Naturally it’s the people whoRUN THE PRESSES, naturally it’s all their fault:
The Star Tribune asked a federal bankruptcy judge late Thursday to
cancel the labor contract for its 116-member pressmen’s union and
impose new language that would save the debt-laden newspaper $3.5
million a year.
The Star Tribune asserted that the pressmen’s union, a member of the
International Brotherhood of Teamsters, has failed to enter serious
negotiations for concessions needed because of a sharp decline in
advertising revenue as well as debt from the 2007 acquisition of the
newspaper by Avista Capital Partners for $530 million.
The company wants the pressmen to accept lower wages and new work
rules that would reduce staffing and overtime requirements on the
presses.
Star Tribune publisher Chris Harte expressed frustration with the
Teamsters local, noting that the company had successfully negotiated
tentative concessionary agreements with other unions in the plant while
implementing cost reductions with non-union employees, including a
recently announced wage freeze extension, elimination of the 401(k)
match and a freeze on the company’s pension plan.
“This was not the course we wanted to take, but the lack of progress
left us with no choice,” Harte said in a memo to employees that
accompanied the filing.
I can’t imagine why the union wouldn’t make concessions on wages and overtime to people who shockingly mismanaged finances and then wanted to blame the men and women who actually print the actual paper. I mean, I’m sorry, I know this is serious but I’m sick of everybody in a given situation pretending that management’s bullshit is reality. I don’t know how you say this shit with a straight face:
International Brotherhood of Teamsters, has failed to enter serious
negotiations for concessions needed because ofa sharp decline in
advertising revenue as well as debt from the 2007 acquisition of the
newspaper by Avista Capital Partners for $530 million.
Because certainly no major geniuses like A DUMB GIRL WITH A WEB SITE who went to state school before working at papers nobody ever heard of saw that coming, so there’s no way the people who run the Star Tribune could have, either. The newspaper crash was well on its way to getting here in 2007, but management continued to spend and now wants to whine that it’s the union’s responsibility to bail them out. As it always seems to be, somehow.
A.
Yanno, I just got a memo from one of the suits what works here, and the suits are forecasting a 40% growth for the company next year. They’re all thrilled. (I’m pretty happy, too, because it means my job is more than likely secure.) Seems to me from some of the stats you’ve quoted, some people in the newspaper biz need to get a sense of perspective. I hear they’re on sale cheap on eBay…
Are you really that stupid?
Hi Athenae. Wouldn’t it be novel if the unions being asked to trim benefits asked the executives to trim theirs as well? Shared sacrifice and all that. And I’m sure executives would be eager to grant those concessions as a sign of good faith.