Congratulations are in order for the newsroom of the Casper Star-Tribune, an award-winning newspaper in the Lee Enterprises chain. Journalists there voted overwhelmingly Feb. 27 to join the Denver News Guild.
The United Media Guild represents employees at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the largest newspaper in the Lee Enterprises chain. Our members there have benefited from having a strong voice in the workplace during these challenging times in our profession.
Now the journalists at the Star-Tribune will have a voice in their newsroom, too. The Casper organizing committee posted the following statement through social media after the election:
“We at the Casper News Guild are pleased with the result of this vote. As we have said from the beginning, our goal is to protect and strengthen the future of the Star-Tribune, as well as Casper and Wyoming’s news, for many years to come. Since filing for an election earlier this month, communication between newsroom employees and management has been open and respectful. We look forward to furthering that cordial relationship in the months to come as we bargain with the Star-Tribune’s corporate owner, Lee Enterprises, to reach a collective bargaining agreement that benefits both the newsroom and the company.”
The Star-Tribune is just the latest newspaper to join a local within the NewsGuild, which is a sector of the Communications Workers of America. Recently journalists at the Los Angeles Times voted in the Guild.
“Journalists are taking a stand across the country,” TNG-CWA president Bernie Lunzer said. “We are fighting for quality journalism and a voice in our future.
“The media landscape is changing. Corporate owners are slashing staff and cutting resources as ad revenue shifts to Google and Facebook. But in this time of turmoil, quality journalism at the national and local level is more important than ever.”