Arizona
Arizona Republic and its newsroom union agree on 2-year contract
Watch The Republic’s coverage of Arizona in 2023
From the Super Bowl to the World Series, from Rihanna to Taylor Swift, The Republic covered it all in Arizona in 2023.
The Arizona Republic and its newsroom staffers agreed Friday on a two-year contract that provides a framework for benefits, wages and working conditions for employees.
A tentative agreement, negotiated between The Republic and local members of Media Guild of the West, was reached in December.
The contract was approved unanimously in a vote by Guild members this week. It comes after more than four years of negotiations after reporters, photographers and other newsroom staffers at The Arizona Republic, azcentral.com and La Voz voted to unionize in October 2019.
Both sides expressed satisfaction with the deal.
“Four years ago in Phoenix, we began negotiating a first contract fully aware of the complexities,” said Greg Burton, Republic executive editor. “Today, we emerge united around mutual priorities, a mission to serve readers and an obligation to hold the powerful to account.”
The contract maintains core management rights to lead the newsroom, direct employees’ work, and manage the number of employees and their assignments. It affirms that union employees will share the same benefits at the company as non-union employees.
The contract also sets out a minimum starting salary, increases pay for all union staffers, provides some layoff protections and continues paying matching funds on employee contributions in the 401(k) retirement plan.
Some 78 votes were cast in favor, none in opposition, with five eligible Guild members not voting.
Burton said the local journalism effort never stopped throughout the bargaining process.
“Never once did we aspire for anything less than our best,” he said. “That’s reflective of the talent and dedication of every person in this newsroom.”
Finalizing the contract in Phoenix “affirms our commitment to local journalism and serving our neighbors in this community with the information they want, need and deserve,” said Kristin Roberts, Gannett Media chief content officer, in a statement. Gannett is the parent company of The Republic.
“We plan to continue finalizing contracts for our valued USA TODAY Network colleagues while actively posting and filling journalism jobs across the country,” Roberts said.
Roberts reaffirmed company officials remain “unwavering in our promise to deliver essential content and trusted journalism — it’s a goal we all share as we stabilize our business.”
Richard Ruelas, an investigative reporter and chair of the Republic guild, called it a “beneficial” agreement that features a minimum starting salary of $50,000 and automatic increases after five and 10 years of employment. The company also agreed to continue paying matching funds on employee contributions in the 401(k) retirement plan and to more than double mileage-reimbursement rates.
“Additionally, every employee in the newsroom who doesn’t get a bump in the new salary structure will receive a $1 an hour raise in each of the two years of the contract,” he said. “That means the minimum pay increase a Republic newsroom (guild) employee will receive is $4,160 over the next two years.”
The contract also specifies a layoff process that calls on The Republic to seek volunteers before anyone is involuntarily dismissed, Ruelas said.
“It’s much better that employees leave of their own volition, with celebrations and fond farewells, than be involuntarily shown the door,” he said. “Both sides agreed with that.”
Lengthy organizing, bargaining process
The Republic’s Guild counts 93 members, 83 of whom signed cards agreeing to pay dues and entitling them to vote on the contract.
Non-management newsroom employees voted to join the Guild in October 2019. Bargaining for a contract began in December 2019, with the COVID-19 pandemic later moving the negotiations to Zoom meetings.
“It was a challenge to sustain momentum and energy with employees being hired and others leaving,” Ruelas said. “Most of the people who led the original effort to unionize have left for other job opportunities.”
Burton, in an earlier message to employees, praised The Republic’s diversity and talent, calling it a newsroom united by a commitment to ensure that the publication “thrives for another 133 years (as) a First Amendment bulwark on which we promote the common good, protect the public trust and serve all Arizonans.”
Reach the reporter at russ.wiles@arizonarepublic.com.
Arizona
Former Arizona Coyotes franchise has fans vote on team name
The former Arizona Coyotes franchise, now the Utah Hockey Club, has chosen three names for fans to vote on for their permanent team name.
Not making the list is the fan favorite “Yeti” or “Yetis” name. The Utah Hockey Club filed for a trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, according to The Associated Press, that was rejected on Jan. 9. The “Yeti” name in relation to the hockey team would have confused the majority of people with the Yeti brand. Thus, Yeti and the Utah Hockey Club could not reach an agreement of coexistence with branding and merchandising.
The final three names up for consideration were Utah Mammoth, Utah Hockey Club and Utah Wasatch.
