The compensation proposal is “more generous” than what the Wirecutter union has described and “seeks to maintain a similar compensation structure for Wirecutter employees with programs in place for others at The Times Company,” said Rhoades Ha, who did not elaborate on what those programs were. Wirecutter Union’s last bargaining session with management was on Oct. The group said its members’ median salary is $43,000 less than New York Times Guild members. The company’s offered terms are insufficient, according to the Wirecutter union.
The total increases paid to all employees will be capped at 2.75%.Employees would be eligible to receive an additional merit increase based on their performance, as well as a bonus.Times management has offered so far to make Wirecutter union members eligible for up to a 2.75% wage increase, including the 0.5% guaranteed wage increase, according to sources at the company familiar with the negotiations.Union members and non-union Wirecutter employees receive merit-based annual increases but do not currently receive a guaranteed wage increase, according to the Times. “This was our best third-quarter performance in both News and total net subscription additions since the launch of the digital pay model more than a decade ago, and, outside of 2020, our best quarter ever for digital subscription additions,” Times president and CEO Meredith Kopit Levien said in the company’s earnings statement.Īt the crux of the union’s wants is a salary floor and a guaranteed wage increase. The media company’s subscription business was a particular bright spot, having added 455,000 new subscribers, including 135,000 who signed up for its non-news products, including Wirecutter. In the third quarter of 2021, The New York Times turned an operating profit of $49.0 million after growing revenue by 19% to reach $509.1 million.
Its employees have every right to demand a fair share of that success,” he added. 3, in its first month with a paywall, Wirecutter had 10,000 subscribers.ĭan Kennedy, a journalism professor at Northeastern University, said the union is “maximizing its leverage by threatening a job action timed to take advantage of the holiday shopping season.” The New York Times Company “is profitable and growing. According to the Times’ third-quarter earnings report released on Nov. Wirecutter launched a paywall in September. Purchased by The New York Times Company in 2016, Wirecutter makes revenue via affiliate sales and subscriptions.
Of the 67 total union members - who are editorial non-management workers - 61 agreed to strike as of Monday evening unless management agrees to a “fair contract.” Wirecutter’s employees work remotely, so it would be a digital walkout where members refuse to work. The New York Times Guild is also currently collective bargaining with management over its contract, and the Times Tech Guild has yet to be voluntarily recognized by the company.Īccording to Kobos, there is only one bargaining session scheduled between Wirecutter Union and management for the rest of the year on Nov.
The three unions that represent Wirecutter, The New York Times, and tech workers at the Times are also planning to hold a rally outside of the Times’ headquarters on Nov. The union chose to act now, growing concerned that a contract would not be signed by the end of this year. “It seems like action is the only way to get them at the table, in a timely manner.” “We didn’t think we would have to do this because we thought we’d be done before this happened,” said Sarah Kobos, senior photo editor at Wirecutter and interim vice-chair on the bargaining committee at Wirecutter Union, an affiliate of the NewsGuild of New York. After nearly two years of contract negotiations with management at the product review and recommendation site, and its parent The New York Times Company, Wirecutter’s union of 67 members threatened earlier this week to walk out - virtually - on the site’s biggest time of year: Black Friday.
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