Journalists at the Miami Herald, el Nuevo Herald and the Bradenton Herald are participating in a one-day work stoppage on Friday, April 1, 2022, to demand a fair contract and to insist that McClatchy, the publications’ parent company, follow labor laws and respect unionized journalists across the country.
“For more than two years, journalists at McClatchy’s three Florida newspapers have worked to continue to produce quality journalism through crisis and conflict, as the company has refused to complete a fair contract, repeatedly asking its staff to do more with less,’’ said Mary Ellen Klas, co-unit chair for One Herald Guild.
Two years after Herald journalists in Miami voted to form the One Herald Guild union, McClatchy is still refusing to address basic issues like pay equity between English and Spanish-language journalists, experience-based salary floors, protections against outsourcing and improvements to their retirement plan, union members said in a press statement. [Click here for press release in Spanish.]
Bradenton journalists voted in May 2020 to form the Bradenton Herald NewsGuild, and have since worked side by side with their Miami colleagues.
NewsGuild President Jon Schleuss said, “It’s time for McClatchy and Herald management to reach a fair contract that protects jobs, pays people fairly and guarantees parental leave. The whole NewsGuild stands with journalists in South Florida and we are ready to do whatever it takes.’’
The Heralds cover one of McClatchy’s largest markets, and the unionized Florida journalists have helped lead McClatchy papers across the country to fight for industry-standard benefits. Benefits that One Herald Guild and the Bradenton Herald NewsGuild have fought for have been offered to non-union workers, but have been withheld from unionized workers across the local news chain. The withheld benefits include paid parental leave, minimum salaries and mileage reimbursement at the IRS standard rate.
Their colleagues at McClatchy-owned publications in Idaho, Texas, Washington, and the Carolinas are standing in support of improved working conditions and demanding that McClatchy agree to fair contracts. Across the country, unionized McClatchy journalists want fair wages and reasonable protections from outsourcing.
“McClatchy has made it painfully clear it would rather hurt its own employees rather than bargain in good faith with their unions. The time for sleazy union-busting games is over,” said Michael Lycklama, a steward and sportswriter in the Idaho NewsGuild, which represents journalists at the Idaho Statesman. “We are here. We will not be brushed aside. And we demand a fair contract that lives up to the value McClatchy continually says we create for the company.”
Though stopping work for one day is difficult for journalists who care deeply about their work and their communities, One Herald Guild and The Bradenton Herald NewsGuild feel it is necessary in order to secure a better future for journalists across the company and ensure that we can continue to produce the quality journalism our communities depend on.
They are asking community members to support them by donating to a GoFundMe account to cover any pay the company withholds as a result of the walkout. They are also inviting supporters and members of the media to join them at 12 pm ET at the Torch of Friendship, where Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald journalists will address the media and be available to answer questions.
WHEN: Friday, April 1, 2022, 12 pm
WHERE: Torch of Friendship, 301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, FL 33131
WHO: Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald journalists, supporters and media
Please RSVP to contact@oneheraldguild.org
Media Contact: Bianca Padró Ocasio — 787-459-1958
Follow One Herald Guild on Twitter @oneheraldguild. Follow the Bradenton NewsGuild @BHnewsguild.
Photo at top: Members of One Herald Guild rallying for a fair contract, April 1, 2022.