Crazy Day at NLRB: Shutdown Averted, Boeing Case Settled

by Mike Elk

 

WASHINGTON D.C.—In one of the most tense votes ever held in the history of the National Labor Relations board, today the federal agency voted to proceed with enacting a new rule to curtail employers’ ability to appeal workplace unionization elections before they are held.The tension was in part due to GOP NLRB Member Brian Hayes threat to resign in protest of the vote, as I reported last week. 

His resignation would have effectively shut down the agency, because it would have lost a quorum of members needed to issue rulings.

The NLRB voted to move forward with a limited portion of a union election reform rule  related to eliminating pre-union election voter eligibility determination appeals that currently delay union elections. Under the rule, such appeals would be held after a union election is already held. Now the rule will be prepared for final “publication,” after which time it will be voted on again.

“The vast majority of NLRB-supervised elections, about 90 percent, are held by agreement of the parties—employees, union and employer—in an average of 38 days from the filing of a petition. The amendments I propose would not affect those agreed-to elections” NLRB Chairman Mark Pearce said today. He continued:

Rather, the amendments would apply to the minority of elections which are held up by needless litigation and disputes which need not be resolved prior to an election. In these contested elections, employees have to wait an average of 101 days to cast a ballot. And as several employees testified at our hearing in July, that period can be disruptive and painful for all involved.

Hayes had threatened to resign because he felt that the process and traditions of the NLRB were not being followed in the run up to consideration of the rule change. He said was not consulted properly as the agency reviewed 65,000 comments received about the rule, and that he did not have proper time to issue a dissenting rule change, among other things.

Hayes later explained why he did not resign from the NLRB, saying, “First, it’s not in my nature to be obstructionist. Second, as a practical matter, my resignation might not mute the issue."

Lastly, however, and most importantly, I believe resignation would cause the very same harm and collateral damage to the reputation of this agency and to the interests of its constituents as would the issuance of a controversial rule without three affirmative votes and in the wake of a flawed decisional process. I cannot be credibly critical of the latter and engage myself in the former.”

Polarizing Boeing case finally settled

In other news—but very much related to the NLRB being a target of Republicans—the Machinists Union (IAM) and Boeing have settled their dispute, which resulted in a high-profile NLRB complaint filed against Boeing for illegal retaliation against striking union members. The IAM and the company reached agreement on a new four-year contract, which contains language ensuring that production of the 737 Max airliner will be in Renton, Wash.

IAM District Lodge 751 President Tom Wroblewski said that “if union members vote to approve the deal in the coming weeks, the union would inform the NLRB that it has no further grievances with Boeing,” the AP reported. The contract agreement was reached 10 months before the union’s current contract with Boeing expires, which is highly unusual. The contract also reportedly allows for pay and benefit increases over its four years.

NLRB General Counsel Lafe Solomon said: “The tentative agreement announced today between Boeing and the Machinists Union is a very significant and hopeful development. The tentative agreement is subject to ratification by the employees, and, if ratified, we will be in discussions with the parties about the next steps in the [complaint] process.”

A Boeing spokesman “called the new contract with the union ‘a starting point of a new relationship’ with the union,” the AP reported.

If the union drops its lawsuit against Boeing, the NLRB will almost definitely stop pursuing its complaint against the company.

However, Capitol Hill observers still expect congressional Republicans to continue issuing attacks on the NLRB. “The war against the workers’ rights has been going on for more than a year and I do not think they will stop,” said Aaron Albright, a spokesman for Democrats on the House Education and Workforce Committee. “I do not think they will stop their obsession with breaking up workers’ unions.”

Mike Elk

Earlier in the day, at a special forum on the attacks on the National Labor Relations Board and workers’ rights sponsored by the National Labor Relations Board, University of Texas Labor Law Professor Jules Getman said the attack on the NLRB was “an almost brilliant strategy by the right wing. Attacks on workers are unpopular as in Ohio, but attacks on governments are fairly popular. So if you can make it about government, you can succeed in taking away the rights of workers.”

