A note from Chuck Montague on Layoff Fund Auction
The Guild, as it did in 2001, is raising money for its Layoff Fund. And, as I did in 2001, I'm going to raffle off BJ items from over the years to raise money for the Layoff Fund. Below is my newsroom message announcing the raffle and a Q and A on the fund put out by Paula Schleis.
I am interested in seeing if there are any retirees who have items - T-shirts, buttons, etc. -- that they would be willing to part with to be raffled. I'm also looking for high-ticket items. For example, it would be great to get one of the pewter key-chain holders we all got for the 1970 Pulitzer Prize. I was stupid and used it as key-chain and the pewter wore down long ago.
I'd also like to give bloggers a chance to buy raffle tickets.
No obligations here. If you don't think this is material for your blog, no problems.
Stay tuned for the 2nd (Thank Goodness It's Not Annual) Montague Layoff Raffle of Blasts from the BJ's Past. Some people, including a volunteer this time, won some great stuff in 2001 -- Stuff of Beacon Journal Legend like the ‘‘My Union Has An Iron Ass'' T-shirt. But wait, I have more. I will be getting my stuff together and announcing the great prizes next week. All proceeds go to the Layoff Fund. If you have any items you can donate to be raffled, you know where I am. Thanks.
Q: Is this a union effort only?
A: NO! This is a newsroom effort. The fund will benefit forcibly laid off employees, regardless of exempt or union status.
Q: Will the money also go to those who are voluntarily resigning?
A: No, and we presume they don't expect it.
Q: How will the money be disbursed?
A: This decision isn't as easy as in 2001, when we only had 7 people being laid off and dividing the money equally made a significant impact.
Right now, it is the intent of the fundraising committee to split one-third of what is in the fund as of Nov. 1 between laid off employees who are still unemployed, split one-half of what is in the fund as of Dec. 1 among those still unemployed, and divide the remainder among employees unemployed as of Jan. 1. It's our hope this money will help them through the holidays, if not pick up a house payment or some utility bills along the way.
Of course, we have no idea how much money will be collected. If, say, we collect $5,000 and only one person is unemployed by Nov. 1, we'll obviously rethink those plans.
If you'd like to join the fundraising committee and participate in those discussions, just let Paula know! Right now, the committee is made of Paula, Kymberli, Colette, Katie and Kim McMahan.
Q: Are student correspondents eligible to receive the money?
A: No. The tenure of a student correspondent is a limited one, as they are temporary employees who can only work for 2 years. Most were already planning to leave this school year. Because of their temporary status, they are not laid off and placed on a call-back list. The money being raised is specifically for laid off employees.
Q: How do I donate if I want to do it another day?
A: There is a Beacon Journal Layoff Fund established at the credit union. Go down and submit your donation at any time. If you want to donate in three monthly installments, give your pledge sheet to Paula, Kymberli or Katie and we'll remind you each month when the pledge is due.
1 comment:
John Knight never laid any one off, even in the midst of the Great Depression, when he used BJ script to pay employees, which was accepted by BJ's advertisers, who then turned in the script to pay their ad bills to the BJ. He created his own economy. Creative and JSK are synonymous. I knew John Knight, and Tony R. was no John Knight. Not even close.
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