Crooked Media Workers Union Reaches Contract Agreement After Contentious Bargaining

The Crooked Media Workers Union came to a contract agreement with management on Friday, with the guild also withdrawing an Unfair Labor Practice charge against the company. 

“We’re delighted to have agreed on a contract that we all feel reflects the values of Crooked Media and that can serve as a new benchmark for our industry,” the union said in a statement. 

In July, the Writers Guild of America East filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge against Crooked Media as negotiations between management and the guild became contentious. 

“Specifically, Crooked Media has systematically excluded multiple staff members from the bargaining unit in an effort to undermine the union and deprive those workers of their collective bargaining rights,” the guild said in a memo announcing the charge. “This stands in violation of the union’s rights to organize and collectively bargain and constitutes a form of union-busting.”

On Friday, the union noted they would be “withdrawing the unfair labor charge and can unequivocally say that Crooked and its founders have upheld and continue to live up to the progressive principles, including support for unions, that our audience should expect.”

“Bargaining can be contentious, but we’re excited about this agreement and ready to channel the immense talent, passion, and creativity of this team into calling JD Vance a creepy weirdo,” the guild quipped. 

Crooked Media was founded by former Obama Administration staffers Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor in 2017 in the wake of Donald Trump’s election. Other shows produced by the podcast company include “Lovett or Leave It” and “Pod Save the World.”

Following the completion of the agreement, Favreau wrote on social media “We’re proud of this deal because it sets a new standard for how media companies treat their workers – which is exactly what we set out to do when we first recognized the union.”

“We also appreciate the union clarifying that we *never* engaged in any kind of union-busting,”  Favreau continued, “and are glad they withdrew the unfair labor practice charge, which – as we said when it was first filed – was based on nothing more than a misunderstanding.”

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