An organizer of a union effort in the State Journal-Register newsroom says the goal is to preserve the quality of the newspaper and save the jobs of the local people who report the news.
Veteran medical reporter Dean Olsen says he believes strengthening that workforce will ultimately strengthen the paper and make it better equipped to compete in a changing media world. Olsen says after cutbacks in other areas of the newspaper, newsroom staffers see a need to have a formal contract to protect their rights and interests.
Those staffers voted overwhelmingly last week in favor of establishing the union, but it could take up to a year to negotiate a contract.
