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Strib Guild Rally

By Beth Walton in Media

Tuesday, Jun. 24 2008 @ 10:37AM

At 3:30 p.m. Wednesday reporters at the Star Tribune will put down their phones, stop typing for just a little bit and head to the park across the street from their building on Portland Avenue to show their commitment to garnering a favorable contract. They want you to show up too.

According to the newspaper's union, The Strib Guild:

Contract negotiations have been going on for nearly two months, and our contract expires at the end of next month. Many issues remain in play, including all the important ones -- health care, wages and the economic tools we need to continue bringing people the news they need.

The group is asking the public to join them so that management will see that the union remains "strong, united, and supportive of our bargaining committee."

It's been a rough couple of years for the Strib. In May the newspaper announced that it would cut 10 percent of its newsroom budget by June, amounting to a reduction of some $2.5 million, part of a management plan to cut $20 million overall.

MinnPost reports that if the $2.5 can't be eliminated from the budget, more layoffs are likely the next viable option.

For the full background on the Strib's ongoing dissent into the red, see our cover stories "Trials and Stribulations" and "The McClatchy Strib: RIP. WTF?"