Mike Elk is an In These Times Staff Writer and a regular contributor to the labor blog Working In These Times. He can be reached at mike@inthesetimes.com.

Talking Union is a project of the labor network of Democratic Socialists of America. We will report on the activities and views of DSA and Young Democratic Socialists of America labor activists. We seek to be a place for a broad range of labor activists to discuss ideas for the renewal and strengthening of the labor movement. If you’d like to submit an article or blog post, email us at talkingunion@gmail.com. Tell us a little about yourself, too. Posts represent the opinion of their author and not necessarily those of the Talking Union blog, the DSA labor network, or Democratic Socialists of America. To join DSA, click here.

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Update Shows Donnelly, Daraio, Quezada, Tawil Won, Dems Sweep In Ossining

by Tien-Shun Lee

The Daily Ossining

Ossining's New Trustees Manuel Quezada and Robert Daraio

OSSINING, N.Y. – Sue Donnelly won the town supervisor race, Robert Daraio and Manuel Quezada won the village trustees race and John Fried and Mike Tawil won the town justices race, updated tallies from the county Board of Elections show.

Sue Donnelly and Catherine Borgia

According to the updated Board of Elections website, Donnelly, a Democrat, got 2,682 out of 5,162, or 52 percent of votes, while Republican opponent Peter Tripodi IV got 2,480, or 48 percent of votes for town supervisor.

Tripodi said he was still waiting for more accurate numbers to come in before he makes any comment on winning or losing. 

"Those are the numbers that were called out by the people at the polling places. The Ossining clerk's numbers are different and more accurate," said Tripodi. "I'm going to wait for everything to come in before I say anything." 

Tripodi said that Town Clerk Mary Ann Roberts' numbers showed Donnelly got 170 more votes than him and there were 185 absentee ballots that haven't been counted yet.

In the race for two village trustee seats, Democrat Robert Daraio got 1,525 out of 5,507, or 28 percent of votes, and running mate Manuel Quezada got 1,495, or 27 percent of votes, according to the county Board of Elections. 

Republican opponent Robert Fritsche got 1,243, or 23 percent of votes and Republican Robert Terilli got 1,244, or 23 percent of votes. 

Newly Elected Ossining trustee Manuel Quezada

Quezada is the first Ecuadorean ever to hold an elected office in Westchester and he said he is excited about winning. 

"I'm looking forward to move forward to make a better community for everybody," he said. "One of the things I'm going to do is go to meetings, the majority of them in which the budget will be discussed, and try to learn and understand the financial situation of the village of Ossining. I'm going to take it step by step at first." 

Newly Elected Judge Mike Tawil

In the race between three candidates for two town justice seats, the county Board of Elections website shows that incumbent John Fried got 4,643 out of 9,721, or 48 percent of votes, while Mike Tawil got 2,582, or 27 percent of votes, and John Mangialardi got 2,496, or 26 percent of votes. 

"I'm cautiously optimistic that the numbers will remain in my favor," said Tawil, who was endorsed by the Democrats. "I want to thank everyone who came out for me in the elections. It was pretty tough with only one line, but I think I pulled it off." 

Broadcast Union News Note: In Westchester's 9th District, Catherine Borgia (D), Ossining Town Supervisor won the County Legislator seat with 55% of the vote over former Croton Trustee Sue Konig who received 45%.

Eric Blaha, Geoff Harter, Bob Daraio, and Manuel Quezada on election night

In the election for Ossining Town Council, 20 year incumbent Geoff Harter (D) with 28% and newcomer  Eric Blaha (D) with 27% won over their Republican challengers  Kim Izzarelli(R) and Steve Dewey, who each garnered 23% of votes in the race for the two Town Council spots.

Robert Daraio wins Ossining Trustee Election

Well the election is over, Manny Quezada and I won the two open Village Trustee spots in Ossining.. The Ossining Dems took 8 of 9 races this year. Below are the Trustee numbers.

