Feb. 22, 2018 – Employees of the Chicago Reader unanimously ratified a one-year contract in October, resolving a lengthy labor dispute that began under its previous owner, Tronc. The members of the Chicago News Guild reached the deal with the labor-friendly investor group that purchased the Reader and the Chicago Sun-Times in July.
Staff will receive a pay increase totaling 8.4 percent on average. Individual increases will vary and will begin to correct long-standing pay inequities at the Reader, where earnings bore little relation to a person’s job responsibilities or years of experience. The first-time contract also sets forth minimum annual pay, ranging from $38,480 for new hires and topping out at $46,816 for those with 20 or more years of Reader service.
Other key provisions in the new Reader contract include a requirement that overtime beyond 40 hours be paid at a time-and-a-half rates, not in compensatory time off, plus a ban on using freelancers to replace full-time staffers. Staff also will be entitled to better terms for retirement and health care if such provisions are secured by Guild members in the Sun-Times editorial department. Their negotiations to replace a contract expiring at year end will begin soon.