Lexington, KY - Lexington Herald-Leader employees who are members of Lexington Newspaper Guild and Communications Workers of America Local 3372 have ratified a change to their contract allowing 14 layoffs, furloughs and a 5 percent wage decrease.
Local Guild head Brandon Ortiz said the members of the guild voted 83 percent in favor of the changes in a meeting Wednesday night.
According to postings on the Guild's Web site, lexguild.org, Herald-Leader management made two proposals to labor reps, one that would require concessions of a 5 percent wage cut and five furlough days for all staff in exchange for 14 layoffs. The second option removed concessions and would have eliminated 19 labor newsroom positions.
In an interview Monday, Herald-Leader Publisher Tim Kelly said they hope to have "final plans for cost reductions announced on or before next Monday," which would extend beyond just union covered employees.
With news of major-market newspapers the Seattle Post-Intelligence and Denver Rocky Mountain News shutting down in recent weeks, Kelly made a pointed to a major distinction between those two papers and the Herald-Leader.
Both of those papers were operating under a Joint Operating Agreement with larger and stronger daily papers in their city.
"The Herald-Leader is far from being a failing paper, believe me," Kelly said.
Much of the trouble for the Herald-Leader comes from debt that must be serviced by its parent company McClatchy which bought the Herald's former parent chain Knight-Ridder in 2006.