Newsroom employees at the Rockford Register Star and Freeport Journal-Standard voted 14-10 to join the United Media Guild during a representation election afternoon Friday in Rockford.
They voted in the Guild despite an intense anti-Guild campaign waged by GateHouse Media. Employees were subjected to group meetings with top GateHouse executives, small group meetings with Register-Star managers and additional one-on-one meetings that continued right up to the election.
Initially 19 journalists signed authorization cards to trigger the election. After the successful vote, “yes” and “no” voters came together at a Friday night outing sponsored by the Guild.
These journalists join their GateHouse colleagues from the Peoria, Pekin and Springfield units in the UMG. They gain an opportunity to work together to ensure brighter futures for their newspaper/web operations going forward in Illinois as GateHouse reorganizes financially.
The UMG is thrilled to have them on board.