Ossining Village Trustee Vote Count

Daraio                        1525   28%

Quezada                     1495  27%

Terelli                          1244  23%

Fritsche                       1243  23%

 

I would like to thank Mayor Bill Hanauer, Town Supervisor Catherine Borgia, Katie Goriycki, Thomasina Laidley, Bill Burton, the Ossining Democratic Committee, all the fabulous Blitz Kids, my fellow candidates, family, friends, and supporters for a great campaign.   

Thank you to all the professors, staff, and fellow students at the CUNY Murphy Institute for Worker Education and Labor Studies program for helping to fill the gaps in my skill set and prepare me for the new challenges ahead. You patience and insight is appreciated far more than I can say.

Newly Elected Ossining Trustees Manuel Quezada and Bob Daraio

I also would like to take a moment to thank all the AEA, AFTRA, DGA, IATSE, IBEW, NABET-CWA, and WGAE Brothers and Sisters who endorsed and supported my campaign, both personally and financially. I'd also like to thank the Westchester-Putnam Central Labor Body for their endorsement. 


The labor movement can take back the Democratic Party and get a real voice in government only by running labor candidates. Three out of five Trustees in Ossining are now trade unionists. Solidarity!

Fraternally,

Bob Daraio, Trustee
Village of Ossining

Robert R. Daraio 

Recording Secretary

New York Broadcast Trades Council

Delegate NYCCLC-AFL-CIO

NABET-CWA Local 16

Judge Rejects Both Tribune Bankruptcy Plans

By Lucas Shaw

The Wrap

U.S. bankruptcy judge Kevin J. Carey has rejected Tribune Co.’s plan for reorganizing the company so that it can emerge from bankruptcy. A rival proposal from Tribune creditors did not pass muster either.

Tribune, a media empire that includes newspapers like the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, as well as more than 20 broadcasting properties, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December of 2008. That came a year after real-estate tycoon Sam Zell took the company private.

Carey began his 126-page opinion with a story, “The Scorpion and the Fox.” He said there is no moral to it, but that it reveals an “inescapable facet of human character: the willingness to visit harm upon others, even at one’s own peril.”

He then detailed the many ways in which neither plan could settle a dispute that is now almost three years old, and threatened to appoint a trustee to resolve the  case if neither side can reach a suitable resolution.

Under both plans, JP Morgan and other lenders would be the majority owners.

Judge rejects reorganization plans for Tribune

BY DAVID ROEDER, Business Reporter 

Chicago Sun-Times   

October 31, 2011

Because of a ruling issued on Halloween, Tribune Co.’s “deal from hell” lives on.

A federal bankruptcy judge Monday rejected two competing plans for the reorganization of Tribune, the Chicago-based publishing and broadcasting company that was driven into Chapter 11 by mogul Sam Zell’s ill-timed and over-leveraged buyout. 

Zell called the $8.2 billion sale the “deal from hell” upon its consummation in 2007.

But that was before the real fun even started. A year later, the Tribune, saddled with $13 billion in debt and with advertising in a steep, industry-wide fall, filed for bankruptcy. In the three years since then, creditors have wrestled over who gets what in a reorganized company and how to handle lawsuits against the parties who approved the original deal.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Carey said in a 126-page opinion that he could approve neither of the two plans presented to him. His ruling suggested that the company could be in for months of costly court proceedings and uncertainty about its fate. Many observers suspect that when creditors do get control, they will break up its properties and perhaps sell the broadcast stations, which generate the bulk of the profit.

But Carey tried to downplay any conclusion that his ruling would invite more delay. The Tribune, he wrote, “must promptly find an exit door to this Chapter 11 proceeding. The court is equally resolute that, if a viable exit strategy does not present itself with alacrity, and despite any disruption to management, as well as the added cost and delay this might inevitably occasion, the court intends to consider, on its own motion, whether a Chapter 11 trustee should be appointed.”

Tribune owns the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, other major newspapers and more than 20 broadcasting stations, including WGN television and radio. Company spokesman Gary Weitman said late Monday, “We are reviewing the judge’s decision and will have no comment until we have finished studying it.”

Both completing plans would have left Tribune under the control of JPMorgan Chase & Co. and hedge funds Angelo, Gordon & Co. and Oaktree Capital Management, the leading unsecured creditors. But a plan advocated by other debt holders, including Aurelius Capital Management LP, seeks to recover more money in litigation. 

