Making Our Union Stronger in Tough Times: In Puerto Rico, Workers’ Co-op Picks Up Where Former Dai

Fed up with late and bounced paychecks, members of The Newspaper Guild-CWA began picketing last August at the San Juan Star, an English-language daily that had published in Puerto Rico for 49 years.

Management locked out the union, then, with one day's notice, stopped publishing the newspaper.

It could have been one more story about another 100 or so laid-off newspaper workers joining thousands of others in the United States searching for new jobs in an ever-shrinking market.

But barely two months later, a cooperative newspaper called the Puerto Rico Daily Sun made its debut. Today the English-language newspaper employs about 90 workers from the Star, with each one buying an $800 share in the new venture.

"We knew something bad was coming at the Star," said Marisol Lora, who was the union's unit chair. "It was the worst year, with the bouncing checks and not being paid on time. We started to talk to the owner about selling the paper to us, but he wouldn't do it. We decided that if something happens, we would start our own newspaper."

Every employee put in at least $200 to start and has six months to pay the $600 balance. Outside investors, including some Guild and CWA members on the mainland USA, also own shares.

The government of Puerto Rico, which has a strong tradition of supporting cooperatives in many industries, pledged $1 million and made an initial payment of $250,000. But a shift in government last November unleashed a political fight over spending that has delayed further payments.

Nestor Soto, a CWA executive board member and president of CWA Local 33225, known as UPAGRA, in Puerto Rico, said the union is working hard to help the Daily Sun workers get at least some, if not all, of the remaining $750,000 the government promised.

"Without the San Juan Star, the English-speaking population in Puerto Rico was not being served by a daily newspaper," Soto said. "The employee/owners at The Daily Sun risked their own money for a public good and are working long hours for little pay."

Meanwhile, the paper is getting help from TNG-CWA, which is providing $25,000 to get the Daily Sun's website up and running. Some Guild locals have taken out ads in the newspaper to help support the cooperative.