Employees at the progressive news site Daily Kos announced the creation of the Daily Kos Guild on Monday, saying the organization’s management had agreed to voluntarily recognize their union. They will join the Pacific Media Workers Guild local of The NewsGuild-CWA.
In recent years, the digital progressive media and activism hub, which reaches over 18 million readers per month, has grown to over 80 staffers across the country.
“Daily Kos, as a progressive organization, touts the ideals of labor rights and worker power, and we strongly agree,” said Guild member Ntebo Mokuena. “But we believe these values can and should be better reflected and infused into every part of the work we do. During these difficult times, and as we look towards the future, we must ensure that our work remains sustainable and puts workers first.”
Daily Kos staffer Catherine Daligga said, “We strongly believe in collective action, which will ensure that our voices are heard — and that the very work we pour our hearts and souls into can be done in a space that is, first and foremost, worker-driven. We are extremely proud to join together in this effort, and we look forward to working with the management team.”
“While media workers continue to be subject to vicious attacks and threats, and the very ideals of truth have come under attack, the work that Daily Kos does has become even more important — and even more precarious,” organizers said in a statement.
“As a result, it has never been more important to ensure that the priorities of Daily Kos are driven, at every level, by input from its employees.”
Follow the group on Twitter @DailyKosGuild.