Santa Barbara paper illegally fired union backers, judge says (Wendy McCaw publisher)

[Omaha Steve]

Source: LA Times

By Martin Zimmerman and Victoria Kim

A judge has ruled that the Santa Barbara News-Press committed flagrant violations of federal labor laws when it fired eight journalists for engaging in union activities, and he ordered that the newspaper rehire the former employees.

Evidence presented during a 17-day hearing last summer shows "the News-Press' widespread, general disregard for the fundamental rights of the employees," Administrative Law Judge William G. Kocol wrote in a 75-page decision issued last week.

Kocol ruled in a case brought by the National Labor Relations Board, which accused the paper of retaliating against employees who planned to join a division of the Teamsters union.

"This decision really is all-encompassing; it's everything we wanted it to be," said Melinda Burns, who worked for the paper for 21 years before she was fired in October 2006.

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/business/careers/work/la-fi-newspress1jan01,1,6985118.story?coll=la-headlines-business-careers

[KingFlorez]

1. I used to read that paper regularly when I lived in Santa Barbara

And I occasionally buy one when visit there every once in awhile, but I won't be buying anymore now that I know they pull stunts like this.

[XemaSab]

2. There's been a boycott against them for a while

:(

[Hekate]

3. I was very encouraged to read this in the LAT on New Year's Day. Wendy McCaw is a human disgrace

"Wendy McCaw, Obey the Law" buttons/signs got some of the News Press employees canned. But mostly it seems to have been whim on her part, plus any show of journalistic integrity by reporters and editors.

She has wrecked a good local newspaper and has ruined the lives of many good people. The former editor, briskly escorted out of his office when he was fired, has cancer. He is being persecuted by McCaw and her minions, and I do believe they hope he will just die.

Wendy McCaw is a billionaire. Her little hobby (buying and running a newspaper, that is) isn't working out the way she anticipated -- but instead of selling it, she's going to hang on until there are no subscribers left at all. She can afford to -- the money means nothing to her, it's just all about proving some obscure point about her personal power.

Wendy, please go to Hell. Or just go away.

Hekate

Edited to add: 4th Rec!