Aurelius is known for playing legal hardball.

Aurelius was emboldened by the findings of a court-appointed examiner, who ruled last year that part of the Zell buyout may have been a “fraudulent conveyance” that automatically rendered Tribune bankrupt.

Carey rejected both plans for several reasons, some technical, but spoke more favorably of the leading creditors’ proposal. He said it provides Tribune “with more certainty regarding preservation of estate value and a better foundation for revitalizing business operations.”

A hearing in the case is scheduled for Nov. 22 in Wilmington, Del.

NBC’s 10 Owned Stations Growing Newsgathering; 130+ New Jobs Planned

By Chris Ariens on October 31, 2011

NBC Universal has announced it is hiring for more than 130 positions across the 10 Owned & Operated stations.

“People will always need local news and information. How they get it will change,” says Valari Staab, president of the NBC Owned Television Stations group. “Television has shown it’s done nothing but increase, not decline, with what’s happening with the Internet.”

Ahead of Comcast’s acquisition of NBCU earlier this year, the companies met with the FCC to explain their commitment to local news. In part, the company agreed to, “maintain at least the current level of news and information programming on NBC’s and Telemundo’s owned-and-operated (“O&O”) broadcast stations, and in some cases expand news and other local content.”

Staab, who was named president of the NBC Owned Television Stations group in April, announced what the expansion means:

Jim Watkins Offically Out at WPIX in New York

By Merrill Knox on October 28, 2011

Nearly a month after FishbowlNY reported Jim Watkins was out the door at New York City CW-affiliate WPIX, the station has finally confirmed the longtime anchor’s departure.

“Jim Watkins and WPIX-TV have decided to end their relationship after 13 years and three Best Newscast Emmy Awards,” WPIX said in a statement.

The station has disputed the original report that Watkins had been fired and was no longer welcome in the WPIX building. For more details, visit FishbowlNY.

Anchor Jim Watkins Officially Ends Association With WPIX

By Jerry Barmash on October 28, 2011

The worst kept secret has finally been made official today. Veteran WPIX anchor Jim Watkins has left Channel 11 as FishbowlNY reported exclusively on September 30.

 

The station, in a statement, announced a parting of company with its longtime anchor, without explaining why.

“Jim Watkins and WPIX-TV have decided to end their relationship after 13 years and three Best Newscast Emmy Awards. PIX11 salutes Watkins’ years of service to the station and to the community during his time as a valued newscaster at the station.  Jim bids a fond farewell to his many PIX co-workers over the years, especially Kaity Tong.”

It’s a different tone than we reported last month, when multiple sources said Watkins was fired earlier, and he was not permitted back in the building.

News director Bill Carey, though, was quick to squelch our report, saying Watkins “remains employed by WPIX.”

As Tong immediately assumed Watkins weekend anchor duties, people with knowledge of the situation told FishbowlNY that his name remained on the station’s weekly schedule.

However, sources have maintained that Watkins was dismissed.

FishbowlNY has made several attempts to speak with Watkins throughout this four-week ordeal. Once again, though, our interview request was turned down today.

Watkins joined WPIX in 1998, and had co-anchored the weeknight newscasts until Jodi Applegate was hired in October 2010.

VIDEO - Fox NY News Crew Beaten By Police While Covering Occupy Wall Street - #OWS

Here's footage of last Wednesday night's NYPD melee near Wall Street.  This clip provides a timeline and explains how the situation turned violent.  Runs 90 seconds.

Source - Media Bistro

A WNYW-Fox news crew was maced and beaten by police on Wednesday night while covering the Occupy Wall Street protests.

Reporter Dick Brennan and photographer Roy Isen got caught in the middle of an altercation between police officers and a group of protesters, at the end of a day spent covering the ongoing demonstrations in lower Manhattan.  Brennan was struck in the stomach with a baton and Isen was hit in the eyes with pepper spray.

