March 29, 2004
Internet products cited by S&P in two more
clerical layoffs at its President Street Facility
Today, S&P announced that it is laying off two more Guild-covered clerks at its President Street Facility in Brooklyn. John Gillen, Senior Director of Workforce Initiatives for Standard & Poor's stated that S&P’s print product has lost additional ground to its internet counterpart. Therefore, the company feels that an additional reduction in the workforce is necessary to offset the loss of business.
In the event of a reduction in force, several
contract provisions come into play:
·
Standard
& Poor's must enact a 60-day hiring freeze within the job title or
comparable job titles.
·
Two
other clerks may volunteer to take a severance package and leave Standard
& Poor’s instead of the two President Street employees targeted in the
layoff.
·
If two
clerical employees do not step forward, the company will consider volunteers
from other departments and other positions, where a job swap might work out.
·
If
there are no suitable volunteers, the targeted employees can apply for any
open jobs within the company, for which they could be trained. They would
receive training in the new position according to their length of service, as
specified in the Guild contract. The
two targeted employees may also “bump” employees in the same job title if
they have seniority over the current occupant.
To explore the possibility of volunteering for a severance package
and helping a co-worker to avoid involuntary layoff, contact Unit Chairperson
Ed Fannon at X33804. All inquiries will be kept confidential.
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03/29/04