Dunkin' Donuts Workers at New York's Penn Station Join TNG-CWA

If you're passing through New York's Penn Station, be sure to stop for a doughnut with the union label — specifically The Newspaper Guild-CWA.

The Guild's New York local now represents workers at two, soon to be three, new Dunkin' Donuts shops that are located inside Hudson News stores at Penn Station.

For more than 10 years, the local has represented Hudson News retail workers at Penn Station and other locations in New York City. Because e-readers and other digital media are cutting into sales of magazines and newspapers, Hudson management decided to turn some of their space into Dunkin' Donuts outlets.

New York Guild leaders heard rumors about the combined stores last year, and laid the groundwork to ensure that TNG-CWA would represent the Dunkin' employees.

"We had a meeting with Hudson about it, and they said, 'Yes," they would be willing to negotiate those jobs under our existing contract," said New York Guild President Bill O'Meara, adding that he believes the new members are the only unionized Dunkin' Donuts workers in the United States..

The Guild has built a positive relationship with Hudson News, which managers acknowledged when it came to discussing the Dunkin' Donuts workers, he said. The new combination stores at Penn Station are just the first for Hudson's New York group, with the potential for dozens more, O'Meara said. Sixty people have been hired already for the first two stores.

Like Hudson's Guild-represented employees, the Dunkin' Donuts workers are fully covered by the union contract, and are accruing vacation and sick leave, have access to medical plans and to CWA's 401(k) plan. Bargaining begins this summer for a new contract for all the Hudson-Dunkin' workers. Read more about the Dunkin' deal on the TNG-CWA website at www.NewsGuild.org.