The New York Times journalists are on a 24-hour historic strike in which more than 1,100 employees are reportedly involved.
The Times, famously known as the “Gray Lady”, has failed to agree with its staff on the terms of a new contract.
Meredith Kopit Levien, president and chief executive of The Times said: “It’s disappointing that they’re taking such drastic action, given the clear commitment we’ve shown to negotiate our way to a contract that provides Times journalists with substantial pay increases, market-leading benefits, and flexible working conditions.”
According to Oliver Darcy, “The NewsGuild of New York, which represents journalists and other staffers at The Times, said in a statement that the walkout was due to the company’s failure to bargain in good faith, reach a fair contract agreement with the workers, and meet their demands.”
Joe Kahn, the executive editor of The New York Times, told the staff that: “We will produce a robust report on Thursday. But it will be harder than usual.”
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The two parties have been bargaining since the last contract expired in March 2021. Darcy reports that last week, the NewsGuild informed The Times about its plans to stage a walkout, a move aimed at applying pressure to management to offer additional concessions in negotiations.
“The union has asked The Times to meet in the middle on wage increases, but the newspaper believes the union started from an extreme position, making doing so a non-starter,” he writes.
Financially, the media industry world over is performing dismally. For instance, “CNN laid off hundreds of staffers, newspaper chain Gannett cut 200 employees, NPR said it will need to find $10 million in savings, and other news organizations have explored the need to trim budgets and freeze hiring.”
