Newsletter: Lawsuit confronts Trump attack on NLRB

There has been so much news in the last week and most of it done by Guild members. And there’s just so much news it can feel exhausting. 

I want to highlight the work done by our members at Wired who keep getting scoops while covering DOGE and Elon Musk. According to CNN’s Reliable Sources, WIRED’s reporters have helped lead a surge in subscriptions. Guild members are awesome. Keep doing great work!

Government photos of Gwynne Wilcox, Jennifer Abruzzo and Jessica Rutter

President Trump destroyed the National Labor Relations Board’s decision-making authority when he fired Gwynne Wilcox, first Black woman to serve on the Board. He also fired the general counsel and the acting general counsel. His moves have temporarily paralyzed the Board. The NLRB is the only federal agency charged with protecting the organizing and bargaining rights of private sector workers in the United States.

Trump’s firing of Wilcox is illegal and unprecedented under the National Labor Relations Act, which only allows a president to remove a board member for “neglect of duty or malfeasance in office, but for no other cause.” Presidents have the right to nominate Board members, who are then confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Wilcox was confirmed by the Senate twice with bipartisan support.

This morning Wilcox sued Trump, challenging his decision to remove her and requesting an injunction to be reinstated to the Board.

“My removal, without cause or process, directly violates that law,” Wilcox said in a statement this morning. “I hope to be able to fulfill the job that the Senate confirmed me to do so the crucial work of the NLRB can continue.”

Trump’s removal of Wilcox deprives the NLRB of a quorum. And without that, the Board cannot issue final decisions on unfair labor practice complaints pursued on behalf of workers and unions, leaving statutory violations unremedied. Board decisions have a wide-reaching impact on the labor rights of tens of millions of workers in the private sector, whether they’re in a union or not.

Our union across the U.S. have numerous pending unfair labor practice charges and complaints against multiple employers, including the ongoing ULPs against the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which the Board found had violated federal law by imposing changes to terms and conditions of employment without bargaining in good faith.

I highlighted three decisions on our website and dug into the situation more.

I also talked with NiemanLab about the consequences of an NLRB under the Trump presidency. During his first term in office about 3,400 media workers unionized with the Guild. And since 2016, nearly 8,000 media workers from 146 companies organized with us. I’m one of ‘em. Workers experiencing chaos in their lives are going to be highly motivated to reduce chaos in their jobs. Collective bargaining does that. 

Sixty-seven lives were lost when a military helicopter collided with PSA Flight 5342 last week, including one of our members at Washington-Baltimore NewsGuild – Kiah Duggins.

Kiah was a fierce advocate for her colleagues at the Civil Rights Corps., where she held management to account. She was a civil rights attorney who grew up in Wichita, Kan. and was returning to her home in Washington, D.C. after visiting her family.

We are heartbroken at this loss and extend our deepest condolences to her family, our members who worked alongside her and our entire union family as we collectively process this tragedy. We also mourn the loss of the passengers, crew and service members, including two of our CWA siblings at the Association of Flight Attendants.

Workers at New York Magazine are prepared to walk off the job unless they receive a fair contract with strong AI protections. Workers have tried to reach a fair agreement, but Vox Media, the owner, has refused to be reasonable while at the same time inking an opaque deal with OpenAI.

“New York Magazine employees have helped the magazine and Vox Media survive, and all we are asking for is that Vox helps ensure our survival,” said Bridget Read, New York Magazine Union Unit Chair.

Despite Vox Media’s revenue growth, management has refused to guarantee job security, wages that keep pace with inflation or AI protections.

“The company has refused to tell us where that money is going, but we can say with confidence that the money is not going to the employees who produce the work that made that deal valuable in the first place,” said Reeves Wiedeman, the union’s Vice Chair. 

These workers deserve real protections, not empty promises. If they walk, I’ll be there – and I encourage everyone to honor their digital picket line if it comes to that. 

Sign the NY Mag Reader Pledge and follow @nyguild and @nymagunion to support their fight. 

Journalists at LancasterOnline and WITF public radio station voted to unionize with The NewsGuild of Greater Philadelphia Local 38010 in a 39-10 vote.

Workers formed plans to unionize after management laid off 10 percent of its staff one month after the new management took over. CEO Ron Hetrick had previously told news staff that the company wouldn’t reduce its workforce for five years.

Now, the journalists will soon begin bargaining a first contract. 

“When we approached the Guild in November, a lot of people were unhappy with recent changes in our leadership and in our newsroom,” said Brett Sholtis, an investigative reporter at LNP. “But this quickly became about so much more than that. 

“We want to make sure we’re able to keep serving the community.”

​​The journalists joined the Philadelphia Inquirer, Spotlight PA and other news organizations represented by the local. They continue a wave of organizing in newsrooms, with more than 8,000 journalists and media workers organizing with The NewsGuild-CWA since 2016.

Metro Caring workers won their union election in a landslide 15-2 vote last week after management refused their initial request for voluntary recognition. Metro Caring is one of Denver’s oldest nonprofits, making this a historic victory for staff at the anti-hunger organization.

