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UNION NEWS
Sharing the Load
The Newspaper Guild –CWA successfully negotiated the option of
job sharing for its members at the Times Union newspaper in Albany,
New York. In a job share, the 37.5-hour week is divided between the
two employees to suit their needs, not necessarily divided equally.
Both employees receive benefits on a pro-rated basis, except for healthcare,
which is paid in full by the employer. Any hours worked over the regular
37.5-hour week will be paid as overtime. The number of holidays is divided
between the employees and pro-rated. The job share partners may change
their schedules as long as regular work hours are covered. The Newspaper
Guild has negotiated similar job share agreements with other employers
around the country. (The Newspaper Guild-CWA & the Times Union)
Longshoremen Commit to Child Care
The Pacific Coast International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU)
representing longshore and warehouse workers in California, Oregon,
and Washington has made a commitment to address the child care needs
of its members. In its Pacific Coast Longshore Contract, the union negotiated
the formation of a Joint Child-Care Committee to research, plan and
implement an on- or near-site 24 hour child care facility. (Pacific
Coast ILWU & the Pacific Maritime Association, representing multiple
employers)
Fire Fighters Win Family Care Leave
The San Francisco Fire Fighters Union successfully negotiated up to
one year of unpaid family care leave for the birth of a child, child-rearing
responsibilities or to take care of a physically impaired family member.
The definition of “family” includes domestic partners, parents
of domestic partners and any child for whom the employee has parenting
or child rearing responsibilities. The employee has the option to use
accrued vacation time and/or sick leave during family care leave. The
employee will continue to receive full health and dental care benefits
for him/herself and dependents while on leave. The Union also negotiated
the option of a temporary modified duty assignment for up to 6 months
for female employees returning to work from maternity leave. (San
Francisco Fire Fighters Union Local 798, IAFF & the City and County
of San Francisco)
AFSCME Wins Employer Paid Disability
In a memorandum of understanding with the East Bay Regional Park District,
AFSCME Local 2428 in California negotiated for employee contributions
to the state’s disability insurance program to be paid by the
employer. California’s disability insurance is employee-funded
and provides partial pay for employees out on disability. Beginning
July 2004, employees participating in the program will also be eligible
for partial pay when taking leave under California’s new paid
family leave law. (AFSCME Local 2428 & East Bay Regional Park District,
California)
UAW Leads the Way: Quality Child Care for Members,
Quality Jobs for Providers
When the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace
and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW) got into the child
care business on behalf of their members they introduced the union concept
of competitive pay and apprenticeship programs to the field. The result
is every child care advocate’s dream: affordable, quality child
care by well-trained and highly compensated teachers.
In order to provide autoworkers with affordable, quality child care,
the UAW negotiated with the “Big Three” auto companies (GM,
Daimler-Chrysler, and Ford) in 1991 for child care centers close to
UAW unionized plants. Through the agreement, the Big Three subsidize
the child care workers’ pay to attract and retain the best quality
teachers without putting a burden on the autoworkers. The center teachers,
also UAW members, now earn some of the highest wages and benefits in
the field. And, like their union brothers and sisters in the auto plants,
they now go through an extensive apprenticeship program to receive on-the-job
training in addition to classroom learning.
“This is the second year of the program and it is going very well,”
says Karen Eaton, Center Director for the UAW child care center in Flint,
Michigan. “From my perspective as a director, the apprenticeship
program provides the best of both worlds -- hands on experience and
book knowledge at the same time. When they succeed, they know they didn’t
just pass a test, they performed on the job.”
The UAW developed the Child Development Specialist Apprenticeship (CDSA)
Program through a grant from the US Department of Labor, Bureau of Apprenticeship
and Training. Child care apprentices must complete 3,700 hours of on-the-job
training and 300 hours of classroom instruction. The apprentices can
get credit for their work experience and earn a paycheck while they
learn. And their pay goes up as they complete the program.
According to a joint report by the Center for the Child Care Workforce
and the Institute for Industrial Relations, financial incentives linked
to training are the key to quality child care. “Quality suffers
when there is high turnover due to low pay – but most parents
can’t afford to pay the kinds of wages it costs to provide quality
care,” explained Angie Klee, President of Synergy Inc., an organization
that coordinates child care and other work/family programs. “I
think the answer is to subsidize child care – whether it is the
government or business. UAW members were successful in negotiating this
with their employer and in setting up a great apprenticeship program.
