LOOK FOR THE CWA LABEL ON PRINTED MATERIAL

As distribution of the CWA Printing Sector Label spreads around the country, CWA locals, candidates, political and activist organizations are being encouraged to patronize CWA-organized print shops. The easiest way to identify those shops--the ones that employ Printing Sector members--is the exclusive CWA Label.
As Art DeIanni, president of New York CWA Local 14156, puts it: "We are the original printers. We need to be aggressive about asserting our jurisdiction and
supporting the companies where our members work."
Credited with germinating the idea, DeIanni has been hard at work building the CWA Print Shops Project, a website that will be a one-stop shop for anyone looking for union print jobs--letterheads, business cards, newsletters, contracts--the entire range of printed materials that are the infrastructure documents for most organizations.
The final website is expected to roll out this summer. Sector News readers can take a test drive on the website by going to: www.cwaprintshops.org/beta.
When it is up and running, the website will offer visitors a handy tool for communicating the specifications of any print job to a pool of union printers who have signed up to participate within the appropriate CWA district. By following the site's options, a visitor fills out a bid request form that is then e-mailed to participating printers. Printers who are interested in bidding on a specific request will respond to the visitor directly by e-mail. The buyer then can choose from among the bidders, finalize the pricing and authorize the job.
Participating printers have special e-mail links to communicate with the site so that the site administrator can track requests and make certain that buyers receive prompt service.
Once site visitors make the connection with printers, the site does not track job details, negotiations or pricing. The sole purpose of the site is to make it easy for CWA affiliates to contact CWA print shops.
The site will invite CWA-represented specialty companies to participate as well. In the case of specialty products, suppliers will not be segregated by CWA district.