Wirecutter Union Announces Contract Wins After Black Friday/Cyber Monday Strike
Staff at the product review dept at NYT achieved several favourable new terms after 2 years of bargaining and a 5-day strike.
Staff at Wirecutter, the New York Times’s product review department, have announced a major win in their negotiations with management after going on strike during their busiest period of the year: ‘Black Friday’ to ‘Cyber Monday’.
A press release via the News Guild of New York detailed the union’s new terms:
The union won immediate average wage increases of approximately $5,000, with the lowest paid members receiving immediate 18% raises. They also won 3% raises in each year of the deal, which include a guaranteed minimum increase of 2 to 2.5% per year, a ban on non-disclosure agreements that reference harassment and/or discrimination, a cap on health care cost increases, just cause protections, an appeals process for performance evaluations, enforceable contract language around the company’s commitments to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and more.
Wirecutter management were previously offering 0.5% guaranteed annual wage increases. Last week, the union announced they were filing an Unfair Labor Practice claim with the NLRB after management withheld holiday pay from Wirecutter workers in retaliation for striking, which is against US labor law.
“The collective strength of our unit is incredible. Despite the roadblocks of the pandemic and the Time’s (sic) continuous union-busting tactics, we didn’t give an inch in the vision of making Wirecutter the best place to work,” said Staff Writer Kaitlyn Wells. “I hope this becomes a launchpad for other media shops and serves as a reminder that better working conditions aren’t an unreasonable ask.”
I’ve been keeping a live list of all the media companies unionising in 2021. If you can see any that I’ve missed, let me know!
SUBSCRIBE 👇👇👇 for all my articles and many other perks, including a weekly newsletter that delivers the week’s international pop culture news, campaigns and actions you should participate in, and the week’s unmissable content.
Only £5 ($7) a month.
If you can’t subscribe, please support by sharing this newsletter with others you think might be interested. Thanks! 👇👇👇