Hopefully, others will learn from this model.”
Julia Orr, a center teacher and UAW member in Flint, Michigan agrees
that professional training and higher pay helped her stay and grow in
her current program. “10 years ago I was making $5/an hour in
child care -- I couldn’t afford to stay at that program!”
she said. “I have been here 8 years now – we have almost
0% turnover at this center. Being paid fairly makes a difference. And
the apprenticeship program gives us room to grow professionally as well.
This is the way it should be – I would really like to see programs
like this in the rest of child care.”
Bush Administration Rescinds “Baby UI”
On October 9th, 2003, the Bush administration officially rescinded
the "Baby UI" Rule.
The Rule permitted states to pass a law that would allow workers to use
unemployment insurance (“UI”) to take parental leave to care
for a newborn or newly adopted child. Even though no states had taken
advantage of the ruling to extend UI to new parents, supporters of Baby
UI see it as a step back from allowing states to meet their families needs.
According to Lissa Bell of the National Partnership for Women and Families, by responding to American workers’ critical need for income during family leave, the Rule gave states the chance to help new parents stay employed while on leave. “While the Rule did not create, but rather "blessed," this right, the Bush administration's withdrawal of the Rule is an attempt to chill potential state UI Parental Leave initiatives,” she said. “As a consequence, American families are hurt.”
Making The Case For Paid Family Leave:
How California’s Landmark Law Was Framed In The News
By Lori Dorfman, Berkeley Media Studies Group
Advocates won paid family leave in California faster than anyone imagined
they would — but not without a fight. To aid our understanding
of this important public debate, the Berkeley Media Studies Group (BMSG)
examined the battle with an analysis of how proponents and opponents
of the Paid Family Leave Bill (Senate Bill 1661) made their case in
news coverage.
BMSG collected news from California and the nation as debate on SB 1661 heated up in the months prior to the Governor’s signing the bill and the weeks following, from June 1 through October 31, 2002. The 304 newspaper, radio and television pieces they analyzed contained 15 different frames on paid family leave: six supporting the policy, six against, and three neutral.
Frames in support of SB 1661 emphasize the benefits of paid family leave for family health and well-being; as a response to workplace realities; or as a benefit making both individual businesses and the whole state stronger and more competitive. The Caring family, bonding moms frame emphasized the value of the law to families. Balancing work and family reminded audiences of the context for paid family leave. These two frames appeared most often, in part because both sentiments were articulated at the top of the legislation itself. Business wins too explained that happy workers meant profitable businesses. Make family leave real pointed out the difficulties of family leave without real support; Corporate family values said that businesses have a responsibility to the communities in which they work, including support for their workers; and Competitive advantage maintained that paid family leave would enhance the business climate in California.
The frames against SB 1661, in descending order, include: Unfair
burden; Competitive disadvantage; Tax on jobs; Nanny state/slippery
slope; Good idea, but…; and No safeguards. The thrust
of these frames is that paid family leave, while perhaps a nice idea,
will be a burden to workers, employers, businesses and the state as
a whole, and more darkly, could set California on a slippery slope toward
a European-style welfare state. Through a strong network of local spokespeople
connected to the Chambers of Commerce, opponents were able to repeat
the Unfair Burden frame in most news coverage.
The three neutral frames have more to do with routine news constructions
then with paid family leave per se. They represent typical tenets of
what is considered newsworthy: “firsts” and “political
contests.” The Landmark law frame is about California
being the first state in the nation to enact paid family leave. Slugfest
highlights the political contest and Political ploy focuses
on Governor Davis’ support of paid family leave as a political
maneuver to attract support at the polls.
Television coverage had fewer frames than print. Television news focused
primarily on Balancing work and family, illustrating the frame
with multiple images of mothers caring for their infants. Television
news could easily leave viewers with the impression paid family leave
was about moms and babies rather than various forms of family care it
actually covers.