“Since the arrests over the weekend, these demonstrations have been mostly peaceful.  That’s until tonight,” Brennan reported.  “And I can tell you because my photographer and I got caught in the middle of things when the pepper spray and the night sticks started flying.”

Related Stories:

• GRAPHIC VIDEO - NYPD Beats Wall Street Protesters In Baton Wielding Melee, Dozens Arrested

• VIDEO - NYPD Cop On Wall Street Brags: "My Little Nightstick Is Going To Get A Workout Tonight, Hopefully"

Stop Police Attacks On Working Journalists

 

By now, much of the nation has seen stories and images from this week's Occupy Oakland protests, which ended with police in riot gear and protestors struggling through clouds of tear gas.

Less visible is what happens at the other end of the lens: The working journalists, both freelance and staff, who put themselves in harm's way to ensure the story reached the larger public.

Journalists know that their jobs can be dangerous. What they don't expect is to be detained, attacked or otherwise interfered with by police -- as happened to at least three journalists in Oakland this week. All were clearly wearing press passes and carrying professional photo gear.

Please stand with working journalists and tell Oakland officials that this is unacceptable: Police must learn to recognize and respect a press pass.

Click through to send a letter to City Hall, and please help us spread the word by forwarding this e-mail, or by tweeting or sharing the link on Facebook.

The Newspaper Guild • 501 3rd Street NW • Washington, DC 20001 • 202-434-1100

Huge NLRB Victory Restores Union Rights to NABET-CWA Represented NBC 'Content Producers'

In a resounding victory for NABET-CWA members, an NLRB ruling out of Region 2 in New York City orders NBC to reinstate the bargaining rights of "content producers," a title the network created three years ago to strip union representation from nearly 100 photographers, editors and writers.

 

"On behalf of our affected members and their families, we are extremely pleased with this outcome," NABET-CWA President Jim Joyce said. "NBC wasted shameful amounts of money to pay for outside legal counsel and consultants just so that it could take away union-negotiated wages and benefits from its workers, many of whom have been loyal NBC employees and NABET-CWA members for years."

 

NBC tried to claim that it was consolidating work and creating new, non-union jobs. But the ruling said testimony at hearings this year in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, D.C., made it clear that so-called content producers were doing the same work they'd always done, just with a different title.

 

 "The evidence warrants the conclusion that content producers perform the same basic functions previously performed by bargaining unit employees," said Elbert Tellem, NLRB acting director for Region 2 (New York).

 

Because NABET-CWA filed the cases as "unit clarification," NBC has limited rights of appeal. Procedure allows for a full NLRB hearing but no further appeals in federal court, Joyce said.

The decision affects both NABET members who lost their bargaining rights, as well as new employees hired as content producers. Their rights are expected to be restored without delay, Joyce said, even while NBC pursues an NLRB appeal. Content producers at NBC and NBC-owned stations in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles are directly affected by the ruling.

The decision comes as NABET and NBC begin the fourth year of negotiations for a new contract. In August, NABET members overwhelmingly rejected an NBC proposal that would have rolled back seniority and benefit provisions, among other concessions.

 

The NLRB ruling that will restore union rights to about 100 NBC content producers was a big boost this week for NABET-CWA members as they continue their fight for a fair contract at the network. Pictured are Local 52031 members outside the Washington, D.C., studios.

Judge OKs $32 Million Settlement for Tribune Employees in the Defunked ESOP

by Jim Romenesko

A federal judge has granted preliminary approval of the $32 million settlement — announced in August — for former Los Angeles Times auto writer Dan Neil and Tribune employees. The final hearing is set for January 30. The plaintiffs contended that the leveraged buyout that resulted in creation of an employee ownership plan violated federal pension law. Tribune staffers became owners of the company when it was taken private by Sam Zell in 2007. The company filed for bankruptcy protection one year later.

