Labor Problems Plague Several Papers

By: Joe Strupp Veteran Newspaper Guild negotiators will tell you that hammering out a new contract, even in the best of economic times, can often rate on the scale of unpleasant tasks somewhere between root canals and fish gutting. But in today's tough business climate -- with newspapers cutting costs and circulation shrinking -- bargaining sessions have sometimes gone from calculated chess matches to bitter war games.

"The climate is the worst I've ever seen," said Linda Foley, president of the National Newspaper Guild-Communications Workers of America, which oversees dozens of local guilds that negotiate with publishers for new contracts.

Right now, a handful of major newspapers -- from Providence, R.I., to Honolulu -- are engaged in what negotiators contend are their toughest contract talks in years. In two cases, at The Sun in Baltimore and the Saint Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press, union leaders are preparing for walkouts that could come, in Baltimore's case, as early as this week.

While the usual wage and benefit disputes are prevalent at these papers, each situation also includes unusual examples of management trying to get a better handle on control over employees and flexibility to cut costs in the future. From the elimination of layoff protection to the easier reassignment of workers, newspaper executives are using this round of talks to implement procedures that will make future workforce changes easier.

"A publicly owned company, which is what most newspapers today are part of, is forced by the stock market to improve revenue and get costs down. There is unbelievable pressure," said Conrad Fink, director of The Cox Institute for Newspaper Management Studies at the University of Georgia. "They are still looking for ways to reduce costs."

The key battlegrounds:

* The Sun, where workers last week voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike that could begin Tuesday (June 24) when the union's current four-year contract expires. "A strike is a possibility if we keep getting this kind of non-bargaining," said Michael Hill, a negotiator for the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, which represents 630 Sun employees. "The tradition at this Guild is not to work beyond the contract expiration date."

Although negotiations between The Sun and union leaders began less than two months ago, the climate is already bitter, with reporters launching a byline strike last week and the Chicago-based Tribune Co., which owns the paper, training employees from other Tribune publications to be replacement workers. "You have to do a little planning," said Linda Geeson, The Sun's director of marketing and communications. "If there is a strike, we have an obligation to publish."

Guild workers object to The Sun's request for a new provision allowing supervisors to move employees from one department to another without their consent. Management also wants a one-year wage freeze, followed by implementation of a merit-raise system in lieu of the current annual cost-of-living pay hikes. Union leaders would rather have a 9% raise over three years, plus a lump-sum payment.

* The Pioneer Press, which is already buzzing with talk of a walkout by 450 Guild members who've been without a contract since last July. "We are in strike preparations right now," said Mike Sweeney, executive officer of the Minnesota Newspaper Guild, which has held several picketing protests and a byline strike in recent months. "This is an awful economic situation. A strike vote could be weeks away."

Union leaders object to the Pioneer Press's proposed contract that would give raises of 2.2% to 2.7% annually over four years, but also increase health insurance fees by 10% to 100%. Workers oppose a management request to remove sympathy strike protection that currently allows union members to honor the picket lines of other Pioneer Press unions. The Guild wants a four-year contract with a retroactive 3% raise, followed by 4.5% annually for the remaining three years.

Jill Taylor, Pioneer Press vice president/employee relations, wants to remove the strike sympathy provision to allow the paper to keep operating during a work stoppage by one group. She also defended the health insurance increases, saying the paper is simply passing on cost increases set forth by health providers. "The economy has impacted us pretty directly," she said.

* The Honolulu Advertiser, where Guild members have been without a contract for more than a year and negotiations began on a tough note in April with the paper asking for 6.5% to 11.5% in pay cuts. Negotiations brought that back to a simple wage freeze offer over four years, but no raise proposal since then. Union leaders also object to a proposal to switch from a traditional cost-of-living annual pension plan to a lump-sum payment at retirement.

Advertiser General Manager Dennis Francis said the proposal is just a reflection of difficult economic times. "We are trying to get a handle on our costs," he said. Wayne Cahill, administrative officer for the Hawaii Newspaper Guild, which represents 400 Advertiser employees, called the proposals unrealistic. "We need some real progress," he said. "Our members are losing patience."

* The Providence Journal, seen as the most drawn out labor battle as Guild workers have muddled along without a contract since the end of 1999. In the interim, the Providence Newspaper Guild has conducted informational picketing, rallies, and two byline strikes. Last week, union leaders began sending 10,000 postcards to subscribers asking for authorization to cancel their subscriptions if the union launches a planned boycott.

"Our goal is to get the company back to the table to modify their proposal," said Tim Schick, Guild administrator. The membership rejected the latest management offer on June 12, several months after voting down a previous contract proposal in February. "The company thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread and canned beer," Schick said of the last offer. "It was incredibly insulting on their part."

Instead of threatening a strike at this point, Journal workers have been flexing their muscle at the National Labor Relations Board, filing dozens of unfair labor practice complaints against the paper in the past few years, including 27 that have been upheld by an administrative law judge and are currently on appeal before the entire NLRB.

The rejected Journal proposal included a six-year contract retroactive to 2000, with a 9% raise and a lump-sum 6% retroactive payment. Union leaders contend the offer did not include enough retroactive pay, while objecting to management's request that the Guild drop the unfair labor practice complaints. Journal attorney Richard Perras accused Guild leaders, who openly urged members to reject both contract offers, of keeping the dispute going for their own personal gain. "They enjoy the litigation," he said. "They enjoy the spotlight."

* The Boston Globe, where union leaders say management requests for the elimination of seniority in layoffs, the right to subcontract non-editorial work, and the ability to have non-Globe employees at other papers owned by The New York Times Co., the Globe's owner, sell advertising in the paper have kept talks dragging on since the end of 2000 when the last contract expired. "It is the worst negotiations that I can remember," said Steve Richards, president of the Boston Newspaper Guild and a 17-year Globe employee. "They are looking for more givebacks than they have in the past." Globe management could not be reached for comment.

* The New York Times, despite productive talks has employees seeing unusual changes in contract offers. Although Guild leaders say negotiations are going well and are expected to result in a good agreement, some company proposals -- such as the removal of a no-layoff provision -- are surprising. "The membership is very, very worried about job security," said Lena Williams, unit chair for the New York Newspaper Guild, which represents 1,100 Times employees. "It has not been tortuous, but we have to get that [job] protection." Times spokeswoman Catherine Mathis declined to comment on the contract talks.