Bargaining Update: We Waited for That?

Also, Register for Open Bargaining

Dow Jones Changes Parental Leave

Join the IAPE CAT!

With the holidays over, Dow Jones and IAPE returned to the virtual bargaining table Thursday ready to build on all the progress made during December negotiations and, with more than 50 IAPE members joining as open bargaining observers, hammer out an agreement for a new collective bargaining agreement.

Just kidding.

What actually happened is Dow Jones offered a department list relatively unchanged from its Dec. 7 proposal. Management apparently overlooked IAPE’s Dec. 14 proposal in which IAPE accepted all the company’s department merger responses except those for Investigative, Life & Work (in Washington), Washington Bureau and BG Barron’s groups.

Dow Jones filled in some missing gaps by agreeing to union merger proposals in WSJ Web and WSJ Web Mobile departments, but continued to list 52 departments as “under discussion - awaiting union response.”

The responses we provided three weeks ago.

Look, we get it. The holidays are busy times. People are on vacation. There are other work responsibilities. The same is true for IAPE’s mostly-volunteer Bargaining Committee. And it takes a lot of work to dig through a list of Dow Jones departments and determine whether common work groups should be merged. We should know, it was our proposal. However, to all but ignore the union’s department responses—not to mention failing to provide any meaningful counters on other job security proposals or artificial intelligence—is disappointing.

We told the company on Thursday, we recognize we have reached many tentative agreements in this process so far. Still, a significant amount of work remains to reach a deal on big-ticket items like wages and health care premiums. If we can’t be certain the company is going to seriously consider union proposals on subjects where we are close to an agreement, what should we expect for topics where great distances between IAPE and Dow Jones remain?

We’ll find out soon enough. Bargaining resumes Thursday, Jan. 11. All members are welcome to join open bargaining as observers. See your email for registration links..

Company Announces Parental Leave Changes
Dow Jones representatives opened bargaining on Thursday with an apology of sorts, explaining that a Jan. 3 notice in The Lede announcing changes to the company’s Parental Leave Policy was delivered without the knowledge of the company’s Legal department.

“We would have given you a heads up,” management said.

ICYMI, the item read, “We’re excited to announce a significant enhancement to our Paid Parental Leave policy, effective Jan. 1, 2024. Starting in the new year, Dow Jones is eliminating the distinction between primary and secondary caregivers. This change ensures that all benefit-eligible Dow Jones employees, regardless of caregiver status, will now be entitled to 20 weeks of paid parental leave."

This, of course, is a change IAPE proposed at the outset of this round of contract negotiations—one the company appeared to accept, but with a requirement for the union to waive bargaining rights over future changes to this and other benefits, including health care, other leaves of absence and severance pay.

The union welcomes the company’s decision to finally eliminate the distinction between primary and secondary caregivers, and will continue to insist on the ability to negotiate improvements to Dow Jones benefits and policies affecting union-represented employees.

Join the IAPE CAT!
IAPE will be ramping up collective actions in 2024 similar to the Almar Candy Gram campaign at the end of 2023. If you'd like to assist in planning and coordinating those efforts, email us at union@iape1096.org to join the Contract Action Team (CAT). Questions about negotiations are welcome at the same address.

The New York Times Guild built a similar CAT to help facilitate actions during their lengthy negotiations for a new contract. The CAT was a driving force in getting members motivated and involved in bargaining and was ultimately influential in members’ walkout and eventual deal. 

The next IAPE CAT meeting, via Zoom, is Tuesday, Jan. 9 at 1:00 p.m. EST.

Kickoff 2024 with IAPE Open Bargaining

Join us this Thursday, Jan. 4 at 10:00 a.m. EST for the first IAPE Open Bargaining session of 2024. With your support, we will continue to fight for a fair and equitable contract. 

See your email for registration links. You will receive the meeting link on Thursday morning. 

For an overview of IAPE and Dow Jones proposal documents, visit the Bargaining 2023 section of our website. 

This Holiday Season, Support Pittsburgh Guild Members

Our union siblings at the Pittsburgh Post Gazette have been on strike since October 18th, 2022. 

