We deserve better

Many of us came to work at newspapers not just to make a living but to do our part to promote truth, justice, fairness and decency in our own small way. We do that daily --and it shows in our award-winning newspaper and website.

Unfortunately, Chronicle management doesn't seem to believe in -- or practice -- the same principles. At least not when it comes to us: the people who have made huge sacrifices to keep this paper alive.

There is nothing just, fair or even close to decent in what Chronicle management has offered at the bargaining table. And as for truth, well, we'll get to that later.

Frankly, the company's offer is an insult. And we should all feel insulted.

A year and a half ago, when Hearst threatened to close the Chronicle, we made deep concessions in our contracts, and those savings have helped improve the paper's bottom line and led to the first profits since Hearst took charge. In addition to making those concessions,
we saw hundreds of our colleagues lose their jobs. It was devastating but we not only soldiered on, we worked harder to honor their legacy -- and to keep the Chronicle an outstanding paper. For this, we are told, we deserve next to nothing.

A couple of weeks ago when violence broke out in downtown Oakland, many on the news staff put their personal safety at risk to produce amazing coverage. For this, we are told, we deserve next to nothing.

Earlier this year, for the first time in eons, the Chronicle was named the best large newspaper in California by the California Newspaper Publishers Association -- an honor for the entire staff. For this, we are told, we deserve next to nothing.

But we deserve better, much better. Hell, we deserve to have all the sacrifices we've made over the past five years reinstated. With a big fat raise on top. Gratefully delivered by our bosses on a silver platter.

But your bargaining team is realistic. We know that recovery is something that comes gradually, and that while the Chronicle is doing much better (thanks to our sacrifices), it is still struggling.

So we haven't asked for much: Some more time off (Remember, we gave up two weeks of vacation), some money to keep our health benefits intact, some kind of retirement plan (New employees get zip), some more sick leave and some sort of pay raise.

So far, management has offered five more days of sick leave (what we gave up in 2005) and little else. Can't afford it, they say.

Well, as good business people, it's time they figured out how to afford it. And as good employees, it's our job to help them get that message. (we do a lot of that, don't we?)

We need to remind them -- often -- that we are the reason the Chronicle is still in business. We are the reason they still have jobs. How do we do that? We speak up --individually and collectively. If you have a good relationship with your boss, tell her or him that you deserve something back. If our anger trickles upward, maybe someone will get a clue.

As a group, we need to decide what we're willing to do collectively to make our dissatisfaction felt. Many of you have already offered suggestions. We need, and want, more. But mostly what we need is for people to get directly involved. Talk to your Guild stewards and officers, wear red on bargaining days, display Guild signs, wear buttons, stop by the free coffee days, offer ideas for actions we should take, and join us in those actions.

And, no, I didn't forget about management and truth (not to mention fairness). A year and a half ago, when management forced us to make concessions, they promised to make the same sacrifices we made. They never did. They still have a company retirement plan -- and they have four or five weeks of vacation.

What about equity and fairness? We've asked at the bargaining table. What about truth and honesty? Can't afford it, they say.

I say they can't afford not to live up to the principles newspapers stand for. They can't afford to continue disrespecting their employees. And we need to let them know that.

Award-winning Guild journalism

California Media Workers Guild members dominated the 2009 NorCal Society of Professional Journalists awards at Jillian's in San Francisco Tuesday night, showing once again that the best journalism is produced by Guild members.

Eleven awards were captured by Guild members from the Chronicle, Mercury News and MediaNews papers, including one of the evening's top honors -- the Career Achievement Award, given to longtime Chronicle journalist and Guild activist Susan Sward.

Sward, who left the Chronicle this summer, was an award-winning reporter at the paper for 30 years, during which she covered nearly every beat. She is perhaps best known for her work on the investigative team and as a breaking news reporter. But Susan contributed much more to the Chronicle than her stories, and the SPJ award recognized that.

The judges praised Sward for her work mentoring young journalists, particularly women, and for her role in persuading the Chronicle to adopt policies making it easier for new mothers and fathers to continue to work as journalists while raising families. (The Hearst Corp., taking advantage of the newspaper crisis, has unraveled those family-friendly policies since taking over the Chronicle.)

Sward was gracious in accepting the award, thanking colleague David Perlman, the Chronicle's veteran science writer, and Steve Cook, the paper's former investigative editor.

Other California Media Workers Guild journalists receiving awards include:

-- Charles Piller, Sacramento Bee, economic journalism award, for reporting on who profited from the federal bailout.

-- Sean Webby, San Jose Mercury News, investigative reporting and public service awards, for a year-long series on how San Jose's public drunkenness crackdown disproportionately targeted Latinos.

-- Geoff Link, San Francisco Chronicle copy editor, Unsung Hero award, for his other job -- as editor and publisher of Central City Extra, a monthly newspaper for the often-ignored residents of San Francisco's Tenderloin, Civic Center and Sixth Street neighborhoods.

-- Oakland Tribune staff, breaking news award, for its coverage of the Oscar Grant shooting .

-- Nanette Asimov and Jill Tucker, San Francisco Chronicle, explanatory journalism, for a special report tracking the 1995-96 graduates of a kindergarten class in a lower-income neighborhood and school.

