Touting an anticipated contract proposal vote by Thursday, the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild ? negotiating with The Baltimore Sun Co.?s management since May 16 ? is nevertheless at loggerheads with the newspaper over two major issues.
The contract for the 465-member union expires June 24, with nonunion replacement workers from Sun owner Tribune Co.?s other papers likely poised to fill in should negotiations fail.
“The … issues that remain are pay ? where [management wants] way too much of it in pay-for-performance as opposed to directly onto the scale ? and [management?s] combination reporter-photographer [proposal],” said union negotiator and Guild unit chair Mike Hill.
Hill said that although management has improved its initial wage proposal, the Guild is proposing a yearly 3.25 percent wage raise that is not tied to performance.
“The pay-for-performance money ought to be on top of that,” Hill said.
Baltimore Sun spokeswoman Linda Yurche was noncommittal about any contract deal by Thursday.
“We certainly have been working at the table [to get] a contract in a reasonable amount of time that?s fair and realistic,” Yurche said. “But there certainly are some major issues that still separate the sides.”
Yurche would not comment on nonunion workers possibly poised to fill in but said, “The company is prepared for any contingency.”
Yurche?s comment was echoed by Tribune spokesman Gary Weitman.
“We?re certainly interested in fulfilling our obligations of publishing a newspaper,” Weitman said of the contingency.
