May 22, 2019 – The NewsGuild-CWA had a banner day on May 21, when three digital publications organized by the New York Local won voluntary union recognition.
Workers at Ars Technica, Pitchfork and Quartz are the latest to join the wave of journalists who are unionizing.
“We’re delighted to announce that we’ve now been officially voluntarily recognized by @qz, after a neutral third-party attorney verified that over 80% of the unit signed on to the union,” Quartz workers tweeted.
Quartz is a business news publication owned by the Japanese media company Uzabase. Sixty of its more than 230 employees (on five continents) will be represented by the NewsGuild of New York.
Ars Technica, which covers technology and science, and Pitchfork, which covers music criticism and news, are Condé Nast publications. Workers at The New Yorker, the venerable Condé Nast magazine, joined The NewsGuild in July 2018.
In announcing union recognition at Pitchfork and Ars Technica, the NewsGuild of New York tweeted, “Our members are eager to begin the collective bargaining process to secure the sustainability of their publications for years to come.”
“These journalists are standing up and fighting for the future of their profession,” said NewsGuild President Bernie Lunzer. “We’re thrilled to have them join our ranks.”