BMSG’s framing analysis provides insight into California’s
fight for paid family leave, but there will be unique challenges, frames
and points of contention in every state that works to enact this essential
public policy. As advocates in other states work to secure passage of
similar laws, supporters should remember to tie the technical talk to
values, so that paid family leave’s purpose is not lost in a technical
sea of numbers and nuances.
Download a copy of Making the Case for Paid Family Leave: How California’s
Landmark Law was Framed in the News at www.paidfamilyeave.org. Find
this and other studies from the Berkeley Media Studies Group at www.bmsg.org.
Media
“Dos and Don’ts” When Advocating for Paid Family Leave
Framing paid family leave effectively can be challenging:
our arguments are more complicated and lengthy, while our opposition
gets away with being short and sweet. Don’t let that stop you,
though. Making the case for paid family leave in the news media is more
important than ever. Inserting arguments for paid family leave into
public discussion bolsters our supporters and helps them speak out and
join the fight. If we don’t make ourselves and our beliefs visible,
our core supporters will feel they are all alone and be less likely
to voice their support when the time comes.
A few simple hints for success:
Don’t
get bogged down responding to an opponents’ frame. The idea is not to convince the opposition, but to give voice to those who agree with you. Say what your supporters need to hear, the words that connect to why they value paid family leave.Dofocus on details; keep to your main point. Explain the nuances of legislation when you have to, but don’t stop there. Connect the details to why paid family leave is essential for a happy, healthy society.
have a clear strategy. Know when media coverage is important to attract, and when to avoid it.
state the values up front. Say why paid family leave will make a difference to those who need to take it, the businesses they work in, and the communities where they live.
use numbers in a consistent and vivid way to make your case. Illustrate those numbers with compelling comparisons that make the numbers real i.e. it will cost less than a cup of coffee a day.
be prepared when speaking to the press. Get training if you need it, anticipate hard questions, and practice answering them out loud.
For more on how to develop media advocacy strategies for advancing policy, see News for a Change: An Advocate’s Guide to Working With the Media, available from a link at www.bmsg.org, publications.
Take Care Net
The U.S. is experiencing a silent crisis of care. Those who need care,
ranging from young children to the elderly and people with disabilities,
often receive poor care or no care at all. Those who give care to others,
and particularly the women who provide most paid and unpaid care, receive
low or no wages, few or no benefits, and experience penalties in the
labor market. It is time to take care of those who give and those who
need care in the U.S.
Take Care Net is a new network to mobilize experts to speak out on these
issues. Take Care Net will:
- Educate policy makers, the public, and the media about work and family issues by issuing reports, fact sheets, and website materials.
- Link academic experts and practitioners with policy makers and the media on these issues.
- Mobilize individuals to focus Federal and State representatives on relevant legislation and other policies to support these objectives.
For more information, go to www.takecarenet.org. To get involved, contact Bob Drago, drago@takecarenet.org, (814)883-9907.
RESOURCES
Labor-Management Partnerships for Working Families,
MIT Workplace Center.
This publication highlights 3 labor-management partnerships that are on
the forefront of helping union members with work-family issues. The issues
they cover include child care, after school care parental leave, programs
for teams, flexible work schedules including part time work and job shares.
The unions highlighted are 1199/SEIU, UAW and Harvard Union of Clerical
and Technical Workers. To order, call 617-253-7996 or email workplacecenter@mit.edu
Two New Studies on Unionization and
Child Care from Canada:
Unionization and Quality Early Childhood Programs. A CUPE (Canadian Union
of Public Employees)-commissioned study indicates that unionization has
a positive effect on child care workers, the children they care for, their
parents and society. In other words, unionization of child care workers
is good public policy.
The Union Advantage in Child Care
How unionization can help recruitment and retention. By Jamie Kass, Canadian
Labour Congress Representative on the Child Care Human Resources Sector
Council and Bozica Costigliola, Child Care and Labour Communications Consultant.
You can download either paper at http://www.cupe.ca/www/ChildCare.
Labor Family News is published quarterly by:
Labor Project for Working Families
2521 Channing Way #5555
Berkeley, CA 94720
Ph: 510-643-7088
Fax: 510-642-6432
lpwf@berkeley.edu
www.working-families.org
Netsy Firestein
Editor
Jenya Cassidy
Managing Editor
Reprints Permitted With Acknowledgement. Call
us for an email version.
