SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. Nov. 8, 1994 -- As the 49ers' representative to the players' union, Ralph Tamm is sympathetic to striking newspaper workers in San Francisco and said unity is the only way to achieve victory.
Tamm, the injured right guard, was named the 49ers' representative to the NFL Players Association two weeks ago in a vote of his teammates.
"If it's a worthy cause, everyone should stick together to fight for it,'' he said as the team prepared for Sunday's defining game against the Dallas Cowboys at Candlestick Park. "One of the problems the NFL Players Association had when it came time to stick together (during the 1987 players' strike) was a lot of guys lost hope. A lot of guys took the quick check and crossed the line.''
The difference between striking newspaper workers and striking football players, Tamm said, is length of careers.
"Our careers could be only three or four years long and you guys can do this the rest of your lives,'' Tamm told The Free Press. "Our situation isn't the same. We have a three, four-year window and a lot of guys were seeing that slip away. A strike is never good by anyone. If it's necessary, if it's something you have to do, you should stick with it.''
George Seifert looks on the newspaper strike from a management position as the 49ers' coach. Nevertheless, this native San Franciscan and creature of habit said he misses the two dailies.
"I honestly miss it and I miss it for the reason that's just how I start my day,'' Seifert said. "I go out in the morning and I get my paper and in the evening I get my paper.''
As for the substitutes he finds on his doorstep every day, "It's not the people that you know and the writing that you become accustomed to.'' Unlike others in his profession, Seifert has never had an adversarial relationship with the media. Instead, he views critiques of his team as part of the give-and-take of the job.
"It's part of professional football, the conversation in the newspapers the week following a game,'' he said. "That's what's great about football -- you have all that time to talk about what went wrong and then the build-up for the next game.''
Brent Jones is one of the best tight ends in the NFL and also a newspaper subscriber.
"There's definitely sympathy with what you're going through,'' Jones said. "People strike for what they believe in. It's part of the country. Everyone needs to be treated fairly.''
Added Seifert, "It's part of our process, the way that we've operated . . . in the United States. It's the way of negotiating and bargaining. It's too bad when it does get ugly and it costs people jobs and money.''