UPI Seeks More Concessions

United Press International is asking its union-covered employees for contract concessions to replace a temporary order granted by a bankruptcy judge, the Wire Service Guild said Thursday.

The company asked employees to accept reduced benefits involving severance pay, dismissal notice and the right to refuse a transfer, among others, the union said in a statement.

UPI, which is struggling to stay in business, announced Wednesday that it was putting its radio network up for sale, hiring a private contractor to handle most of its sports coverage and making other organizational changes. The company said it would move its headquarters from Washington to northern Virginia by early December.

The 84-year-old news service filed for bankruptcy in August for the second time in six years. About 80 workers were laid off last month.

Last month, a federal bankruptcy judge in New York allowed UPI to temporarily cancel several contract provisions. That order, which expires Nov. 29, lets the company stop paying severance to laid-off employees, use stringers in place of fired full-time workers and keep pay at 80% of previous levels.

The guild had agreed to keep pay at the 80% level, or about $568 a week for top-level employees, but objected to the other provisions.

UPI’s new proposal--if accepted by the union--would be effective until the employees’ current contract expires June 30, 1992, the guild said.