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The New York Times Guild is the union of ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' editorial, media, and tech professional workers, represented by NewsGuild since 1940. , the Times Tech Guild, is the largest tech union with
collective bargaining Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and labour rights, rights for ...
rights in the United States.


History

The Guild signed a contract in April 1941 for commercial department staff, and in August, was certified as the union for news and editorial workers. In 2012, ''Times'' workers won a 35-hour workweek with eligibility for
overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society) ...
on the 36th hour and
time-and-a-half Time-and-a-half is payment to a worker (or workers) at 1.5 times their usual hourly rate. It is usually paid as an incentive to work on a particular day (such as Saturday) or as government-mandated compensation for having workers work on particu ...
on the 40th hour, though most union workers work more than 35 hours. After 19 months of negotiation, the Guild approved a contract in late 2012 through March 2016 including modest raises and bonuses, a new pension plan, and continues their existing health plan. As of 2021, the editorial union contained over 3,000 reporters and media professionals. The union staged a one-day walkout in December 2022, their first in over 40 years, while negotiating wages and other issues as part of their contract renewal. Their prior contract had expired in March 2021. In January 2022, the NewsGuild filed a complaint with the
National Labor Relations Board The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States that enforces United States labor law, U.S. labor law in relation to collect ...
accusing
The New York Times Company The New York Times Company is an American mass media corporation that publishes ''The New York Times'' and its associated publications such as ''The New York Times International Edition'' and other media properties. The New York Times Company's ...
of violating federal labor law by adding new paid days off to the company's holiday calendar exclusively for non-union workers, and the New York Times Guild accused the company of making similar changes to the company's bereavement policy, making it applicable only to non-union workers, later the same month. In July 2023, the NewsGuild filed a grievance against ''The New York Times'', accusing it of engaging in
union-busting Union busting is a range of activities undertaken to disrupt or weaken the power of trade unions or their attempts to grow their membership in a workplace. Union busting tactics can refer to both legal and illegal activities, and can range anywhe ...
by announcing its intention to eliminate its sports section and to instead use non-union workers at ''
The Athletic ''The Athletic'' is a subscription-based sports journalism department of ''The New York Times''. It provides national and local coverage in 47 North American cities as well as the United Kingdom. ''The Athletic'' also covers national stories ...
'', which ''The New York Times'' acquired in 2022, to cover sports.


Tech Guild

More than 600 tech workers of the ''Times'' announced their union as the Times Tech Guild in April 2021. Formed under NewsGuild, the union would include the newspaper's digital workers, including software developers, data analysts, designers, and product managers. The Times declined to voluntarily recognize the union, sending the question to a formal vote facilitated by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). On March 3, 2022, the tech workers voted 404 to 88 to certify the union. The bargaining unit is the largest American union of tech workers with bargaining rights. The Alphabet Workers Union is larger but is not recognized by the NLRB. During the union drive, NewsGuild filed an
unfair labor practice An unfair labor practice (ULP) in United States labor law refers to certain actions taken by employers or unions that violate the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (49 Stat. 449) (also known as the NLRA and the Wagner Act after NY Senator ...
claim in June 2021 in which the company told workers overseeing the work of interns that they were restricted from displaying union support. Reviewing the claim, the NLRB filed a complaint of interference in unionizing efforts, a violation of federal labor law. The case was scheduled to be heard in March 2022. In 2019, the New York Times Company voluntarily recognized a separate union representing tech workers at '' Wirecutter''. In November 2024, one day before the 2024 US presidential election, the Times Tech Guild went on strike over issues the union said were related to "remote/hybrid work," "just cause" protections, and "pay equity/fair pay," and asked readers to honor their digital picket line by not playing NYT Games or using the NYT Cooking app.


References


Further reading

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External links

* {{official website, https://nytimesguild.org Trade unions in the United States Trade unions established in 1941 Trade unions established in 2021 The New York Times Labor relations by company Tech sector trade unions Journalists' trade unions