Jan. 2, 2018 – With a crucial union vote set for Thursday, Jan. 4, anticipation is building among newsroom employees at the L.A. Times. The vote will determine whether workers at the prestigious news organization form a local of The NewsGuild-CWA.
L.A. Times reporters, copy editors and graphic artists are tweeting about the reasons they will vote to join The NewsGuild-CWA and messages of support have been arriving steadily from readers, Guild members and other supporters.
“We’ve been touched by the outpouring of support from subscribers and fellow journalists as we get closer to our newsroom union election. Thank you, all. And @latimes staff, we’ll see you Thursday (!) at the polls,” the Organizing Committee tweeted on Jan. 2.
“This is a historic moment for this newsroom, capping months of conversations on what we can do to safeguard the future of the Los Angeles Times and its journalists,” the Organizing Committee wrote on its website when the vote was announced.
NewsGuild President Bernie Lunzer said the local Organizing Committee is hard-working and dedicated. “They understand the importance of their publication to American journalism and want to maintain its tradition of excellence while they work to improve the quality of their lives,” he said. “We are optimistic about the vote and we are eager to welcome this talented group of journalists to The NewsGuild family.”
Management of the L.A. Times is “notorious for its history of hostility to unions,” Lunzer said. “We’ve looked forward to this for many years.”
Secret-ballot in-person voting will take place at the Times’ downtown headquarters and at the paper’s Orange County offices. A limited number of off-site employees will receive mail-in ballots. Votes will be counted on Jan. 19.