Despite a lack of income and loss of their healthcare coverage, these Guild members have remained committed to their efforts and each other. They’ve even started their own publication, The Pittsburgh Union Progress (subscribe here), which not only provides updates on their strike and efforts of other labor unions but also produces its own local news stories. 

Strikers have brought Scabby to a wedding, purchased flyovers at football games, and have held many, many fundraisers including this recent holiday bake sale.

One of the efforts that IAPE has been proud to support is the Adopt-a-Striker program, where our union makes weekly payments to help offset the day-to-day costs of one of the strikers. We’ve been participating in this program since February 2023, and, at this Tuesday’s IAPE Board of Directors meeting, our Board voted to continue sponsoring our striker until a deal is reached or a reassessment can be made in 6 months. 

In the spirit of the holiday season, help us spread some more cheer Pittsburgh’s way by donating to their strike fund and participating in the Pittsburgh Strike Santa program.

In Solidarity!

Open Bargaining Sign-Up and Collective Actions

Tomorrow: Join us for Open Bargaining!

IAPE and Dow Jones reps return to the virtual contract table tomorrow, Dec. 21 at 10:30 a.m. EST. All members interested in observing negotiations—and displaying support for the IAPE bargaining committee—can sign up to attend open bargaining. Register here, and we’ll add you to the meeting invitation!

Almar’s Candy Grams Delivered!

Today a group of IAPE members in the NY office delivered 296 candy gram messages we’ve collected for Dow Jones CEO, Almar Latour, over the past two weeks. Check out our posts on X (Formerly known as Twitter), Instagram and Facebook and make sure to share them!

When they approached Almar’s office, our members were met by Tom Maher, a familiar face from the bargaining table and part of the Dow Jones Legal team. Tom told our members that they couldn’t be there and asked them to leave. Our members stood strong and told him that they just wanted to make sure Almar got this gift from IAPE members. Our efforts definitely struck a nerve! 

Our campaign received messages from IAPE members, family members, friends, union siblings at the CWA and TNG, and even a self-proclaimed WSJ subscriber. Great work folks! 

This was an excellent action to build up our public support and send a message directly to Almar. As we continue to stand our ground on key issues like wages and healthcare premiums, we’re looking forward to escalating collective actions in the offices and public spaces going into the new year. 

Join the Contract Action Team and help create and coordinate these future actions. In Solidarity!

Bargaining Update: Dow Jones Needs Clarity

Make sure Almar gets your message!

Negotiations between IAPE and Dow Jones continued this morning—in front of dozens of IAPE observers—and the union presented its latest proposal on job security and artificial intelligence. Despite the importance of these topics, and news from the company that they accepted IAPE’s last proposal on health care, preserving a 20% coinsurance rate for POS II plan participants, it was management’s responses during a discussion about pay that raised many IAPE eyebrows.

“I’m getting a little bit of, not complete clarity on the message here,” Tom Maher said, speaking on behalf of the company. “You made clear that 3% isn’t going to do it, but you didn’t make clear that anything less than 10% would be acceptable.”

Maher was referring, of course, to IAPE’s current proposal to increase wages, in a new contract, by 10% in 2023, 8% in 2024, and 8% in 2025—proposals the union has repeatedly claimed a company enjoying quarter after quarter of record profits should be able to accommodate.

What could be clearer than that?

“We could tell you at the table,” IAPE rep Tim Martell responded, “but we’re reaching the place where our members are going to have to demonstrate in the offices.”

“We don’t want this to be long and rancorous, but it may need to be.”

IAPE members can begin demonstrating to Dow Jones management that the company needs to negotiate toward the union’s wage demands by sending a holiday message to CEO Almar Latour. FELLOW IAPE MEMBER, THIS MEANS YOU! Thus far, Latour has received his bargaining updates through the filter of his bargaining team. Let’s make sure he hears directly from those calling for the pay increases they deserve. Sign your card today!

Back at the bargaining table, management again claimed it has shown “flexibility” in negotiating toward a wage agreement, while accusing IAPE of not showing the same consideration. Meanwhile, Dow Jones wage proposals have remained at 3% since they were first offered in August, almost two months after negotiations began.

Four months later, Dow Jones continues to offer 3% pay increases in each contract year, with a 0.25% lump sum payment to offset health care premium increases. Those premiums, as proposed by the company, could result in up to 30% increases for those with dependents. An “offset” of a tiny, non-compounding, one-time lump sum, doesn't add up for us.

