The Morning Call Guild Executive Committee
Unit Chair: Peter Hall
Vice Chairs: Michelle Merlin, Jennifer Sheehan
Secretary: Kayla Dwyer
Treasurer: Stephanie Sigafoos
Stewards:
Sarah Wocjik
Tom Shortell
Andrew Scott
David Goldman
Stephanie Sigafoos
Mission Statement
As Morning Call journalists and support staff, we are proud of the work we do to serve our readers as the Lehigh Valley’s leading newspaper.
We shine a light on injustices, share stories that lift the spirit and cover breaking news that affects our communities.
Our ability to cover the Lehigh Valley, however, has been continuously compromised by the drive to maximize profit at the expense of what we do. We have lost dozens of veteran journalists, depriving us of decades' worth of expertise. Those who remain cope with stagnant wages, exponentially increased work responsibilities and declining benefits. We face constant insecurity about our futures.
The strongest defense against these threats is a unified workforce.
We are not just figures in a financial plan.
We are wives, husbands and partners who want to buy a first home. We are parents who want to provide for our children without having to take a second job. We are young, enthusiastic journalists eager to learn, gain experience and build roots here in the Valley. We are veteran professionals who want our years of experience to count -- and not count against us.
We have no voice in the decisions corporate executives make about us and how we do our jobs. Our journalism suffers as a result.
That is why we are forming the Morning Call Guild. Through collective bargaining, our goals will be:
- To establish a productive relationship with the company and, together, create the conditions under which we can continue to produce an excellent newspaper;
- To support our staff across the organization in increasingly challenging times;
- To fight against the attrition that has forced us all to do more with less;
- To fight for job security, pay equity, cost-of-living raises, fair and reasonable health care benefits, diversity in all ranks of the workplace and work/life balance rules that are fair for everyone.
We ask for your support as we join the union which currently represents the Chicago Tribune, the LA Times, Baltimore Sun, the Virginian-Pilot, Capital Gazette and many others.
We stand united to create a better future. We hope you’ll join us.
In solidarity,
The Morning Call Guild