10 July 2003

Local thwarts CanWest's
job-slashing manoeuvres

Ottawa Newspaper Guild | TNG Canada Local 30205

Job security was the issue going into contract bargaining and job security is what the Ottawa Newspaper Guild got at its conclusion.

After just seven bargaining sessions, the Guild and the Canwest Global-owned Ottawa Citizen agreed to a five-year deal, which gives the 230 members some long-term comfort and no weakening of the job security language in the contract.

With the transfer of more than 100 Citizen circulation and business office jobs to Winnipeg over the past year and CanWest's move to slash jobs through the centralization of news gathering, there was major concern that the company would come after job security clauses in ONG's contract.

That concern was heightened after the Local won a major arbitration last year that effectively prohibits the paper from laying off anyone in the newsroom as long as it uses freelance contributors. (Last year's freelance budget at the Citizen was about $1.8 million.)

Those concerns were founded when, on the first day of bargaining, the Citizen proposed a weakening of the freelance language that clearly would have allowed the newspaper to lay off at will, among other things.

Prior to the start of bargaining, the Local launched an awareness campaign using banks imprinted with the Guild logo and adorned with No Concessions stickers. The banks were displayed on most desks throughout the plant and were a clear sign to management that union members were saving their money in preparation for a strike if job security was on the table.

Armed with that type of backing from the membership and a short shopping list with job security as the number one item, bargaining began. It ended about a month and seven all-day sessions later.

The deal calls for an immediate pay raise of 2.25 per cent and increases of 2.0, 2.0, 2.5 and 2.5 per cent in subsequent years of the five-year deal.

In addition, there was an increase of 2.5 cents per kilometre in the mileage rate paid members using their private cars on company business.

Those with children needing orthodontic work made a big gain when the company agreed to coverage for braces.

The Guild agreed to allow its editorial employees to work weekly shifts of days and nights in the same week on a strictly voluntary level. The 'new' shift has to be posted and requires the company to pay night differential for all shifts if three of the five are at night.

A provision that required the company to pay a member for a minimum full day at overtime rates when called in to work on a day off has been changed to a guarantee of four hours, but all must be paid at double time rather than time and a half.

Country district supervisors in Reader Sales and Services have a cap on the number of overtime hours they can be forced to work. They will not be required to work pre-shift overtime in excess of two hours a day more than twice a week. A grievance involving overtime was dropped as a result.

A ratification meeting saw 90 per cent of those voting agreeing to the deal.