Strib union vote today

This afternoon thirty Star Tribune employees will vote on whether to unionize. The advertising production workers are seeking to join the Graphic Communications Conference of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 1-M.

The employees' main beef is over changes to work schedules that were implemented in February. (For more details see "McClatchy Madness.")

Mike Blazic, a business agent for the GCC/IBT, says that the company has waged a vigorous anti-union campaign. "They did get hammered on pretty hot and heavy and hard," he says. "They want this to fail very very bad."

Blazic says that he's cautiously optimistic, however. "Obviously I think we're going to win or we wouldn't be in this situation," he notes. "I personally think it's going to be pretty close."