Message from Marty Keegan - Lead Union Organizer

Dear L.A. Times Brothers and Sisters.

Back in March during our highly attended Union meeting at Local 404 in Monrovia, we developed a strategy to achieve a "fair" contract and promote “good faith" bargaining at the table.

We explored ideas on how to deal with the empIoyers need to generate larger profits. We also discussed methods to insure that your family's needs were not ignored in their efforts to gain profits by simply taking from you, their employees.

By communicating with advertisers, subscribers, political leaders as well as the community at large, we enlist the support they provide and their participation plays a key role in negotiating a fair contract between the employees and the employer. These methods are legal and have proven to be very effective in motivating employers to bargain in good faith, and not just say they will.

Keep in mind that thousands of union members subscribe to the Los Angeles Times and are watching your negotiations very closely. Their solidarity is strong and they want all of you to know that they want nothing more than for all of you to reach a fair contract and will respond when called upon.

We feel that the advertisers and the union members who subscribe will support your efforts to reach fair agreements. They would agree that a quality newspaper is what your readers expect and deserve. More importantly, they recognize the contribution each and every one of you delivers in producing the newspaper.

Many of you still take pride in creating an award winning newspaper in a professional manner, and for that fact, all of the groups mentioned in this letter understand that you deserve a fair contract.

In response to concerns regarding the "advertiser letter", we understand those concerns and have revised the letter to reflect a call for support in a much less threatening manner, after all many of us are also their customers and have purchased automobiles from their dealerships. A copy of the revised letter is enclosed and will be used going forward.

Communicating with the advertisers was the first step in bringing your negotiations to the attention of the community who the L.A. Times serves as the newspaper of record for the City of Los Angeles. The Political Leaders, Subscribers, Advertisers and all Union Employees need to, and will be aware of your struggle to reach a fair collective bargaining agreement that protects your interests in the shop, and your family's interests at home.

Our main focus should be on PATIENCE. The company has undeniably shown that it is not interested in quickly agreeing to any of your proposals by stalling, in hopes that you lose faith in your elected bargaining committee and your GCC/Teamster representatives. We are all committed to negotiating a fair contract no matter how long it takes.

I have read their ridiculous proposals and they offer nothing, and ask for everything. The implementation of these concepts will devastate your pressrooms if allowed to. Without representation and your support, those same proposals may soon become reality.

Negotiations resume (tentatively) on June 16th and 17th. Your voices will continue to be heard.

Sincerely,

Marty Keegan,

Lead GCC/IBT Organizer