jones to return to the bargaining table to negotiate over any “compulsory” work assignments.

81.8% of IAPE members responding to an Aug. 10 survey favor a vaccination requirement for those working at a Dow Jones office. See full survey results here.