After eight grueling months of bargaining talks, the Washington Post and the Washington-Baltimore News Guild have reached a tentative agreement on a new two-year contract. The pact includes a 4.5 percent raise, the largest increase in at least a decade. The Post has also agreed to continue providing health care insurance for part-time employees and maintain the current language on severance pay... click below to read more.
photo: January 13 picket; photo by Chris Garlock
photo: January 13 picket; photo by Chris Garlock
In addition, full-time Post employees will receive a $500 signing bonus and part-time employees will receive $350. While the Post did prevail in its demand to slash retirement benefits, the Guild credited the local’s mobilization efforts for its success in blocking all of the Post’s many other demanded takebacks. “The Guild has battled fiercely since talks began on Sept. 23, 2014,” said the Post bargaining committee, “marching on picket lines, circulating a petition, participating in videos, and spreading the word through the news media – and because of that, we have won many important concessions and blocked many bad management proposals.” The tentative agreement is still subject to a ratification vote by Guild members, which is scheduled for June 10.