Plaintiffs’ press release

 

FEDERAL JUDGE APPROVES $32 MILLION SETTLEMENT FOR FORMER LA TIMES PULITZER PRIZE WINNER AND EMPLOYEES OF SAM ZELL’S BANKRUPT TRIBUNE COMPANY

Hundreds Of Writers, Editors And Other Employees Will Recapture Money For Their Employee Stock Ownership Plan

 

CHICAGO – Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted preliminary approval of a $32 million settlement in the class action case of Dan Neil, et al. v. Samuel Zell, et al. The defendants in this case are GreatBanc Trust Company, Samuel Zell and EGI-TRB, LLC. Tribune Company was dropped from the case after its bankruptcy filing, but they are a party to the settlement. The Tribune Company includes the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, the Baltimore Sun, other major newspaper and media outlets. The final hearing on the settlement is on January 30, 2012.

The lawsuit, which was filed in November 2008 following the purchase of the Tribune Co. by Sam Zell and his company, raised claims on behalf of participants and beneficiaries of the Tribune Company Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). 

The lawsuit challenged the Leveraged ESOP buy-out of the company. The complaint alleged Defendants breached their fiduciary duties by causing the ESOP to pay more than fair market value for the Tribune stock purchased in April, 2007 by Sam Zell. 

Also alleged was that Defendants caused the ESOP to purchase unregistered stock at a time when the Tribune stock was trading on the public market and engaged in prohibited transactions under ERISA. 

The U.S. Department of Labor commenced an investigation of the Leveraged ESOP Transaction and asserted claims against Tribune which were also raised. 

Under the terms of the settlement, Tribune and GreatBanc will collectively pay the settlement amount of $32 million to the employees in the ESOP. The suit was handled by Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy of Burlingame, Meites, Mulder & Glink of Chicago, and Lewis, Fineberg, et al., of Oakland. 

The lead plaintiffs were Dan Neil, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist formerly with the Los Angeles Times, and Eric Bailey, also a former Los Angeles Times journalist. Hundreds of writers, editors and other employees will recapture money for their ESOP.

Phil Gregory of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, LLP said, “This is a wonderful vindication for all the newspaper people who dedicate their careers to journalism only to have their retirement plans diminished by unscrupulous purchasers of their papers.”

The Case is Dan Neil, et al. v. Sam Zell, et al. (08-cv-06833) ND. ILL.

The November 2011 Edition of the IATSE ORGANIZER now available

Bonuses Worthy of Protest for Gannett and Tribune Executives

Why Not Occupy Newsrooms? By DAVID CARR

Almost two weeks ago, USA Today put its finger on why the Occupy Wall Street protests continued to gain traction. The bonus system has gone beyond a means of rewarding talent and is now Wall Street’s primary business,” the newspaper editorial stated, adding: “Institutions take huge gambles because the short-term returns are a rationale for their rich payouts. But even when the consequences of their risky behavior come back to haunt them, they still pay huge bonuses.” 

Well thought and well put, but for one thing: If you were looking for bonus excess despite miserable operations, the best recent example I can think of is Gannett, which owns USA Today. 

The week before the editorial ran, Craig A. Dubow resigned as Gannett’s chief executive. His short six-year tenure was, by most accounts, a disaster. Gannett’s stock price declined to about $10 a share from a high of $75 the day after he took over; the number of employees at Gannett plummeted to 32,000 from about 52,000, resulting in a remarkable diminution in journalistic boots on the ground at the 82 newspapers the company owns. 

Never a standout in journalism performance, the company strip-mined its newspapers in search of earnings, leaving many communities with far less original, serious reporting.

Given that legacy, it was about time Mr. Dubow was shown the door, right? Not in the current world we live in. Not only did Mr. Dubow retire under his own power because of health reasons, he got a mash note from Marjorie Magner, a member of Gannett’s board, who said without irony that “Craig championed our consumers and their ever-changing needs for news and information.” 

But the board gave him far more than undeserved plaudits. Mr. Dubow walked out the door with just under $37.1 million in retirement, health and disability benefits. That comes on top of a combined $16 million in salary and bonuses in the last two years. 

And in case you thought they were paying up just to get rid of a certain way of doing business — slicing and dicing their way to quarterly profits — Mr. Dubow was replaced by Gracia C. Martore, the company’s president and chief operating officer. She was Mr. Dubow’s steady accomplice in working the cost side of the business, without finding much in the way of new revenue. She has already pocketed millions in bonuses and will now be in line for even more.

