Wednesday, April 15, 2009

SF Chronicle, Union Agree to Eliminate at Least 70 Drivers

UPDATE, April 20, 10:27 a.m. Eastern: The Guild voted to approve the cutbacks, and the Chronicle wrote last night it would result in at least 90 jobs lost.

The San Fransisco Chronicle and the Teamsters Local 853 reached a tentative agreement that authorizes the release of at least 70 drivers as part of the newspaper's campaign to cut operating costs.

The union represents roughly 235 drivers in the circulation department. Members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 853 will vote Sunday on the plan, said Rome Aloise, the local's secretary-treasurer, in a story in the Chronicle.

The proposal would eliminate 30 to 35 percent of those drivers, which means the loss of 70 to 83 jobs. Departing workers would receive two weeks' severance pay for every year of employment, up to a maximum of 52 weeks.

Hearst Corp announced in February that it would sell or close the 144-year-old newspaper if it couldn't quickly achieve significant savings.

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