La Presse staff spared
Written on November 21, 2009
MONTREAL–Montreal La Presse says it has reached an agreement in principle with three more of its eight unions, making it increasingly likely the newspaper will not be shut down on Dec 1.
La Presse said in a statement Friday that the tentative deal covers editorial, office and technical support employees.
North America’s biggest French-language broadsheet had threatened to close its doors Dec. 1 unless it reached contract deals with its unions and its 650 unionized employees agreed to $13 million in concessions.
Both sides were expected to meet again Friday afternoon to finalize the agreement, of which no details are yet available.
Publisher Guy Crevier has demanded a variety of concessions, including an end to four-day work weeks.
La Presse is owned by Gesca Ltee., a wholly owned division of Power Corp.
The paper announced last month it had reached an agreement with four other unions, representing one-third of its employees.
Management said it would sit down Friday with the union representing its distribution employees.
"This is a very important step that has been taken," said Caroline Jamet, a spokeswoman for La Presse.
The union representing distribution workers was not included in the tentative deal.
The newspaper’s collective agreement expired last Dec. 31. Earlier this fall, staff received an email saying their unions had three months to reach a new cost-cutting deal with management or else the paper would have to shut down on Dec. 1.
The Canadian Press
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