Inky update, where to work and new newsroom assignments.
Dear Friends:
I just want to emphasize the importance of the Company’s message earlier today about avoiding 801 Market and, I might add, SPP and the offices in New Jersey and Bucks County. Please WORK FROM HOME.
If you are lacking the tools or anything else you need to be able to work from home, please email me at dmastrull@Inquirer.com.
I know there are some of you who prefer to do your work in a business setting. But these simply are not ordinary circumstances. And, if Philadelphia and the surrounding counties follow what San Francisco has already done and what New York has signaled today it’s likely to do soon, leaving your homes might not even be an option. So now is the time to get all you need to be able to do your job there.
To further understand how important social distancing is, listen to today’s The Daily podcast. What is happening in Italy is frightening and heartbreaking. We need to take our cues from those who have experienced this before us and protect ourselves accordingly.
For those Guild members on the news side, you have now seen emails from Gabe and Patrick about additional change coming our way. They filled me in last week and specifically noted that the implementation of these reassignments is necessary now — before the standard notice of two weeks that the contract requires. My response was that we are in a national emergency, the likes of which we have not experienced before, not even after the 9/11 attacks. I gave permission for them to proceed with the reassignments without having to pay overtime to each and every one of us who will not get two weeks’ notice. Thank you for understanding that.
However, I did emphasize that the Company must be sympathetic should some of these reassignments create serious difficulties for some of you – from child care to health concerns. If you have any issues with your reassignment, let Gabe and Patrick and me know right away so we can work through them.
As I said earlier today, you all have already risen to the challenge we are now facing. Our customers are counting on all of us to continue to keep them informed and, if they are businesses, help them get their messages to our audiences.
But your health and that of your families is most important. Please do all that the experts are advising to protect yourselves.
In solidarity and concern,
Diane