In addition to the holiday message campaign, the IAPE Contract Action Team is planning other events and activities for member participation and escalation. To join this team, please email us at cat@iape1096.org. The more participation we have, the more we can do and the more seriously the company will take the collective voice of our members.

We hope a contract settlement materializes before needing to escalate to a consideration of withholding our labor, but to reach agreement we need to have a willing partner.

Dow Jones did not seem to be that partner today.

Negotiations continue next Thursday morning. See your email for a registration link to join as an open bargaining observer.

Bargaining Update: Department Makes a Difference

Join us for Open Bargaining next week – bring a friend!

Sign up for IAPE 101 and Contract 101

During yesterday’s contract negotiations between IAPE and Dow Jones, management provided its latest response to union proposals to combine departments and increase job security for members. IAPE and Dow Jones have reached agreement in a number of areas. However, many News departments remain “in dispute.”

So, why does department structure matter?

As we have highlighted to members before, seniority protection is determined by your Dow Jones hire date compared to peers with the same title, working in the same department and location. But the current contract defines “department” as a group of employees under a particular department head. For example, dozens of reporters with the “Washington Bureau” department designation are actually in ten different “departments” and seniority groups because they all have different department heads.

That needs to change.

The union also has concerns with the company’s proposals to change contract language establishing importance of an employee’s work location, and will respond when bargaining resumes next Thursday, Dec. 14. Negotiations are open for all members to observe—yesterday, 50 IAPE members displayed their support for the union bargaining team—see the registration link in your email to attend. And watch this space for details of some exciting, seasonal member actions coming soon!

Next Week: IAPE 101 and Contract 101
Please also register for IAPE 101 and Contract 101 classes, scheduled for Monday and Wednesday of next week, respectively.

IAPE 101 is a half-hour class addressing the basics of IAPE membership: What is a union? How does IAPE function? How does IAPE fit into Dow Jones? What are the benefits of union membership? We also save plenty of time for Q&A, especially for members who have questions about contract negotiations. Join us Monday at 2:00 p.m. EST.

During Wednesday’s Contract 101 class, we’ll take a closer look at the various forms of compensation available to IAPE-represented employees. Overtime, comp time, holiday pay, standby pay, shift differential, and more. We’ll talk about it all! Sign up to attend Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. EST.

Registration is available for both classes on the IAPE Events page.

Open Bargaining Tomorrow

IAPE and Dow Jones contract negotiations will continue with a remote session scheduled for tomorrow morning. All interested members are invited to join open bargaining, and can receive a meeting link by clicking the registration link in their email.

Last week, the union and the company continued to discuss department structures and seniority protection. IAPE responded to management’s News department proposal, and Dow Jones responded to union proposals to merge certain workgroups within New Ventures, Media Sales, PIB and Print & Customer Service.

Wednesday: IAPE 101
IAPE 101, the union’s orientation class for newcomers and Q&A session for veteran members, makes its return on Wednesday, Dec. 6. At 2:00 p.m. EST. All members may join our remote feed. Please register through the IAPE Events Page to receive your meeting link.

IAPE 101 is a half-hour class addressing the basics of IAPE membership: What is a union? How does IAPE function? How does IAPE fit into Dow Jones? What are the benefits of union membership? We also save plenty of time for Q&A, especially for members who have questions about contract negotiations.

We Have a Logo Winner!
Congratulations to Taryn Boss, designer of the winning entry in the 2023 IAPE logo contest. Taryn’s logo was selected by members who voted on four logo choices, which means she receives our $500 prize. Thanks to all members who entered the contest, and thanks to all for voting on a winner!

IAPE’s Letter to The Guild

“Local 1096, the Independent Association of Publishers’ Employees representing more than 1,400 employees of Dow Jones & Company, opposes adoption of any position by The NewsGuild or its parent or member unions on the Hamas-Israel war or other public controversies.”

So begins a Nov. 24 letter from the IAPE Board of Directors to the Executive Council of our parent union, The NewsGuild-CWA (TNG). The message was sent after the IAPE Board became aware of the subject matter of a Nov. 21 Guild meeting where the Council was pressured to release a statement urging "the U.S. government to stop funding and supporting Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians."

