The New York Times Tech Guild, a union, went on strike on Nov. 4, just a day before the election. The strike was brought about by The New York Times’ lack of compliance with the Guild’s request for a fair contract and unfair workplace practices.
The strike ended on Nov. 12 without a contract deal, further delaying negotiations.
When union members stepped out of their posts, it affected NYT’s election coverage, which usually features live updates on its website and the ‘Needle’ to track swings in presidential, state and other elections.
“We look forward to continuing to work with Tech Guild to reach a fair contract that takes into account that they are already among the highest paid individual contributors in the Company and journalism is our top priority,” NYT spokesperson Danielle Rhoades Ha said in a press statement.
The Guild is comprised of 600 tech workers who work on the company’s technological side. Since the union was formed in July 2020, they’ve demanded a pay increase and equity, as well as remote work protection. Workers outside of New York wanted remote work protection so they would not have to relocate.
The Guild workers oversee technology-related issues in the NYT’s app and processes election data on the website in real-time. Workers asked users to participate in this strike by not utilizing any New York Times apps.
The workers would strike near Times Square from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day outside the Midtown Manhattan office with Scabby, an inflatable rat that symbolizes labor disputes.
Rhoades Ha said in a press statement that the newspaper respects “the union’s right to engage in protected actions.”
“We’re disappointed that colleagues would strike at this time, which is both unnecessary and at odds with our mission,” Rhoades said.
The anticipation of a strike has been building for months, as the Times was informed of a potential strike months in advance
While workers on strike said they’d like to work on election coverage, they are adamant that basic work rights must be met. Although the company tried to negotiate a fair contract with the workers, the strike persisted past the election.
When the strike was still happening, Guild worker Sarah Duncan told Fox News that she spent months working on the publication’s homepage for Election Day and acknowledged that the strike could impact election coverage.
“When we see the most people coming to The New York Times is during a presidential election, so that’s why, months ago, we gave management a deadline saying we wanted a contract by the election or we’re going on strike,” Duncan said.
