UPDATE: Sulzberger Responds to Appeal from 'Boston Globe' Reporters, Dialogue Develops

By: E&P Staff New York Times Co. Chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr. responded to a letter sent by "concerned reports" of The Boston Globe after several days of back-and-forth volleys between the guild representing Globe employees and management.

On Monday, the Boston Globe guild narrowly voted down a $10 million proposal in cuts, which would have trimmed wages by 8% among other factors. The New York Times, which owns the Globe, then moved to slash wages 23% while the same time disclosed it was seeking potential buyer for the New England Media Group properties.

The letter from the reporters appealed to Sulzberger directly saying, "Despite all the rhetoric of the last few weeks, we believe you want to do the right thing -- that, at bottom, you're a mensch."

Sulzberger wrote in an e-mailed response reported by the Globe's Robert Gavin, that he had "hoped this would work out differently" but that the "guild's bargaining posture made that task impossible."

The response follows:

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Thank you for your letter.

My colleagues and I share your concern for the Globe and those who work there, and I'm gratified by your recognition of that despite all that surrounds us. You are correct that I had hoped this would work out differently, and that a timely solution would be found for the Globe to achieve the necessary savings without Guild employees suffering a huge wage cut.

Unfortunately, despite tireless efforts by Globe negotiators to do that just as they successfully did with each of the Globe's other major unions, the Guild's bargaining posture made that task impossible. We are now left with no alternative other than to proceed with the wage reduction. Without that, the Globe will be unable to effectuate the savings already ratified by its other unions, in which case it simply cannot survive. We cannot allow that to happen, so we, regrettably, will implement the wage reduction.

Despite my great concern for what's happening at the Globe, all dealings on this subject must be with and through the Guild which, under law, is the employees' sole and exclusive bargaining representative. To that end, negotiators for the Globe have already advised the Guild that they are ready and willing to meet and plan to do so Monday.

We all share a commitment to making the Globe stronger and more viable in the days ahead.

Sincerely,

Arthur Sulzberger, Jr.

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Afterward, the Globe's staff invited Sulzberger to visit Boston to talk face-to-face.

That e-mail follows:

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Dear Mr. Sulzberger,

Thank you very much for your response. It's nice to know that we can talk to each other.

The purpose of our letter was not to substitute for negotiations but to appeal for your leadership, an appeal to find common ground. Many of us who have long admired your family and its legacy have yearned to hear from you directly, without the subterfuge of lawyers and legal posturing. Again, we believe you care deeply about the work we do, and we know you understand how vital it is to Boston.

At the same time, we hope you appreciate the devastating consequences of a 23 percent pay cut -- how it will completely upend the lives of those who have worked at the Globe for years, some of whom have literally risked their lives to report the news.

We know there's been a lot of heated rhetoric, but we believe you're better than allowing negotiating tactics to lead to this outcome ?- reporters losing their homes or having to leave jobs they love because they can't afford to raise their families. The solution should be simple: Parity in cuts between the staff and management.

We're also gratified to hear that you share our commitment to making the Globe stronger and more viable -- we weren't sure about this when we learned on our front page a few months ago that the Times had threatened to close the Globe -- and we want to work with you to cut costs and plan for the future.

Finally, we invite you to come to Boston, to speak to us and hear from us directly. Your family has responded to countless challenges to newspapers, and there?s no reason we can?t succeed together now. We're asking for you to lead us through these hard times, with the transparency and empathy reflected in your letter.

All the best,

Concerned Reporters at The Boston Globe