-- Meredith May, San Francisco Chronicle, feature writing award, for a story on a Bay Area woman helping to combat the Nepalese practice of bonded servitude of girls.

-- Karen D'Souza, San Jose Mercury News, criticism award, for three theater reviews.

-- Oakland Tribune and Bay Area.com staffs, innovation and entrepreneurship award, for ther presentation of news on multiple platforms.

-- Dai Sugano, San Jose Mercury News, photojournalism, for a photo essay and multimedia project documenting the lives of people left out of most reporting on India's economic boom.

A complete list of award winners can be viewed here.

Congratulations to all the award winners, but especially members of the Media Workers Guild for demonstrating that the Bay Area's best journalism still comes from union journalists, who are better paid and get such things as health insurance, vacations,paid holidays and a say in their workplace.

New directions, new opportunities

A lot of Guild members are asking questions, which, of course is what media folks do best,about The News Project – the innovative Bay Area newsgathering collaboration funded by Warren Hellman.

They’re wondering whether the new news organization will lead to, or hasten, the demise of the San Francisco Chronicle. They’re asking whether the Bay Area needs another newsgathering outfit when the ones that are here are struggling. And some are asking why the Guild would be involved in such an effort.

Many, it should be noted, are also sending their resumes.

But first, a little background. The News Project, and the Guild's involvement, started with a threat. On Feb.24, Chronicle publisher Frank Vega stood in front of employees and announced that unless the unions bargained significant concessions, the paper would be sold – or closed. And even if they did their part (again) to help save the Chronicle, it still might be sold.

That threat sent the Guild to the bargaining table. But it angered a lot of
people. When some of our members asked how they could help, we assigned a couple of them to contact community leaders and ask for support if the paper were shuttered. We also asked if any of those leaders might be interested in buying the Chronicle if it were put on the block.

Those contacts led to meetings, which led to studies, which led to plans, many of which were abandoned or modified, and eventually led to Thursday’s announcement of the new non-profit news organization, which will produce news for multiple platforms, possibly including a regional edition of the New York Times.

The Guild got involved for a lot of reasons. We didn’t want San Francisco to be left without a journalistically strong newsgathering operation. We didn’t want even more of our members to have to give up their professional careers. And we wanted somebody to try something bold, truly new, and journalistically strong.

The News Project promises that, though many, many details are still forthcoming.

Now for those other questions. Will the new organization accelerate The Chronicle’s demise? Well, that’s up to the Chronicle, and the Hearst Corp. My hope -- as both a Chronicle staffer and a Guild official –- is that it will actually do the opposite, that it will prompt the Chronicle to improve its journalism just as it recently improved its printing – or at least stop gutting its news staff.

I’d like to think that Hearst has some fight in it, and will step up to the challenge.

Will competition renew public interest in journalism? It’s possible. More competition will lead to better news coverage, and better products, be they online, on the air, or in print, that could lure more advertising and the kinds of demographics that attract advertisers. As less gets covered, there’s less reason to read,subscribe to, or advertise in, newspapers.

The News Project will also create more journalism jobs, allowing some of the incredibly talented folks who have been pushed out of Bay Area newsrooms to get back in the business. It may not be a lot of jobs, but it will be a significant number, and it's likely to grow.

Finally, some folks have asked why the Guild would support the creation of a competitor. Well, we’ve always represented (and supported) competitors to the Chronicle: the (Hearst) Examiner, the Oakland Tribune, the San Jose Mercury News, the former ANG papers.

As new models for journalism are developed, we want to make sure they involve quality journalism – and decent wages and benefits. Many of the new journalism experiments count on people giving away their work for free or for very little compensation. We think journalists and other mediaworkers, not to mention our readers, deserve better.

We want the news industry to thrive – not surrender -- and we want it to be union.

Tough times in Guild land

The mood here at the 74th annual convention of The Newspaper Guild in Washington, D.C., is, as you might imagine, rather stressed and somewhat somber. I'm here with local rep Carl T. Hall and local vice president Silvia Barden, and 107 other union activists from 38 Guild locals across the country.

Everyone seems tired and frustrated -- of bargaining pay cuts, furloughs and saying goodbye to the endless stream of talented newspaper workers our employers are shoving out the door. We're sharing our experiences in hopes of helping each other survive this firestorm. And were all hoping, of course, to find some glimmer of hope amid the gloom.

I spent about four hours Friday afternoon on two panels recounting and, unfortunately, reliving, the events that started with Frank Vega's Feb. 24 threat to close the newspaper, and will end, well, sometime at the end of the summer, when the last of the people laid off in this most recent brutal round of job cuts walk out the doors of 901 Mission Street.

As painful as it was to recount those agonizing days at the bargaining table, and waiting for the layoff axe to fall, it made me realize that it was time to blog again. Frankly, I'd been avoiding it since February because I was burnt out, bummed out and couldn't think of much worth writing.

