ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, February 18, 1997 TAG: 9702180102
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: DETROIT
SOURCE: Associated Press
The last of the six striking unions at Detroit's daily newspapers formally offered Monday to return to work, giving the publishing company five days to end the 19-month-old walkout.
The Newspaper Guild, representing striking reporters and editors, faxed its unconditional offer to Detroit Newspapers Inc., joining truck drivers, printers and other production workers in the maneuver.
``We'll have to sit down today and decide what to do,'' said Tim Kelleher, senior vice president for labor relations at the company that runs business and production operations for The Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press. ``When the time is appropriate, we will be sitting down with the unions.''
If the newspapers reject the offer, the unions say they will ask the National Labor Relations Board to seek a federal injunction to immediately return them to their jobs.
Newspaper officials have said they do not intend to fire the 1,300 replacement workers hired during the strike, and would only allow strikers to return to work as jobs became available.
But NLRB regional director William Schaub said it would be improper to take back only some workers.
``In an unfair labor strike, the strikers are entitled to their jobs back even if that means firing the replacements,'' Schaub said.
Some 2,500 employees at the two papers went on strike in July 1995 over wages and working conditions. About 430 have returned to work.
LENGTH: Short : 37 linesby CNB