New York Times Employees Walk Out after Contract Negotiations Stall

Hundreds of New York Times staff members went on strike on Thursday at midnight after bargaining over enhanced benefits stalled.

“Today we were ready to work for as long as it took to reach a fair deal, but management walked away from the table with five hours to go,” the NYT Guild tweeted Wednesday night. “It’s official: @NYTimesGuild members are walking out for 24 hours on Thursday. We know what we’re worth.”

The union updated that the parties engaged in 12 hours of negotiations, with the journalists convincing management to preserve pensions among its long list of demands. However, by Wednesday the company was making little headway on improving salaries, raising the minimum pay bar for new employees, and contributing more money to cover health insurance. After the Times allegedly “walked away from the table with five hours to go,” the union, deciding that the progress was insufficient, went on strike.

The New York Times said negotiations were interrupted by the strike announcement.

“It is disappointing that they are taking such an extreme action when we are not at an impasse,” Times spokesperson Danielle Rhoades Ha told the New York Post.