Strike called after negotiations between the guild and Times management failed to yield a contract agreement
The New York Times Tech Guild, which represents hundreds of the outlet’s tech staff workers, went on strike Monday morning – one day before the US presidential election.
The threat of a strike has existed within the company for months, raising questions over a potential disruption of election coverage. The newspaper giant confirmed in a statement that members would begin protesting outside the Times headquarters daily, beginning at 9am Monday.
The walkout is a result of a 10 September vote where staff workers decided to go on strike at a critical time – election week – if an agreement wasn’t made. With the largest subscription base of any American newspaper, readers will be widely seeking extensive election coverage.
The Tech Guild called the strike after increasingly intense negotiations between the guild and Times management failed to yield a contract agreement.
Kait Hoehne, Times senior software engineer and Tech Guild member, said the group was hoping to avoid a strike as negotiations had continued into late Sunday night.