Forget about occupying Wall Street; maybe it’s time to start occupying Main Street, a place Gannett has bled dry by offering less and less news while dumping and furloughing journalists in seemingly every quarter. 

It’s tempting to write off Gannett’s enrichment amid the ruins as anomalous. 

But Gannett is not the only big media enterprise where the consequences of bad decisions land on everyone except those who made them. The Tribune Company, a chain of newspapers and television stations run into the ground by Sam Zell after he bought it in 2007, is paying out tens of millions of dollars in bonuses as part of a deal in which it would exit bankruptcy.

Over 4,000 people in the company lost their jobs, and the journalistic missions of formerly robust newspapers it operates — including The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune and The Baltimore Sun — have been curtailed. And even though Randy Michaels and some of his corporate fraternity brothers who operated the company into bankruptcy are gone, more than 600 managers who were there while the company cratered remain. 

Not only do they have jobs while so many others were sent packing, but the remaining leadership will be eligible for a bonus pool from $26.4 million to $32.4 million under the current plan. 

Through the magic of blunt force cost-cutting — about $800 million over the last three years, much of it in the form of layoffs — a lawyer for the senior creditors told the judge in charge of the bankruptcy case that the bankrupt enterprise would generate an estimated $517 million in cash flow for 2011.

Over the past three years, counting the payment scheduled for 2011, the bonuses could amount to $115 million, according to The Chicago Tribune. The drawn-out legal process hasn’t stopped lawyers and the current managers from picking the carcass clean. The Tribune story includes over leveraged purchases, feckless management and a culture of personal enrichment, all hallmarks of the Wall Street way that have left protesters enraged. 

This is a not a finger-waving screed to suggest that some layoffs are more damaging than others just because they landed on people like me who type for a living. 

(It’s worth noting that Arthur Sulzberger Jr., the publisher and chairman of The New York Times Company, and Janet Robinson, the president and chief executive, were criticized by various unions for a 2009 compensation package that cost a combined $12 million. It’s also worth noting that Mr. Sulzberger chose to forgo additional compensation in other years.) 

The newspaper business is struggling, and those of us who have jobs are lucky to still have them. But how in the world could a board, any board, justify such huge payouts to media executives at a time like this? It’s not that any of them were flight risks, in need of incentive to stick out a bankruptcy. Most had no place to go, and even if they did, many would have trouble shaking off the taint of their previous tenure.

Peter Lewis, a former employee of both The Times and The Des Moines Register, which was bought and diminished by Gannett after he left the paper, ripped the Gannett bonuses on his blog “Words and Ideas” in summarizing an approach in which getting rid of jobs passes for a strategy. 

“Can anyone argue that Gannett newspapers and journalism are better today, and that news consumers are better served?” he wrote.

“How did Mr. Dubow and Gannett serve the consumer?” Mr. Lewis continued. “They laid off journalists. They cut the pay of those who remained, while demanding that they work longer hours. They closed news bureaus. They slashed newsroom budgets. As revenue fell, and stock prices tanked, and product quality deteriorated, they rewarded themselves with huge pay raises and bonuses.”

Sure, he was talking about Gannett, but he could have been talking about the Tribune Company, or come to think of it, much of the American economy that used to make money by making things. Many newspaper companies are working hard against steep challenges to innovate into a new future, but Mr. Dubow and his team seemed content to just ride the collapse of the business. 

No one, least of all me, is suggesting that running a newspaper company is a piece of cake. But the people in the industry who are content to slide people out of the back of the truck until it runs out of gas not only don’t deserve tens of millions in bonuses, they don’t deserve jobs. 

The optics of the bonuses are far worse than the practical impact. Newspapers are asking their employees for shared sacrifice and their digital readers to begin paying. So, lucrative packages won’t cut it. As newspapers all over the country struggle to divine the meaning of the Occupy protests, some of the companies that own them might want to listen closely to see if there is a message there meant for them.