CONTRACT RATIFIED!

Record turnout approves new four-year deal

IAPE members have voted by an overwhelming margin to approve a new contract with Dow Jones & Company.

Following the conclusion of a weeklong online voting period, election provider TrueBallot Inc. certified that IAPE members accepted a tentative agreement by a 97% margin. 1,042 union members voted to approve the deal, compared to 29 members voting to reject.

Nearly 81% of eligible IAPE voters cast a ballot during the ratification process, a new record-high turnout for the union.

“Visible membership support and participation were the only reasons IAPE was able to negotiate this industry-leading contract,” said IAPE President Jodi Green. “It is no surprise our members continued to speak loudly during ratification, and voted in record numbers.”

IAPE informed company officials of the election results earlier this morning.

With a new contract in place, Dow Jones will soon begin processing combined year one and two pay increases of 8.00%, retroactive pay increases of 4.25% with minimum payments of $4,250, and ratification bonuses equal to the greater of $1,000 or 1.00% of pay.

Additional raises of 3.75% will be paid on July 1, 2025 and July 1, 2026. When introductory scale increases and minimum dollar pay raises are factored in, the new contract will increase pay for IAPE-represented employees by 16.43% by the time it expires on June 30. 2027.

The new agreement also increases shift differential payments and standby pay rates by approximately 11% and makes more members eligible to sell one week of vacation back to the company each year. Covered employees working in the United States will also receive the Day After Thanksgiving as a paid holiday.

The union preserved its annual $700 physical fitness reimbursement, eliminated a distinction between primary and secondary caregivers eligible for paid parental leave and adopted a new bereavement leave policy providing five days of paid leave without any familial connection to the deceased.

IAPE successfully beat back several company proposals to increase health insurance plan copayments, deductibles and maximum out-of-pocket limits. Dow Jones achieved flexibility to increase insurance plan premiums for employees with dependents in 2025 and 2026, and for all staff in 2027, but the union preserved a freeze on premium rates through the end of 2024.

IAPE also negotiated a cap of three in-office working days through Dec. 31, 2024.

New seniority rules will create larger departments for purposes of increasing job security for longer-tenured employees, and News members working in remote bureaus, with three or fewer will be included with the rest of their department, wherever their manager is situated, when determining seniority protection.

Seniority windows have been increased to three years for new hires and two years for members with more than three years of service. When Dow Jones elects to eliminate positions within these windows, but outside of strict seniority order, it will be required to pay an additional two weeks of severance pay.

The company will also be required to pay four weeks’ extra severance when positions are eliminated as a result of the introduction of new technology and will be required to provide additional notice to employees and the union when new technology or artificial intelligence makes layoffs necessary. Dow Jones will not be permitted to use voice recordings to create AI-generated speech without an employee’s consent.

A contractual exclusion for Wall Street Journal Photo Editors, who voted to join the IAPE bargaining unit in 2023, will be removed from the new agreement. Several other contract language modifications were achieved, including a requirement for the company to notify both the employee and the union at least two hours in advance of a disciplinary meeting, or with one hour’s notice when Dow Jones is able to confirm the availability of an IAPE representative.

IAPE and Dow Jones representatives will continue to meet to transform the tentative agreement into final contract language. A new collective bargaining agreement document will be distributed as soon as it is available.