The panel was called "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Concessionary Bargaining," and I realized that there were indeed good things that came out of our lousy agreement to amend the contract.
-- We saved the San Francisco Chronicle from being shut down or sold.
-- We reduced the number of job losses.
-- We ensured that everyone who left the paper, voluntarily or involuntarily, got some severance pay and health coverage.
-- We preserved hundreds of newspaper jobs with decent pay and benefits.

Those accomplishments, of course, came at a steep price, including the loss of seniority protections, something that cost many talented Chronicle staffers their jobs. And the concessions will make it tougher for those of us who remain.

But we did what union members do best. We made a difficult decision in the best interest of the majority of our Guild colleagues. I'm proud of that decision, and proud of our members at the Chronicle, as well as those at the Sacramento and Modesto Bees, who made similar sacrifices.

The Guild convention continues Saturday, and much of the focus will be on discussing ways we can move forward. The emphasis is on preserving -- or creating -- decent jobs for journalists, regardless of whether the stories appear in print, online or on cell phones or other gadgets.

As Guild President Bernie Lunzer said during his opening speech: "The future of news is in the frontline worker."

Fighting for the future

Twenty-eight hours is a long time to spend sitting on your butt in a cool hotel meeting room with bad acoustics.

But it was worth it. Leaders from The Newspaper Guild and the broadcasting and printing sectors of the Communications Workers of America met in wintry Baltimore for three long days of meetings to come up with ways to protect jobs and help save the news industry.

"It's really tough right now, and there's a lot of despair," said Guild President Bernie Lunzer. But we think if we work together, we can kill the despair with hope."

No, we didn't come up with a magical solution -- I wish we did-- but we did take several forward-looking steps. They include:

-- Establishing a task force to develop skills training programs for members.
-- Exploring non-traditional ownership arrangements -- including non-profit arrangements, employee stock option plans, public financial support, startups and hybrid models that combine traditional ownership and alternative approaches.
-- Launching community campaigns promoting the importance of journalism and newspapers.
-- Bargaining contract language that protects jobs.
-- Establishing cooperative relationships with management to find mutually beneficial solutions to make newspapers work.

Our new, merged California Media Workers Guild was well-represented with Media News mobilizers Carl Hall and Sara Steffens joining me, along with soon-departing Luther Jackson, former administrative officer of the San Jose Newspaper Guild, and Gloria LaRiva, head of our typographical sector. We were among 150 leaders from media unions in the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada.

I can only speak for myself, of course, but I left feeling tired and a bit hopeful. There's a lot of work ahead if we're going to try to save newspapers from themselves (And we'll need your help). But it feels good to be doing something other than whining, moping and cursing our owners -- and something more innovative than laying people off.

Now, it's time for me to get some sleep.

Full of thanks

Thanksgiving and the holiday season it kicks off are a time to give thanks and appreciate friends and family. I'm in sunny Goleta, spending time with my family, and I'm thankful for that. But I wanted to take a couple of moments to say thanks to my union family.

And I really do consider it a family of sorts, though sometimes a dysfunctional one, like most families. We care about each other, we help each other, we fight for what's best for us. And we support each other, especially when times are tough, which they've certainly been lately.

There are endless numbers of examples, so I won't single anyone out. But thanks to all the Guild staff, officers and activists. Enjoy the turkey and, especially, the pie.

Twisted logic from Forbes

Even journalists, well-known for our mathematical inabilities, can figure out this word problem. Let's say you have $1,000 you're saving for a new laptop. It gets stolen, leaving you with nothing. So you work a lot of overtime -- putting it down on your timecard (hint-hint). Your long hours and hard work pays off, and you earn $2,000. So, the question is: How much did you earn? The answer, of course, is $2,000.

But a writer from Forbes would disagree. In a recent article about The Newspaper Guild (check it out via the Media Workers website), James Erik Abels downplays the magnitude of the Bay Area News Group -- East Bay organizing campaign. In an interview, I laid out the history of the BANG campaign, starting with the Singleton purchase of the Contra Costa Newspapers and the subsequent decision to form BANG East Bay and withdraw its recognition of the Guild contract.

To Abels, that somehow means that the accomplishment of organizing BANG's 208 members wasn't as significant as it seems. To me, that doesn't make sense mathematically: We gained 208 members where we had zero.

But it also ignores that the Contra Costa Times was a long-time non-union (and anti-union) paper that unions had eyed for years. And that the organizing campaign was driven in large part by a desire to maintain journalistic quality. And that nobody in the newspaper industry (and especially at Media News) ever expected it to succeed.

Abels does quote me as saying that we're receiving a lot of organizing inquiries, though he doesn't mention my statement that it's because journalists are getting fed up with the steady decline in staffing and quality, and the failures of newspaper management to try any strategy other than slashing jobs. (Now there's a story for a good business magazine).

The gist of the article is that the Guild is struggling to survive. Being in a union has always meant struggling, and that's never been more true than in the past decade of a hostile National Labor Relations Board and Department of Labor. (Fortunately, that should change soon).

But we're not struggling to survive as a union (Cue the Gloria Gaynor music here). Sure, times are tough, and yes, we're losing members to layoffs. But we're organizing, we're adapting to changing times and techologies, we're exploring (and getting involved in) alternative ownership models, we're planning for our future.
Don't write The Newspaper Guild off just yet.