Metro Caring workers join the Denver Newspaper Guild Local 37074 with other nonprofit workers from Denver Urban Gardens Workers United, who recently won their first contract

“While I’ve never been part of a union before, throughout my working life I’ve received the benefit of the work that unions put in over past generations protecting workers and helping to provide a safe, dignified work environment,” said Lucor Jordan, member of the MCWU Bargaining Committee and founding member of the union. 

“I’m now proud to be part of a new chapter in the non-profit sector,” he said.

Now, workers will begin bargaining their first contract. Support them by following @mcworkersunited on Instagram.

The Los Angeles Times announced another round of voluntary buyouts this week, further gutting a great newsroom. In May 2023 we had 463 members at the Times. We’re down to 283 before this next round of buyouts. 

“It’s heartbreaking to see management here at the LA Times again trying to whittle down our staff that has already been slashed in two rounds of layoffs in less than two years,” Carla Hall, the Times unit chair told me yesterday. “Of course, I’m relieved that they are offering buyouts as a way to shrink the staff, not summarily laying off people. And we hope that they accept everyone who comes forward.”

“What we don’t want to see is a period of buyouts followed by layoffs. Enough. How can we cover another tragedy, like the fires, if the staff is even more hobbled?” Carla said. “Continuing to reduce the staff does not make the paper more viable. It makes it less.”

A new book featuring NewsGuild members is out now! We Are the Union by Eric Blanc focuses on the worker-to-worker model of organizing that revitalized the Guild, Workers United and other unions. It provides a roadmap for workers building a movement by connecting directly with each other. This is how the Guild’s Member Organizing Program works! Workers win their union, then help other workers win their union.

Join us at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, February 25th for a virtual chat with author Eric Blanc about the impact of worker-to-worker organizing.

NewsGuild members can use promo code UNION50 to buy a discounted copy of the book from the University of California Press.

TNG’s Member Bargaining Bootcamp starts February 19th. Do you have a member who’s been through bargaining, might be able to learn more and then help you bargain contracts in your local? If so, get them to apply!

We launched the program last year and had a successful first cohort. The program has five two-hour trainings over several weeks. Members must commit to attending all the sessions and a few other meetings barring an emergency. 

Have folks register here: https://forms.gle/RZesL6zMb4mafStK7

The deadline is Monday, February 10.

New York Daily News journalists are asking supporters to join them at 7 p.m. on Thursday, February 13 at KGB Bar in New York to hear about the state of the newsroom.  More info here.

In solidarity,

Jon Schleuss

President

The NewsGuild-CWA

Government photos of Gwynne Wilcox, Jennifer Abruzzo and Jessica Rutter

Trump fires first Black woman on NLRB, destroying its decision-making authority

President Trump’s actions in the past week have temporarily paralyzed the National Labor Relations Board. It’s the only federal agency that protects the rights of private sector workers to organize and pursue collective bargaining in the United States. The agency is led by a five member Board that makes final administrative rulings on unfair labor practices and issues make whole remedies for statutory violations. 

In the past week President Trump fired three top officials at the Board. He fired NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo and then acting GC Jessica Rutter. 

And he also fired Gwynne Wilcox, the first Black woman to serve on the Board, on the eve of Black History Month. Trump’s firing of Wilcox is illegal and unprecedented under the National Labor Relations Act, which only allows a president to remove a board member for “neglect of duty or malfeasance in office, but for no other cause.” Presidents have the right to nominate Board members, who are then confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Wilcox was confirmed by the U.S. Senate twice with bipartisan support.

On Wednesday, Wilcox filed a lawsuit against President Trump and the chairman of the NLRB, challenging Trump’s decision to remove her and requesting an injunction to be reinstated to the Board.

Trump’s removal of Wilcox mirrors attacks on anti-segregationist and anti-racist initiatives at other agencies in the federal government. “As the first Black woman board member, I brought a unique perspective that I believe will be lost upon my unprecedented and illegal removal,” Wilcox said in a statement at the time of her dismissal.

“My removal, without cause or process, directly violates that law,” Wilcox said after filing suit. “I hope to be able to fulfill the job that the Senate confirmed me to do so the crucial work of the NLRB can continue.”

Trump’s removal of Wilcox deprives the NLRB of a quorum. Without a quorum, the Board cannot issue final decisions on unfair labor practice complaints pursued on behalf of workers and unions. This leaves statutory violations unremedied. Board decisions impact on the labor rights of tens of millions of workers in the private sector, whether they’re in a union or not. 

Major decisions

In 2023 Cemex case, the NLRB ruled that employers must recognize and bargain with workers who file for an election if that employer breaks the law in the run-up to the election. 

In the Thryve, Inc. the Board ruled that workers who are victims of labor law violations must be compensated for all “direct or foreseeable pecuniary harm” suffered as a result of unfair labor practices committed by an employer. 

Late last year the Board ruled captive audience meetings illegal. Employers use these meetings to try to dissuade workers from unionizing. The Board found that employers violate the law when they threaten discipline or discharge to coerce workers to attend these meetings where the employer expresses its views on unionization. 