Semafor highlighted portions of the IAPE letter in a Nov. 26 article.

The IAPE Board is strongly opposed to statements of political advocacy from our parent union, which represents journalists across the United States and Canada, including many who find themselves in harm’s way in conflict zones at this very moment.

The Board felt it necessary to act swiftly against an action that would put TNG in conflict with the standards of conduct applying to employees at Dow Jones and other legitimate news organizations. The governing body of the New York Times Guild has delivered a similar message.

The NewsGuild's Executive Council held a closed-door meeting Tuesday night to discuss the issue but has not announced any action. We will provide an update when we learn more.

IAPE is your union. The NewsGuild is our parent union and is a sector of the Communications Workers of America. Unionized staff at the New York Times belong to a separate local—the NewsGuild of New York—and are divided into two separate bargaining units: the New York Times Guild and the New York Times Tech Guild. The NewsGuild of New York is, like IAPE, a local union within the NewsGuild.

Bargaining Update: Health Care Details

IAPE presented a limited issues proposal to Dow Jones today, with a union offer to permit POS II deductibles to increase by $100 for individuals and $200 for families in return for preserving 20% coinsurance for the same plan. Dow Jones had previously proposed having the flexibility to increase the employee share of coinsurance to 25%.

Reaching agreement on these final two points would mean IAPE and Dow Jones have completed negotiations over the ability to make U.S. healthcare plan design changes in 2025 and 2026. The union and the company had previously reached tentative agreements on CDHP and Basic plan designs.

However, the parties are still far apart on potential health insurance premium increases. Now that Dow Jones has agreed to remove the “confidential” stamp from its health care proposals, IAPE can finally share premiums proposals the company delivered in September.

While management has pledged to keep premiums flat for employee-only POS II, CDHP, and Basic coverage through the life of the next contract, employees with dependents could see premium increases of almost 30% under the company’s plan. Members in California who purchase Kaiser coverage could see premium rates increase whether they have dependents or not.

IAPE has countered with a proposal to permit premium rates to increase by 0.25% of salary in 2024, with strict caps on premium increases of no more than the rate of inflation for 2025 and 2026.

IAPE and Dow Jones will return to the contract table on Thursday to discuss department structures and job security. To join open bargaining as an observer, please register through the link provided in your email.

Sign up for Open Bargaining

Contract negotiations between IAPE and Dow Jones will continue tomorrow, Nov. 28. Bargaining is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. EST, and members are again invited to attend via Google Meet.

To join the IAPE team as an open bargaining observer, please register through the link provided in your email.

Join our Bargaining Committee!
Since it seems unlikely negotiations will produce a final agreement anytime soon, we’re putting out a new invitation to any members who might be interested in joining the union Bargaining Committee. Are you an IAPE member who has been following our contract updates and would like to get involved in contract proposal planning? Are you interested in joining the in-person or virtual negotiation group? You’re just the person we need on our team!

For more information about joining the committee, send a note to union@iape1096.org.

File for Holiday Pay
In case you missed our note to members on Friday, members based in the U.S. who were required to work on Thanksgiving or the day after are entitled to Holiday Pay for all hours worked. Holiday Pay applies to ALL union-represented staff, whether you are considered overtime-exempt or not.

Yes, everybody. Even you.

File for your Holiday Pay through Workday. If you’re not familiar with the process (remember to enter your regular hours worked for other days during the workweek!), contact the IAPE office, or reach out to Payroll for assistance.

File for Fitness Reimbursement
Finally, please remember the deadline for IAPE-represented employees to submit physical fitness expenses for 2023 is Nov. 30. That’s this Thursday!

As a union-represented employee, you can be reimbursed for up to $700 of the employee-only costs of physical fitness activities and memberships ranging from health club memberships and personal trainers to entry fees for road races and tennis court fees.  Worth noting, home gym equipment is not eligible for reimbursement.

Expenses must be submitted to WageWorks by Nov. 30 in order to be reimbursed by the end of the calendar year. Any expenses submitted after Nov. 30 will count toward the maximum benefit payable for 2024.

You may file for reimbursement by logging into www.wageworks.com and submitting your request or by completing a reimbursement request form, available on the HR Hub.