Tipsheet

Why Scores of Staffers Will Stage a Walkout at The New York Times This Week

Someone mentioned this on social media recently, but this is a miserable time to be part of the liberal media establishment. CNN sends scores of reporters and hosts to the chopping block through mass layoffs. National Public Radio is projected to suffer a $20 million shortfall, leading to fears of layoffs. They say no cuts are coming, but they won’t be hiring anyone in the future. Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter led to a ton of left-wing activists being fired, along with the exposure of the censorship operation we all knew was occurring behind closed doors at the social media company.

 All the Left’s dirty secrets are being aired, which has sent the liberal media into a tailspin. Now, staffers at The New York Times could be staging a walkout over—you guessed it—a labor dispute (via Axios):

 More than 1,000 members of the New York Times union, which includes hundreds of newsroom staffers, plan to walk out on the job if the company's management doesn't agree to the terms of a new contract by Dec. 8, the union announced Friday. 

Why it matters: The two parties have been at odds for more than a year and a half over a slew of issues, most notably wage increases. Those tensions have hit a boiling point heading into the holiday season.

Driving the news: In a letter sent to management Friday, the NewsGuild of New York reiterated its demands to management, and conveyed a level of frustration over the drawn-out talks.

"We have spent more than 120 hours across 40 bargaining sessions exchanging and amending dozens of proposals," the letter states. 

"We have listened carefully to management’s positions and concerns and have made countless revisions to address them. In return, we have been lectured about the dire economic future the company faces - even as the company tells Wall Street about a successful corporation that can afford to pay millions in salaries and benefits to its top executives." 

The letter, sent to the Times' publisher, A.G. Sulzberger, and its president and CEO, Meredith Kopit Levien, listed key demands, including a new raise structure, keeping pension plan policies intact and changes to performance evaluations.

Labor union fiascos have become something of an occurrence under Joe Biden's stewardship. There has been a slew of unresolved disputes with working Americans under what’s supposed to be the most pro-union administration in recent memory. Some are out of Biden’s control, like the current dispute engulfing The New York Times, but the rail strike fiasco, which forced Congress to act, is an embarrassing footnote for a president who takes pride in his blue-collar roots. The rail strike was something Biden had all year to resolve and couldn’t. I couldn’t care less if the NYT gets its ducks in a row contractually with their whiny, privileged progressive underlings. But I will enjoy these liberal institutions suffering the ironic blowback from those they claim to support to the hilt.