Blog | The NewsGuild - TNG-CWA

STATEMENT from Pitchfork Union and The NewsGuild of New York on layoffs at Pitchfork

NEW YORK – Pitchfork Union and The NewsGuild of New York categorically condemn the Condé Nast announcement Wednesday that it plans to lay off eight Guild-represented members as part of an internal corporate reorganization that will “fold” Pitchfork into GQ magazine.

Condé Nast provided no further information about the future of the premiere music publication, demonstrating once again a lack of regard for the workers who have contributed to the company’s success.

Condé Nast management announced on Nov. 1 plans to lay off 5% of its workforce. Since then the Guild has been fighting on behalf of all affected workers. In a December meeting with Guild bargaining members, Condé Nast representatives said there would be no layoffs at Pitchfork.

We saw on Wednesday just how untrustworthy Condé Nast management is.

“Our members are essential to the ongoing and future success of Condé Nast. The reporters, editors, producers, researchers and all the people who make award-winning music journalism for Pitchfork, deserve better than to be treated like disposable parts,” said Susan DeCarava, president of the NewsGuild of New York. “We will continue to hold Condé Nast accountable and to fight for the recognition and compensation our members have earned, as we explore all possible options to support those affected.”

High Country News staff form wall-to-wall union

54 years after its humble beginnings as a newspaper in Wyoming, the national magazine’s unionizing efforts will go towards pay parity and equitable working conditions.

Press contact: McKenna Stayner, hcnunion@gmail.com
Website: www.hcnunion.org
Twitter: @HCNUnion Instagram: @HCNWorkers

On Jan. 9, staff at High Country News, a 54-year-old nonprofit magazine that covers lands and communities in the Western U.S., announced their intent to unionize. The High Country News Union has organized with the Communications Workers of America Local 37074, Denver News Guild, joining peers such as the Denver Post and Casper-Star Tribune. On a national scale, High Country News staff joins the ranks of an increasing number of nonprofit newsrooms to unionize, from Grist to CalMatters to ProPublica.

“I’m so excited to see what HCN will become when staff have a real and meaningful say in our workplace. The High Country News Union will be a body to receive and digest all our individual needs and reflect our shared goal of making HCN a better, healthier work environment,” said HCN’s Features Director McKenna Stayner.

For respect and fair wages: Evansville Courier & Press employees announce union campaign

EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Citing slashed resources and jobs and the prospect that nothing will change without action, the award-winning journalists of the Evansville Courier & Press are uniting to form a union.

The launch is intended above all to perpetuate the high standard of investigative journalism, sports, food and news coverage for which the Courier & Press long has been known — by giving a greater voice in the workplace to the journalists who make it all happen every day.

Journalists at The Evansville Courier & Press announce union

On Monday, every journalist at The Evansville Courier & Press in southwestern Indiana signed a union card and asked parent company Gannett to voluntarily recognize their union.

On Tuesday, workers petitioned the National Labor Relations Board for an election.

“We want to ensure a future for ourselves and news in Evansville,” said Sarah Loesch, a government reporter at the Courier & Press.

Workers at CQ Roll Call announce plan to unionize

Washington, D.C. – A supermajority of employees at CQ Roll Call have decided to form a union to fight for stronger job protections, better pay and benefits, and a louder voice in newsroom decisions.

For decades, CQ Roll Call’s award-winning journalists have played a critical role in holding our nation’s leaders accountable and keeping readers informed about the inner workings of Congress. But under current management, reporters, photographers and legislative trackers have been asked to do more with less after multiple rounds of layoffs and the company’s refusal to fill open positions.

Staffers at The Bulletin and The Redmond Spokesman vote to unionize

Media contact:
centraloregonnewsguild@gmail.com

The reporters, photographers and news assistants of The Bulletin and The Redmond Spokesman announced Tuesday their successful vote to form the Central Oregon NewsGuild.

After EO Media Group declined to voluntarily recognize the Central Oregon NewsGuild in October, the overwhelming majority of employees voted in favor of union representation this month.

Journalists at 11 SCNG newspapers hold 1-Day Walkout

Contact: Charlie Vargas, (909) 275-9669; SCNG News Guild, juancharlievargas740@gmail.com

Journalists at 11 daily newspapers in Southern California are walked out Thursday, Dec. 14.

“We are simply seeking fair wages so that we don’t have to struggle to afford living in the communities we cover,” said SCNG Guild unit chair Sean Emery, a courts and crime reporter. “We believe in local news, and our communities deserve robust coverage. But choosing a career in journalism should not require a virtual vow of poverty. It is time for the members of our newsroom to be paid what they are worth.”

Members of the Law360 Union, part of the NewsGuild of New York, pose for a photo

Law360 workers walk off the job in one-day action protesting management’s threats, unlawful conduct at the bargaining table

Contact: Jen Sheehan, jen@nyguid.org, 610-573-0740

NEW YORK – Unionized editorial workers at Law360 — who have had enough of parent company LexisNexis execs’ illegal tactics and stalling at the bargaining table — will hold a one-day strike on Wednesday, highlighted by a mid-afternoon rally and a day-long picket line outside corporate headquarters in New York City.

Readers of the legal news service are urged not to cross the digital picket line Wednesday.

The work stoppage comes after The NewsGuild of New York filed an unfair labor practice charge on behalf of Law360 Union against LexisNexis on Tuesday. The basis of the charge is a Nov. 16 bargaining session in which LexisNexis representatives threatened Guild members with less favorable terms the longer negotiations continue. Regressive bargaining is a form of bad faith bargaining, in which one side moves backwards, offering less on a proposal than they had previously offered.

Graphic of the Washington Post strike on Thursday, December 7 showing a large group of workers marching with picket signs in the shape of a letter "G" for Guild

Washington Post workers go on strike today

At midnight today workers at the Washington Post started a 24-hour unfair labor practice strike over the company’s refusal to bargain in good faith.

After 18 months of bargaining with Washington Post, Guild workers — including reporters, editors, cartoonists, visual journalists, advertising sales people and circulation drivers — walked out. Despite a year and a half of efforts, Post management has refused to bargain in good faith for a fair contract that keeps up with inflation and the Post’s competition.