Talkin' 'bout the next generation's editors

Guild and Journal Sentinel Inc. negotiators will meet soon to discuss how much bargaining-unit work MKE managers should be allowed to do.

In the main Journal Sentinel newsroom, the contract limits bargaining-unit work by managers. Because MKE is a new operation, the Guild agreed not to file any grievances over bargaining-unit work by the publication’s three managers through late October of this year. That was similar to the treatment of JS Online in its early years. The company has requested an extension of this temporary exemption, triggering the upcoming talks.

Journal Sentinel management has taken some positive steps this year to address Guild concerns about bargaining-unit work by newsroom managers, mainly through a contract provision that calls for gradually reducing the number of jobs excluded from contractual protection. In July, the company moved the vacant position of News Information Center manager into the bargaining unit. That followed a similar January move for the database editor. The Guild had repeatedly objected to the amount of bargaining-unit work handled by both of those managers.

As a result of those moves, the number of excluded positions has dropped from 58 last year to 56 this year. One more excluded job is to be moved into the bargaining unit by Jan. 1, followed by further negotiations on the issue next summer.