NH Union Leader Publisher Brendan McQuaid. (Photo by Allegra Boverman)
The New Hampshire Business Finance Authority (BFA) approved a $1 million loan to the New Hampshire Union Leader, the state’s largest newspaper, according to a Nov. 19 news release.
The BFA said its board unanimously approved the loan, although vice chairman Steve Duprey recused himself from the vote.
“This transaction reflects the BFA’s dedication to supporting New Hampshire’s business landscape and our statewide community,” stated James Key-Wallace, executive director of the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority. “We’re excited to play a role in helping the Union Leader build a stable foundation for the future, which will not only benefit the publication but also ensure its employees can fully benefit from their hard-earned pensions.”
Publisher Brendan J. McQuaid, in an article published in the newspaper, said the money will strengthen the Union Leader’s long-term finances and provide critical support for the newspaper to fulfill its mission of providing quality journalism for the state.
“Ensuring the financial stability of our employees, who are essential to the Union Leader’s success, is at the heart of this transaction,” he said.
The requirements of the five-year loan include significant equity and collateral contributions from private investors, with an additional $1 million in equity investment and $750,000 in cash collateral provided to secure the BFA’s financing, according to the news release. This support will help bolster the Union Leader’s financial standing, positioning the newspaper for sustainable success.
The BFA’s financing requires rank-and-file employees to continue to receive 100% of their pensions.
Meanwhile, the executive pension plan participants have agreed to a 65% reduction, reflecting a commitment to prioritizing employee welfare.
Among the executives taking that cut are retired publisher Joseph W. McQuaid and John MacKenzie, former vice president of finance. According to the NH NewsGuild, McQuaid was receiving $114,000 annually, and MacKenzie, $75,000. The 65% reduction means McQuaid will now receive $40,000 and MacKenzie, $26,250.
The NH NewsGuild, which represents about 40 employees including reporters, editors and advertising and circulation staff. The union voiced concern that the loan is contingent on $1 million in equity investment.
“We want the Union Leader Corp. and the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority to identify any investors and detail the leadership and decision-making roles the investor(s) will have in the company,” the Guild said in a statement.
Last June, the newspaper put together a financial package seeking $3 million from private investors, in combinations with the $1 million loan from the BFA to pay off “legacy debt” — retirement and pension plans — and keep it in business.
“Unlike the Guild pension plan, the company never properly funded pensions for non-union workers, even during prosperous times,” the Guild said in a statement. “Other legacy obligations are employee severance and payments to pension funds of unions that represented workers in disbanded departments such as the distribution center.”
According to the documents, each year the newspaper pays out $900,000 from its operating budget to service $7,956,000 in legacy debt. That includes the pensions for Joseph W. McQuaid and MacKenzie.
Brendan McQuaid and Joyce Levesque, executive vice president, explained in the documents that $3 million is needed to fund the elimination of its pensions/retirement benefit plans, generate cash and grow the business, along with another $1 million in public funds from the BFA.
The debts, they said, “originated in an era when we were above $50 million in annual revenue and at that size, the debts were relatively small. These legacy debts are from
now frozen pension plans that cannot be easily terminated. Now that we have stabilized revenues at just over $14 million annually, servicing these debts is a gargantuan task.”
The company’s projection over the next 12-years indicates salary cuts in the first three years and then stagnated wages for the next nine, according to the guild.
For 2024, the company lost $472,668, according to its profit and loss statement.
The $4 million is needed to turn things around. “The Union Leader cannot survive as a strong, independent, statewide news source without the help of citizens who understand the importance and history of the New Hampshire Union Leader as an independent institution for Granite State news and information.
“We know that reducing this legacy debt needs to be done and it is the only way the Union Leader can achieve a solid economic footing for the future. We have a solid plan and have put the Union Leader on the right path to achieve this plan, we hope you will be able to help,” McQuaid and Levesque wrote in the financial proposal.
Investors would be repaid over 10 years, at 5% interest, with repayment starting in year six. By the 12th year, the corporation projects a profit of just over $1 million.
