Labor Updates (8/7/08)

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)
Onion, Post Radio Workers Face Legal Setback: Workers at the Onion and now-defunct Washington Post Radio faced a setback in their nearly year-old legal battle against the Post. An administrative law judge, last month, rejected the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild – which represents the workers in the case – and National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) claim that the Post violated federal labor law by refusing to negotiate mid-contract about the terms of work performed at the radio and satirical paper. The Guild and NLRB presented arguments against the Post at a seven-day trial last fall (Post Trial Echoes Writer's Strike Issues 11/27/07 UC). “In the end, the case turned on seemingly obscure language about mid-term bargaining that was inserted into the 1995 contract – language the Guild had fought to keep out,” says the Guild. Though the judge rejected the refusal to bargain claim, he did agree that the Post withheld information requested by the Guild and found that there was convincing evidence the Post did not compensate radio employees for additional work duties they were required to perform. The Guild is considering an appeal to the full NLRB Board. Click here for more info.