Guild leaders across the U.S. have numerous pending unfair labor practice charges and complaints against multiple employers, including the ongoing ULPs against the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which the Board found had violated federal law by imposing changes to terms and conditions of employment without bargaining in good faith.

Trump campaigned on promises to support America’s workers, but his actions at the NLRB gutted worker rights by depriving the NLRB of a quorum and removing top lawyers with deep agency expertise who defended the agency’s mission to support workers.

At the same time Trump has empowered Elon Musk, the richest person on the planet, to send threatening and legally dubious emails to more than 2 million federal workers, pushing them to resign. Musk’s SpaceX joined Amazon in challenging the constitutionality of the NLRB in federal court last year. Congress created the NLRB as an independent agency nearly a century ago to safeguard employees’ rights to organize and collectively bargain. 

The lack of a Board quorum will not slow down elections administered by the NLRB. Workers and unions can still file unfair labor practice charges. The Board’s regional offices will continue to investigate those charges, determine whether they have merit and, when necessary, issue a complaint to be heard by an administrative law judge who will issue a decision upholding the law.

But if those decisions are appealed, the lack of a Board quorum brings the process to a halt. Workers who have been victimized by their employer’s illegal behavior will be left waiting for justice from an agency deliberately stripped of its power to deliver it. 

Hearst guild members stand arm in arm at a picnic outside.

Newsletter: Guild wins show the boss who’s ‘boss’!

We had a powerful union turnout two weeks ago at the Atlantic Union Rally! Guild members and labor allies gathered in D.C., right outside The Atlantic Festival 2024, the company’s highest profile event of the year. Rallygoers demanded that management recognize the value of the work produced by both the newsroom and business sides and agree to a fair contract. 

Workers have been fighting for a contract for two years while the company drags its feet. Among the key issues, the our members are pushing for:

  • Just Cause No Exceptions: A bedrock union protection that ensures due process around discipline.
  • Work-life balance: Including remote work flexibility
  • Layoff protections: As well as safeguarding jobs against the misuse of artificial intelligence. Earlier this year The Atlantic entered an opaque deal with OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT.

Over 1,000 supporters have already signed the petition demanding that management provide these basic protections to Atlantic workers. Join them by signing the petition today!

Continue reading “Newsletter: Guild wins show the boss who’s ‘boss’!”
The image shows a stylized logo with the words "Color of Change Union" in black, forming an arc over a raised fist in black. The raised fist, a common symbol of solidarity and resistance, is surrounded by a half-circle of colored segments, ranging from red to yellow, symbolizing a gradient of change or diversity. The color gradient gives the design a dynamic feel, emphasizing empowerment and unity.

Color Of Change ordered to reinstate illegally laid off workers and pay back wages after NLRB Ruling

In a monumental decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has ruled that Color Of Change violated federal labor law by unlawfully laying off 54 employees without bargaining. Workers first unionized with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild in October 2020.

Continue reading “Color Of Change ordered to reinstate illegally laid off workers and pay back wages after NLRB Ruling”

Newsletter: UAW joins Law360 picket line

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!

Continue reading “Newsletter: UAW joins Law360 picket line”

Software Company Learns a Tough Lesson About Union-Busting; Fired Workers Win Big Back-Pay Settlement

Nov. 10, 2018 – A small boutique software company got a tough lesson about union-busting on Nov. 9, when it agreed to shell out $775,000 to 15 programmers the logistics company fired after its developers announced plans to form a union. The 15 former employees of Lanetix comprised the firm’s entire non-management programming staff. Continue reading “Software Company Learns a Tough Lesson About Union-Busting; Fired Workers Win Big Back-Pay Settlement”

‘Employers pay a price for retaliation’

NLRB Files Complaint Against Sarasota Herald-Tribune

(June 7, 2017) There are consequences for companies – like the Sarasota Herald-Tribune – that retaliate against employees who vote to form a union.

That’s the significance of the decision by Region 12 of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to file a formal complaint against the Florida paper, says Tim Schick, administrative director of the NewsGuild-CWA. Continue reading “‘Employers pay a price for retaliation’”

Company Providing Interpreters for Immigration Courts Illegally Misclassified, Fired Workers, NLRB Says

 

Complaint has broad implications for labor movement and immigration courts

June 5, 2017 – SOS International, the company that provides interpreting services for federal immigration courts, illegally misclassified its employees as independent contractors and fired interpreters who spoke out, according to a complaint filed by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on May 31.  Continue reading “Company Providing Interpreters for Immigration Courts Illegally Misclassified, Fired Workers, NLRB Says”

NLRB Issues Complaint Against SOSi

Rules company illegally misclassified workers; engaged in retaliation

Following a lengthy investigation into more than a dozen charges of illegal activity, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a formal complaint on May 31 against SOS International, a federal contractor that provides language-interpreting services for immigration courts. Continue reading “NLRB Issues Complaint Against SOSi”