Press Democrat Union Waives Contract, Leaving Newspaper’s Sale Imminent

The union representing editorial staffers at the Santa Rosa Press Democrat voted Friday to waive their current contract in the newspaper’s sale to media conglomerate Hearst, clearing the last major hurdle in a deal that would take the paper back out of local ownership.

By voting to approve the memorandum of understanding, union members agreed to waive their current contract — which would otherwise last through August 2026 — as soon as the sale is finalized, reporter Phil Barber said, adding that members were stuck between two less-than-ideal options.

“We were put in a very difficult position by our current and future owners, and we wound up with a couple of very imperfect outcomes,” Barber said.

The agreement also stipulates that union members cannot file a legal injunction to block the deal with Hearst Corporation, which owns the San Francisco Chronicle and many other outlets across the country. Barber said the union was considering doing so in earlier negotiations.

Although the outcome of Friday’s vote was decisive, Barber described uncertainty and frustration among union members. Journalists also feel that the current ownership under Sonoma Media Investments did not sufficiently fight to ensure the union’s contract would be recognized under Hearst.

Union members were told by leadership at the Press Democrat that if they rejected the memorandum of understanding, Hearst would pull out of the deal, forcing the owners to consider other bids that would be less sympathetic to the union’s demands.

Among them was Alden Global Capital, a hedge fund that has earned a sour reputation among journalists for buying distressed newspapers and gutting their ranks. A group of Santa Rosa business leaders also put in an offer to buy the Press Democrat. That group includes the publisher of NorthBay biz, a magazine covering Sonoma, Napa and Marin counties.

Barber said it’s unclear whether Hearst would have actually pulled out of the deal or whether it was simply a negotiation tactic to move the sale through with fewer roadblocks from the union.

“We don’t know if it was a tangible threat, or if it was a bluff, or somewhere in between the two,” Barber said. “We were put in the position of being the adults in the room and making the logical decision that wasn’t going to blow up the Press Democrat and our other publications, and in the end, we may not have had much real choice but to sign this agreement.”

Forty-five newsroom employees at the Press Democrat are represented by the Pacific Media Workers Guild, which also oversees units at the Chronicle. An acquisition by Hearst would include not just the Press Democrat but also other outlets under Sonoma Media Investments, such as the Petaluma Argus-Courier and Sonoma Index-Tribune.

Sonoma Media Investments also made concessions as part of the memorandum of understanding, according to a guild representative, which includes a payout to all union members and a requirement that Hearst offer employment to everyone at their current salaries.

The Press Democrat has been under local ownership since 2012, when real estate developer Darius Anderson and several business partners purchased it from newspaper chain Halifax Media Group, which had owned it for less than a year after buying it from the New York Times Company. The potential acquisition by Hearst, first reported by the San Francisco Standard in February, could be in the low eight figures.

Anderson and Hearst did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Barber said it’s not the first time the union has made sacrifices for the sake of a smooth transfer of ownership. When Sonoma Media Investments initially purchased the Press Democrat, union members took wage cuts and gave up their pensions to secure a new local owner.

Now, Barber said it’s “disappointing” that the owners did not fight harder to secure protections for them.

Union members are concerned that ownership by a large media conglomerate would alienate community members in the North Bay, who they say trust the Press Democrat in large part because of its historic local ownership.

“Our community has felt that their needs were really being looked after because we had local ownership,” Barber said. “We’re all sacrificing something as we lose local ownership. It’s also sort of the reality of today’s newspaper world.”

Hearst also recently acquired the Austin American-Statesman in Texas, where part of the deal included not recognizing the union’s existing contract. Barber said journalists at the Press Democrat were in conversation with reporters in Austin to learn more about what may be in store for them under Hearst ownership.

Union members at the American-Statesman are currently in contract negotiations with Hearst.

While the corporation does not have to recognize the Press Democrat’s current contract, it will still be obligated to recognize the union itself. Barber said the union hopes Hearst will bargain in good faith when it comes to negotiating a new contract.

“In the end, our members voted to make yet another sacrifice in order to preserve strong, local journalism in our community,” the union said in a statement. “We look forward to working with Hearst to negotiate a fair contract that provides our local journalists with the wages and working conditions we need to continue our excellent work and to serve our readers.”