After three months of bitter negotiations, The Boston Globe and leaders of its largest union are close to reaching a new agreement when they meet today to discuss a $10 million package of wage and benefit cuts, union members say.
Even if the two sides finalize a new contract, it must still be ratified by rank-and-file members of the Boston Newspaper Guild. Union leaders have already set a ratification vote for July 20.
The meeting comes two weeks after the Guild rejected a package of concessions, and eight days after the company, in response, imposed a 23 percent wage cut on the nearly 700 editorial, advertising, and business office employees represented by the union.
If a final agreement is reached, it is likely to be similar to a package Guild members rejected. It would have given the paper’s owner, The New York Times Co., $10 million in total savings and eliminated lifetime job guarantees for about 170 veteran employees. The pay cut, 8.4 percent in the original offer, is likely to shrink by cutting other benefits.
“We’re really hopeful that the deal is reached soon,’’ said Beth Daley, a Globe reporter, “and this punitive pay cut we’re experiencing so excruciatingly will be over - and we can move on and continue to put out one of the best papers in America. To say this has been a distraction is an understatement.’’
Globe spokesman Robert Powers declined to comment. Daniel Totten, president of the Guild, said, “The talks are continuing, and we remain optimistic.’’
In addition to setting a ratification vote, the union has given other hopeful signs: On Thursday it postponed another meeting with the National Labor Relations Board to discuss its complaint against both the Globe and the Times Co. for unfair labor practices.
These measures suggest the company and union negotiators worked through, or at least nearly worked through, the last major issue that union members said was separating them last week: how to handle the 23 percent cut during the ratification period.
The union’s bylaws require 30 days notice for a vote, and union leaders were trying to soften the impact of the deep pay cuts during the waiting period.
Guild members who voted down the first contract June 8 complained the wage cuts - which, with five unpaid furlough days, totaled about 10 percent - were too harsh. They argued the salary concessions should mirror the 5 percent reduction the Times Co. imposed on management.
The Guild is the only major union that has not approved concessions sought by the Times Co., which in early April threatened to close the money-losing paper unless it could gain a total of $20 million in savings from Globe unions. Unions representing press operators, mailers, and delivery truck drivers, as well as several smaller unions, ratified wage and benefit cuts totaling slightly more than $10 million.
The Guild and management met last Monday, and while management insisted there would be no more negotiations, the two sides began hammering out a new contract. After two days of marathon talks, both sides agreed to take a break, continue some discussions by phone, and then resume face-to-face negotiations today.
A Guild agreement would bring an end a tumultuous period of tense bargaining during which the survival of New England’s largest paper was at stake.
The staff turmoil could affect the paper’s quality if hard feelings linger, said John Morton, a veteran newspaper industry analyst. “When you have this kind of tension, it does affect morale,’’ Morton said. “How long will that last? Who knows.’’
Even if the Guild ratifies a new contract, the Globe’s future remains uncertain because the underlying problem - the migration of readers and advertisers to the Internet - hasn’t been solved. The Globe lost $50 million last year, and the Times Co. has said it is expected to lose $85 million this year unless major cuts are made.
Adding to the uncertainty is the news that the Times Co. is seeking a possible sale of the paper, which it bought for $1.1 billion in 1993.
The Globe has reported that potential bidders include Stephen Pagliuca, a private equity executive and Celtics co-owner; Jack Connors, cofounder of a major advertising firm and chairman of Partners HealthCare; and Stephen Taylor, a former Globe executive and member of the family that sold the Globe to the Times Co.
Robert Gavin can be reached at rgavin@globe.com. 
