Dow Jones, union agree to four-year contract

The union that represents journalists at The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s and MarketWatch and parent company Dow Jones & Co. announced Monday a tentative agreement on a new four-year collective bargaining agreement covering 1,400 employees.

The deal, tentatively agreed to by representatives of the union and the company, has been approved by IAPE’s board of directors, and will be presented to union members for a ratification vote later this month.

Once approved, the agreement will run through June 30, 2027, and will end a year of bargaining between the two sides.

The tentative agreement provides a combined minimum 8 percent wage increase for the first two years of the contract effective July 1, 2024, as well as a lump sum payment calculated as 4.25 percent of pay or $4,250, whichever is larger, representing retroactive pay for the period from July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024, for all eligible IAPE employees.

Also included is a lump sum ratification bonus equal to 1 percent of base pay (based on pay as of June 30, 2023), for eligible employees with a minimum payment of $1,000.

The remaining wage increases are 3.75 percent effective July 1, 2025 and 3.75 percent effective July 1, 2026.

The tentative agreement also provides for a 5.75% increase to the minimum scales effective July 1, 2024, including a new $72,800 minimum scale for reporters.

In addition to wages, the tentative agreement includes an extension of the company’s health insurance plan with a freeze of health insurance premium rates, deductibles, copayments and other plan terms for all union-represented employees in the United States through 2024.

Premium increases and plan design changes are capped through 2027 under the terms of the new agreement. Among other provisions, the agreement also provides for enhancements to mental health coverage and parental leave benefits, as well as one additional paid company holiday.