New York Times Staffers Stage 24-hour Strike

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Facts

  • In the first strike of its kind in 40 years, hundreds of New York Times journalists and other employees — members of The NewsGuild of New York union — began a 24-hour walkout at midnight Thursday after negotiations with the newspaper stalled Wednesday night.1
  • After nearly two years of negotiations, union members said last week that roughly 1.1k employees would walk out if a deal wasn't made by Thursday. The NYT has so far offered an immediate pay raise of 5.5%, followed by 3% increases in 2023 and 2024.2
  • The paper also agreed to rescind its attempt to terminate pension plans and offered to expand fertility benefits, while the union continues to push for a 10% pay bump and a hybrid work option; The Times currently requires employees to be in the office three days a week.3
  • While the union accused the paper of 'dragging its feet' in negotiations, NYT Deputy Managing Editor Cliff Levy called the planned strike 'puzzling.' NewsGuild also told its members they wouldn't be paid during the strike, with a paper spokeswoman saying the company will keep producing content using international and non-union journalists.4
  • The conflict comes as the Times is currently in the process of integrating sports website the Athletic, recently acquired for $550M, as well as facing general economic turbulence that has led to advertisers cutting back on spending.5
  • As other media companies conduct layoffs, the NYT has been a unique success story, with executives announcing it had grown the newsroom and projected profits of between $320M and $330M by year's end. Employees argue their new contracts should reflect that success.6

Sources: 1Restoring America, 2Guardian, 3New York Post, 4CBS, 5Wall Street Journal and 6Washington Post.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by MSN. There is a simple solution for the Times here, which is to keep its employees' pay at par with inflation. This negotiation has gone on for almost two years while salaries have stayed the same. Not only do the workers know their worth, but that worth is statistically provable.
  • Narrative B, as provided by POLITICO. This strike is largely symbolic. Newspaper unions don't carry the same clout they did before the digital age, and they know it. This strike may bring attention to the cause, but will do little to sway management or impact negotiations.
  • Cynical narrative, as provided by PJ Media. Just like the entire for-profit print media industry, this contract negotiation is a circus. Newspapers have been dying for the past 25 years, with few people actually still caring about or even believing what they write. The NYT, along with the rest of corporate media, will inevitably perish once the wealthy remove the life support they've been providing for so long.