“IAPE Opposes Promotions and Merit Pay”

… and other myths told by Dow Jones managers

Ah, the week after Labor Day. Kids are back in school, the days are getting shorter, and summer vacation memories are beginning to fade. Halloween candy has been out on grocery store shelves for weeks. Before you know it, farmers will be getting ready to harvest their crops.

Which reminds us: It’s a shame Dow Jones isn’t in the agriculture business, because company managers sure seem to have a lot of extra fertilizer to sell this year.

Did you know that IAPE-represented employees are not eligible for merit pay increases this year, because of the new contract? Or, that bosses wanted to award merit raises this year, but the union contract kept them from doing so?

Maybe you’ve been thinking of asking your boss for a promotion—too bad you waited until now. Did you know that union members aren’t eligible for promotions during the months of July and August?

Did you know that NONE of this is true?

Yes, dear IAPE member, these are but a few of the fairy tales Dow Jones managers have been spinning. They’re told to employees year after year. In 2024, however, there seems to be a bumper crop of bad information.

So, let’s clear this up right now: the IAPE/Dow Jones contract—and yes, we’re talking about the new, 2023-27 contract posted on the union website and coming out in booklet form soon—establishes minimum annual pay raises for IAPE-represented workers. As we often explain, “IAPE negotiates pay floors, not pay ceilings.”

Take a look at the contract document—share it with your managers—you won’t find a single line restricting an employee’s ability to earn more money.

• No section of the IAPE contract prevents managers from awarding merit raises.

• No section of the IAPE contract restricts management from granting promotions.

• No section of the IAPE contract defines time periods when discretionary raises or promotions cannot be processed.

So, why do managers keep perpetuating these myths year after year?

Maybe it’s easier to try to blame “the union” instead of telling the truth: that their own department heads have restricted their budgets for discretionary pay increases. Maybe they have a few extra bucks for somebody in your department — but not you. Maybe they didn’t really want to give you a promotion anyway, but they find it difficult to say “no.”

Just add fertilizer.

To be completely clear, IAPE will never stand in the way of an employee receiving a promotion, even if that promotion means the employee is transferred out of the bargaining unit, as long as their new title is consistent with their regular responsibilities.

IAPE will never oppose merit pay, pay equity adjustments, discretionary raises, anti-poaching increases, bonuses, or other forms of additional compensation, so long as that compensation is reported to the union—as required by the contract—so we can scrutinize it for potentially discriminatory pay practices.

And IAPE will never stop explaining that when a manager tells you “it’s the union’s fault,” you’re hearing a tired, lazy excuse.

Heard any new manager myths this year? Let us know: we would love to add them to our list. Send a note to union@iape1096.org.

Performance Evaluations: “Nobody Gets Higher Than 3”
Speaking of manager myths, IAPE members have begun receiving their performance evaluation ratings for 2024, and wow, some of this year’s ratings are creative.

As Dow Jones returns to a five-point rating system—ranging from 1 for “not enough impact” through 5 for “transformational impact”—members have shared concerns about the ratings they received, many of which were lower than expected.

More troubling are the corresponding statements from managers, either telling members they “shouldn’t worry too much” about receiving a rating of 2, or returning to the tired manager myth that “nobody gets higher than 3.”

In April of this year, during a Labor/Management Committee meeting, IAPE first questioned the merits of a delay between evaluation discussions during the month of May and final ratings issued during August, with no written comments for an employee to review in the interim. During a follow-up meeting, IAPE raised concerns about the three-month period being used to “flatten out” ratings. Based on initial IAPE member feedback, these concerns were well founded.

Management explained that members expected to score low in August should be well aware of performance concerns, and that an employee receiving a “moderate impact” rating “should not be surprised.” Management claimed that Dow Jones People staff would be working to ensure underperforming ratings would not be held back until August. Finally, management claimed that there would be an expectation that members receiving a rating of 1 or 2 would likely be summoned to disciplinary meetings.

That doesn’t seem like a message members “shouldn’t worry too much” about.

The fact is, the process by which Dow Jones managers evaluate and rate employees is opaque and always has been. When a manager in a neighboring department tells an employee their rating should have been higher, how is an IAPE-represented employee supposed to have faith in getting a fair evaluation from their own boss?

If you’re unhappy with your rating this year, please know that you’re not alone. And remember that the IAPE/DJ contract provides all IAPE members with the right to “to affix their written response” to any performance review. If you need tips on responding to your 2024 rating, contact the IAPE office.

Speaking of Opaque . . .
In May, News Corp inked a $250 million deal with OpenAI. At the time, corporate announcements about the new partnership were long on hype and woefully short on details of how the influence of OpenAI might impact employees.

That hasn’t changed.

Months later, throughout Dow Jones, employees are encouraged to use new artificial intelligence tools and development has been underway on projects, but we still have not seen any meaningful information on how the company plans to use AI that could affect the jobs of IAPE members.

You deserve to know how the OpenAI partnership will affect your job. Sign this IAPE open letter calling for a town hall to answer members’ important questions.