After Wednesday night’s first day of voting, Utah decided that the Wasatch name was not as popular to the crowd as they thought.
On Thursday, the team announced that they would be switching the option of Utah Wasatch to Utah Outlaws after the first round of voting.
Hey Utah hockey fans! We listened to your feedback and dug into all the Qualtrics data from last night’s survey. For the team name, it’s clear that Outlaws should be in the mix instead of Wasatch, so we’re swapping it out.
Surveys will continue at the arena Friday, Sunday and…
— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) January 30, 2025
For the next three home games (voting started on Wednesday night against Pittsburgh) fans at the Delta Center can vote on their favorite name on an iPad. The next three home games are on Jan. 31 versus Columbus, Feb. 2 versus St. Louis and Feb. 4 versus Philadelphia.
The initial thought to use the Wasatch name was to still get across the idea behind the fans’ wishes of the Yeti, a mythical creature that lives up in the Himalayan mountains. The Wasatch Mountains run along the east side of the Salt Lake Valley.
“We wanted to honor this idea people had for a mythical snow creature like the Yeti and bring a very Utah-centric approach to it,” Smith Entertainment Group executive Mike Maughan said in an article by AP’s John Coon. “Because we have the Wasatch Mountains, because we have the Wasatch Front, we have so many different iterations or ways we can do it. We wanted to honor the sentiment of one of those top names of the last iteration (of fan voting) while also including a Utah-centric version of it.”
A unique feature is that when fans click to vote on their favorite name, it will reveal logos, jerseys and branding for that particular choice.
The permanent team name will be revealed ahead of the Utah Hockey Club’s 2025-26 home opener.
Arizona
Michael Bidwill Elected To Arizona Sports Hall Of Fame
Bidwill’s Hall class includes U.S. soccer star Julie Ertz — wife of former Cardinal Zach Ertz — who is from Arizona and prepped at Mesa Dobson High School; six-time Major League Baseball all-star Paul Konerko, who prepped at Scottsdale Chaparral High School; University of Arizona basketball star Mike Bibby, who went to Phoenix Shadow Mountain High School; college football Hall of Famer Ricky Hunley, who went to the University of Arizona; former Diamondbacks GM Joe Garagiola Jr.; three-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Melissa Belote Ripley, who attended Arizona State; and the late Matt Shott, the former senior director of amateur hockey development for the Arizona Coyotes.
Michael Bidwill, after time as a federal prosecutor, began working for his family’s organization in 1996. His drive to get State Farm Stadium built, from the vote to approve it to its completion in 2006, was critical not only to the health of the franchise but also helping to create some $6 billion in economic impact for the Valley, including three Super Bowls, a Pro Bowl, college bowl games, and two NCAA men’s basketball Final Fours.
Bidwill is also a member of multiple NFL committees, including the Management Council Executive Committee.
That’s all aside from the work Bidwill has done as a leader in the Valley’s business community, including stints as the chairman to the Greater Phoenix Leadership and chairman of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council.
Bidwill will be inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame, along with the rest of the Class of 2024/25, on April 10 at Chateau Luxe in Phoenix.
Arizona
Junior college defensive lineman Ezra Funa commits to Arizona
Arizona coach Brent Brennan and his staff have made good use of the JUCO route to fill out the Wildcats roster.
On Wednesday the UA landed a commitment from the College of San Mateo defensive lineman Ezra Funa for the class of 2025. Funa has two remaining years of eligibility and can sign on Feb. 5 when the next signing period begins
Funa is a 6-foot-3, 300-pound lineman from Santa Ana, Calif. He is ranked as the No. 102 junior college player in his class, including the No. 22 defensive lineman and No. 14 player from California. He had offers from Oklahoma State, Colorado State, Hawaii and Nevada among other schools.
Funa is the fourth player from the College of San Mateo to transfer to Arizona under Brennan. In 2024 Arizona brought in linebacker Cyrus Durham, cornerback Johno Price and wide receiver Jeremiah Patterson from the college.
Funa was a year behind those players at College of San Mateo. Funa graduated from Mater Dei High School in 2023.
Patterson had the biggest impact last season out of that group, leading Arizona and the Big 12 with 596 return yards on special teams to go with 196 receiving yards.
Funa is the 10th defensive lineman to added bythe Wildcats this offseason, including Texas transfer (and former Wildcat) Tiaoalii Savea.
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