Washington Post union ratifies 2-year contract

The union representing editorial and other employees at The Washington Post has overwhelmingly ratified a two-year contract that will let the newspaper protect a quarter of its workers from any layoffs, regardless of seniority.

Under previous contracts, employees with the most seniority would be the last to get laid off. That rule now applies to only the remaining 75 percent of union-covered employees.

The new contract, which comes as the Post and other newspaper companies face severe declines in advertising revenue, also calls for a $1,000 lump-sum payment in the first year and $600 in the second year, the Washington-Baltimore Guild Local 32035 said Friday.

Part-time employees will get a $800 payment the first year and $450 the second year.

The lump-sum payments are in lieu of percentage-based increases to base pay and would not increase the salary level on which future wage increases would be based.

The Guild represents about 960 Washington Post workers, including editorial employees, Guild representative Joe Kahraman said. He would not give a breakdown on how many union members voted for the contract, saying only that it was an overwhelming approval.

Under the new contract, employees of the Post's Web site, which is being integrated with the newspaper, will be covered by the Guild contract for the first time. Kahraman said this would add 100 to 200 people to the contract's coverage.

In a prepared statement, the Washington Post said the agreement "strikes a fair and responsible balance in this difficult climate for both newspapers and the overall economy." The company did not give any more details and did not say how it would select the 25 percent of workers who would be protected from layoffs. The statement also did not say if and when layoffs would come.

Last month, the Washington Post Co.'s newspaper division reported an operating loss of $54 million for the first quarter. The Post company also owns Newsweek magazine, Kaplan educational services, a cable TV business and other properties.