NYT tech workers win tentative union contract after election week strike

The NewsGuild of New York announced Wednesday that it has reached a tentative deal with The New York Times on behalf of the Times Tech Guild. The tentative three-year contract would be the first for the guild, which was initially formed in 2021.

The tentative deal follows a strike that kicked off the day before the US presidential election in November and lasted for just over a week. During the strike, the guild asked people not to play NYT games like Wordle and Connections and made a page dedicated to strike-themed versions of games to play instead. In its press release, the NewsGuild says that the site saw “more than a half million page views and more than 320,000 active users.”

The guild will vote to ratify the contract on December 19th. Here are some of the highlights of the contract, from the NewsGuild’s press release:

Enhanced job security with ‘just cause’ protections

Guaranteed wage increases for the first time of up to 8.25% (plus additional base rate discretionary compensation) that prioritize the largest wage increases for the lowest paid members over the life of the contract

Additional compensation for on-call work

Important protections that lock in guardrails on additional variable compensation (including stocks and bonuses)

Improved protections for workers on visas

Language guaranteeing flexible hybrid work schedules

Process and transparency protections related to career growth, performance reviews and other workplace issues

“We’re pleased to have reached a tentative agreement with the Tech Guild,” NYT spokesperson Danielle Rhoades Ha says in a statement to The Verge.

Update, December 11th: Added NYT statement.