The 150 reporters, editors, photojournalists, sales and IT staff who work at The Canadian Press (CP) have written an open letter to the wire service’s president Malcolm Kirk and its board of directors, appealing for a wage increase to match the rising cost of living.

The members of the Canadian Media Guild (CMG) have been trying to negotiate a new contract for the last six months, saying that some of its members “can no longer afford to live in the communities where they work and report.”

“For over 100 years, we have told the stories of Canadians, with our work appearing on the news pages, websites and broadcasts of nearly every media outlet across the country,” the letter states. “Canadians have come to rely on us, sometimes without even knowing it. During six months of good-faith negotiations, we’ve asked for a general wage increase that matches inflation and the rising cost of living in Canada. Our previous five-year deal provided a total of a three per cent general wage increase. We’ve fallen significantly behind, as inflation was almost seven times higher.”

The letter says at the same time, CP has added new revenue streams, including taking advantage of the Canadian Journalism Labour Tax Credit and Google’s Online News Act exemption fund, while paying dividends to its owners The Globe and Mail, Torstar, and La Presse.

“The future of CP’s story should be one of strength, stability and shared respect,” the letter continued. “We are hopeful that management will make a proposal that meets our needs. A strong agreement not only supports workers, it’s an investment in the quality and credibility of a national news service that Canadians count on.”

CMG filed for conciliation in Quebec and Ontario last month, offering the union and the employer the chance to keep negotiating with the help of a neutral third party.

“We’ll keep negotiating in good faith and doing all we can to reach a fair deal for our members,” the union said in an update last month.