The NewsGuild of Greater Philadelphia

THE MORE THINGS CHANGE, THE MORE THEY STAY THE SAME

July 12, 2016billrossInquirer

Over the past few weeks, the Guild has met with the company over a variety of important issues: The upcoming gap in our health care costs which could lead to increases in family coverage of $250/week, the longstanding problem
of gender pay inequity and the shameful lack of diversity across the company.

 

The company’s responses to these issues have ranged from minimal to non-existent.

 

In a message yesterday, however, the company announced new job titles and responsibilities for male executives in senior management and the hiring of another non-diverse executive for a job no one even knew was open, and then
added insult to injury by stressing the new hire’s concern that his wife was going to do a lot of shopping in New York. It’s bad enough that our members have gone so long without raises that New York shopping is a distant memory, but what kind of message does
it send to the local advertisers we need to survive that shopping in New York is a concern and not shopping in Philadelphia and our suburbs.

 

So there’s an unwillingness to address a health care problem, a gender equity problem and a diversity problem but there’s a willingness to spend money on other jobs, other priorities and other health care plans.

 

Meet the new non-profit, same as the old for-profit.  

 

In solidarity,

 

Howard Gensler

Diane Mastrull

Bill Ross