Two Reuters activists to receive Keenan Award June 29

Membership meeting with award presentation set for June 29

06/24/2010

Thomson Reuters Guild unit activists Leslie Adler and Dan Grebler were chosen to receive the 2010 Thomas M. Keenan Newspaper Guild of New York Service Award for the contributions they made during the Local’s most bitter contract dispute with the media company in 25 years.

Adler, a member of the Guild’s bargaining committee, and Grebler, the unit’s grievance chair, were picked by the Local’s Administrative Committee as the nominees who have “performed above and beyond the call of duty in service to the New York Local, and (who) best (exemplify) the ideals of a true labor leader, in the spirit of Tom Keenan.”

With negotiations stalled since Thomson Reuters declared impasse on Jan. 19 and posted work rules that cut total compensation for every member in the unit, the battle for a contract has been fought mostly at the workplace and in the legal arena. Although there have been job actions at most of the company’s many U.S. offices where Guild members work, its 3 Times Square headquarters, which holds the largest single concentration of Guild members, has been the main epicenter of activity.

Adler, a desk editor at 3 Times Square, quickly became one of the most respected members of the bargaining committee for her ability to fully understand a vast range of highly technical issues and explain them to members in a digestible way. Grebler, also a desk editor at 3 Times Square, directed the mobilization of the building’s members for numerous job actions, including informational picketing and leafleting.

“The willingness of ordinary Guild members to step up in times of need and assume responsibilities they never would have otherwise sought can make the difference between success and failure,” said Newspaper Guild of New York President Bill O’Meara. “We’re very lucky that Dan and Leslie rose to the challenge and did so very capably.”

At its meeting on Monday, the Administrative Committee also awarded a Guild Special Merit Award, which it created last year, to Anna Pierdiluca, first vice chair of the Consumers Union unit. Pierdiluca, a sensory lab technician at CU’s Yonkers, NY, testing facility and member of the Local’s Executive Committee, has frequently been called upon to fill in for Unit Chair Bill South during his health-related absences and has made a special effort to reach out to new members, co-workers who nominated her said.

“Anna has worked tirelessly and creatively for the good of the Newspaper Guild at Consumers Union,” they said. “She is in fact a key ‘go to’ person for Guild members.”

The Special Merit and Keenan Awards will be presented at a membership meeting at 6:15 p.m., Tuesday, June 29, at Guild Headquarters, 1501 Broadway, Suite 708 (between 43rd and 44th Streets), New York City.

The annual award honors Tom Keenan, former Times unit chairperson who died in December 2000 after a long battle with cancer. It was created by the Executive Committee while Keenan was still alive in 1999.

Go back

News Archive

Share this story