Canada: La Presse threatens closure if labor refuses concessions

Posted by Liz Webber on September 7, 2009 at 3:00 PM

North America's largest French-language newspaper, La Presse, could close December 1 if union members do not agree to significant cost cuts, the Associated Press reported. However, Caroline Jamet, vice president of communications for the paper, stressed the likelihood of reaching an agreement before the closure deadline.

La Presse hopes to achieve 13 million Canadian dollars (US$11 million) in cuts from union concessions. Two of the biggest issues on the table are the end of the four-day workweek and the elimination of 100 jobs, out of a current total of 700 employees.

The 125-year-old paper has already reached arrangements for the continued financing of the paper and now is waiting for a response from employees. Jamet stated day-to-day operations couldn't continue the way things stand now financially. This summer La Presse stopped printing a Sunday edition as a way to save money.

Other Canadian papers have also experienced financial hardship as the global newspaper industry continues to suffer. The Halifax Daily News ceased publication entirely last year and was replaced with freesheet Metro, while the National Post stopped its Monday edition for nine weeks starting June 29.

The situation at La Presse recalls the vitriolic labor dispute between the Boston Globe and the New York Times Co. that began last spring. Originally, the publisher asked for $20 million in concessions from union members, including a decrease in pay, an end to company contributions to employee pensions, and a reduction in lifetime job guarantees. Unlike at La Presse, no immediate job cuts were discussed. The NYT Co. also threatened to shutter the paper if an agreement couldn't be reached, although the original negotiation period was only to last 30 days, much shorter than the three months afforded to employees at La Presse.

Ultimately, after three months of tense negotiations and multiple skipped deadlines, Globe unions agreed to $10 million in cutbacks. The future of the newspaper remains uncertain, however, as the NYT Co. considers bids for the sale of the publication.

As many newspapers search for ways to reduce expenses in order to remain profitable, it is only logical they will ask employees to make certain concessions. While the end of a four-day workweek seems reasonable, cutting one seventh of the workforce is a significant blow. Hopefully La Presse's union will be able to reach a compromise with the publisher before December 1 so that the newspaper will remain in print.

Source: Associated Press via Google News