This week we have listened to newsroom employees who have requested union recognition. It is clear that we have many shared priorities, which is good news.
Newsroom employees who wish to form a bargaining unit communicated with us that they want to work at an organization that pays its employees a competitive wage.
In the three full years since we have operated as a nonprofit, The Tribune has increased news salaries 14.5%, introduced a paid family leave policy and revived a company 401(k) match, despite inflationary pressures. We appreciate the employees’ acknowledgment of this progress in its Monday letter notifying management of its intentions.
We know that benefits and compensation are critical areas, and we will continue to discuss them in good faith as we move forward.
Additionally, the newsroom employees communicated our shared belief that journalism has the power to bring about inspiring change, to make communities better, and to hold elected officials to account. As an institution, we agree that we must guard against influence. And we do — every day.
Advertisers and donors cannot influence editorial. In our gift acceptance policies we outline that the executive editor of The Salt Lake Tribune has full editorial control on all stories, columns and visual journalism published by The Tribune. And The Tribune board, which has fiduciary responsibility for the nonprofit, also has a governance policy that states it will avoid “prior restraint of news content, specific intervention with staff other than officers and senior managers and direct financial, political, business, personal, organizational, and religious conflicts of interests.”
And yet, in this newsroom, we always want to hear feedback from our teams, including those employees who have sought union recognition.
There are even more areas of agreement — a desire to continue to welcome diversity to our newsroom, for example.
And as stewards of this inspiring organization — which we believe is filled with people who want to do their best to serve our community — we must ensure its sustainability, even as we know the news landscape will continue to evolve. To maintain our sustainability, we must adapt to these changes.
Every day we must work to be a relevant and essential part of this community.
Having considered the newsroom employees’ stated concerns and the interest expressed, today we are pleased to share that we have reached an agreement to voluntarily recognize a newsroom bargaining unit. We look forward to working with Tribune employees in good faith, as we solve challenges together and continue our long tradition of outstanding journalism.
Lauren Gustus is CEO and Executive Editor of The Salt Lake Tribune.
