We’re on strike in two locations today: Law360 and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
About 260 members are on strike at Law360, spread across the United States working for the legal news outlet. This week will be the second week of the strike. They went out over unfair labor practices related to the illegal layoffs of their colleagues and unilateral changes to their healthcare plans. Last week they launched their strike publication Outlaw360, and are continuing to report on legal cases and provide updates to their strike. And now, they’ve launched a newsletter!
I joined our Law360 members last week in New York on the first day of their strike. NewsGuild of New York President Susan DeCarava brought the fire alongside NYC Central Labor Council President Vinny Alvarez and other leaders. Law360 member Gianna Ferrarin led the strikers in song about the strike to the tune of “Eye of the Tiger.”
Many lawyers and government officials depend on Law360’s reporting. Member Brian Dowling wrote about how the feds say Law360 is essential on Outlaw360.
“Law360 is the only source that provides extensive coverage of current litigation and issues across a broad spectrum of legal topics,” the department said. “No other source provides the ease of use, daily coverage, and ready access to important documents all in one search, and includes expert analysis on top legal topics on a daily basis.”
The United Auto Workers joined the picket line last week in a show of solidarity.
“The fight for working class people isn’t just one union or another union,” said Daniel Vicente, director of UAW Region 9. “This is all working people, so if you all are out, we should support in whatever capacity we can.”
Member Andrea Keckley wrote about how journalism strikes stopped being a relic, highlighting our fight at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Insider last year, Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s strike and the strike at Gizmodo Media. In fact, we’ve had 34 strikes in the Guild so far this year, closing in on last year’s record of 36 strikes.
There’s a lot of ways to support our family at Law360: respect the picket line, spread the word, voice your support, donate to their strike fund and more.
Workers at Law360 also recorded a message standing with our strikers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
“From our picket line to yours, we stand with our brothers and sisters from the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh who have been on strike for nearly 2 years. Fair contract now!” workers said in a message on Twitter.
In Pittsburgh, we’re in our 23rd month on strike, but the National Labor Relations Board has filed a petition for an injunction and we’re now waiting for a hearing in front of a federal judge. This is major: the injunction request is only the fourth such request made this year in the United States.
“One day soon, we will win this strike,” said Ed Blazina, the first vice president of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh. “That means returning to work at the Post-Gazette and continuing to provide the essential local news coverage Pittsburgh deserves.”
Please continue to support our striking family over the next few months by donating to their fund.
The Financial Times Guild finally won a tentative agreement with management two years after forming their union. The contract includes:
- Improved retirement benefits
- Increases in pay for the lowest-paid workers
- More time away from work for new parents
- Workplace protections critical to members
“Three years, nine months—from the first meeting where we pledged to form a union, to today,” Claire Bushey said about the agreement. Bushey is a Chicago-based reporter at the Financial Times. “I love the committee members past and present. I love our unit. I love our allies at @ftnuj, @ftsguild and @newsguild. We did it. Because … WHEN WE FIGHT, WE WIN!”
The New York Times Tech Guild is ready to strike! Last week, by a vote of 524-28, 95% of members voted to authorize a strike.
Our 600 members, which organized in March 2022, made the announcement on X/Twitter last week. They’ve been at the bargaining table with management for two years. As we head into the final weeks of the election season, The Times Tech Guild is ready to do whatever it takes to secure a fair deal.
The NewsGuild expands…to Alaska! Workers at the Anchorage Daily News, the largest newsroom in Alaska, announced their effort to unionize. Roughly 80% of the newsroom staff at ADN are publicly in support of joining the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild, a local union of The NewsGuild-CWA.
“A key thing for everyone is a desire for fair wages and regular wages that can keep up with the cost of inflation,” Alex DeMarban said, who has been with ADN for about 15 years. “We want to get paid enough to continue working there and continue producing the high-quality product that Alaskans want.”
The Anchorage News Guild announced they were seeking voluntary recognition, but ADN owner Ryan Binkley declined their request for voluntary recognition and quickly hired an attorney from Littler Mendelson, a notoriously anti-union law firm.
You can support their fight back to demand that management reverse course and recognize their union by signing this petition here.
One of our members at the Baltimore Sun was unjustly fired last week for her outspoken advocacy for workplace and journalistic standards. Maddi O’Neill was terminated without just cause according to her colleagues at the Baltimore Sun Guild.
In a statement the Baltimore Sun Guild said, “This cowardly firing of a reporter is the latest example of David Smith and Armstrong William’s mismanagement of the Sun.”
“I’m proud of the reporting I did at The Baltimore Sun and I have no regrets. I’m so grateful to the Baltimore Sun Guild,” Maddi said on Twitter/X.
“This situation shows why it’s so important that the Guild win a fair contract with robust job protections for union journalists.”
You can support Maddi and the Sun Guild by writing a letter to Sun’s management that you have the Guild’s back as they bargain for a fair and just contract.
CWA members at AT&T Southeast and AT&T West just secured new tentative agreements, ending the month-long strike of 17,000 members in the South. Striking members won on key issues: wages and healthcare costs. The five-year agreement includes across the board wage increases of 19.33%, with additional 3% increases for Wire Technicians and Utility Operations. The four-year agreement at AT&T West covers 8,500 workers in California and Nevada. It improves on the historic achievements negotiated in the prior agreement. The wage boost will now be retroactive to the contract expiration date, bringing the compounded increase to 15.01%. Members will soon vote on these TAs.
Forbes members announced a vote of no confidence in management. “Without us, Forbes would not be the trusted brand it is today and it couldn’t produce its flagship lists, from 30 Under 30 to the Forbes 400,” workers said in their statement. “A decimated and demoralized newsroom cannot function. We need a contract, and we need it now.”
Southern Poverty Law Center members got coverage of their recent no confidence vote in Guardian last week. Lisa Wright, the chair of the union’s bargaining committee and vice president at the Washington-Baltimore News Guild has worked at SPLC for 23 years. She was one of the employees impacted by the layoffs.
“Shock, horror, confusion. It’s been sloppy, dispassionate, inhumane. It has been the absolute opposite of what the organization says they stand for and absolute chaos since then,” Wright said
Events and More!
I’m going to be playing video games with our members at PCMag and IGN this Thursday, talking about artificial intelligence and how we’re fighting back to protect our jobs, our salaries and our ethical standards in the news industry. Follow us on Twitch and join the stream at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT this Thursday.
We’re rallying for our members at The Atlantic at 12:30 p.m. ET Friday at The Wharf in DC, calling on management to agree to Just Cause No Exceptions and a full and fair first contract. Join us at The Atlantic Festival if you’re in town!
Finally, we have a job opening! The Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild is hiring an Executive Officer for their local, which represents folks at The Seattle Times, Crosscut, Grist, Idaho Statesman and more. Fill out a job application and send an email to guild37082@gmail.com with a resume, a letter of interest in the executive officer position and a list of references. Women and people of color are encouraged to apply. The deadline to apply is Oct. 1, 2024.
In solidarity,
Jon Schleuss
President
The NewsGuild-CWA