IF THEY SETTLE: The ownership will have expended all goodwill and local-boys-make-good political capital earned from buying the Inky/DN out of Knight-Ridder indentured servitude and now leads a dispirited and mutinous newsroom aboard a creaking wooden ship into the darkening seas of print journalism’s final voyage, hoping against
hope that the scout team sent to Online Island returns with news of a place to dock, potable water and low-hanging fruit that can sustain the captain and crew into the sunset of senescence.
IF THEY STRIKE: Guild puts out online paper and really gets the hang of this Web content thing and FINALLY figures out that there’s more to it than just printing your newspaper on the Internet. Or maybe not. The logo they’ve chosen looks like a brochure for a Rittenhouse dentist. Message to Guild: Go Wild! Think like a coed at Mardi Gras. And you will get all the beads you need. Meanwhile, back at the scab paper, things turn into the Metro pretty quick as readers fall away like leaves on a once mighty oak, joining the strange new flora and fauna of blogs and other online whatnot growing out of other once-mighty oaks now moldering on the media forest floor. Once the strike ends, Philly Media Holdings realizes just how short their legs have grown, and how tall every other player in town has grown in process. The Daily News keeps on keepin’ on and the Inquirer becomes like that tree in the woods that nobody realizes is long-dead until the day somebody leans up against it and it falls over.
SGT. BYKO’S STRIKE FAQ AFTER THE JUMP
If we strike here are some answers to
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
How will I know we’re on strike?
Your picket captain or designee will alert you via telephone or private email. If you miss the call or can’t get on the web, check the news; call the Guild at 215-928-0118. There will be a Guild hotline operating throughout a strike and frequent updates on our web page: HYPERLINK “http://www.local-10.com” www.local-10.com.
Will I get health insurance?
Yes, the Guild Health and Welfare fund will continue to cover your health insurance.
Will I get strike pay?
Yes. On the eighth day of the strike, you’ll get a check for $150.
On the fifteenth day you’ll get a check for $200.
On the twenty-ninth day you’ll get a check for $300 and again each week until the end of the strike.
How do I get my strike pay?
Your picket captain will hand out the checks on the picket line. Those working in other capacities for the Guild strike will get checks from their team leaders.
What are we doing about scabs?
We’re all in this together and our power is in our numbers. Some bosses are already quietly telling staffers that it would be a bad idea to cross a picket line. In previous strikes, the bosses have done this as well. The problem with scabs is that nobody can trust them — not the union, not the Company.
What about paying my bills?
Try prepaying some of your bills and call your creditors to tell them you’re involved in a labor action. In the 1985 strike, the Credit Union moved its office to the Guild hall so it could service people. We’re hoping to make the same arrangement if we go out this time. Members should consider signing up with temporary employment agencies or finding part-time work.
And, today would be a great day to put in for that overtime you’ve already earned.
Newspaper Guild of Greater Philadelphia
Sector of Communications Workers of America TNG 10/CWA 38010 AFL-CIO, CLC
1329 Buttonwood Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19123 ? 215-928-0118 — Fax: 215-928-9177
e-mail: HYPERLINK “http://www.Local-10.com” www.Local-10.com