Baltimore Sun's union sues for arbitration of ethics code grievance

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Sep 10, 2004 by Peter Geier

The union local representing the Baltimore Sun's editorial, news and commercial employees filed an enforcement action against the paper in Baltimore's federal court stemming from the Sun's unilateral implementation of an ethics code.

The Washington-based Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, Local 32035 of the Newspaper Guild-Communications Workers of America AFL- CIO, filed the complaint to compel arbitration over application of the ethics code to Sun features writer Pat Meisol.

The Sun has unlawfully refused and continues unlawfully to submit the grievance in connection with the unilateral implementation of an ethics code to final and binding arbitration, the complaint alleges, saying that the failure violates the Sun's contract with the guild as well as Section 301 of the Labor-Management Relations Act.

The guild has asked the court to declare that the discipline grievance is substantively arbitrable and to order the Sun to submit to final and binding arbitration regarding that grievance.

However, counsel for the Sun argues in court papers that the unspecified Meisol grievance is not arbitrable under the paper's collective bargaining agreement with the guild.

[T]he matter which the guild seeks to arbitrate concerns the disciplinary reassignment of an employee that did not involve the loss of pay, attorney Jeremy P. Sherman noted in a letter to an American Arbitration Association case manager.

Under the express language of the applicable section of the collective bargaining agreement, disciplinary actions that do not involve loss of pay are grievable but not arbitrable, Sherman wrote.

Meanwhile, the arbitration association notified the parties that it will proceed in the absence of an agreement - or a court order staying the matter. It has appointed Charles Feigenbaum as arbitrator, according to a letter to counsel filed with the complaint.