New York Times tech union threatens Election Day strike, demands mandatory trigger warnings, pet bereavement leave, 4-day work week

Tech union workers at the New York Times have threatened to strike on Election Day due to stalled contract negotiations. Union workers have made a number of unusual requests, including mandatory trigger warnings, a four-day workweek, unlimited sick time, job security for non-citizens, and pet bereavement leave.

The Times Tech Guild, which represents roughly 600 software engineers and other non-editorial tech workers at the paper, authorized the strike last week. The union views the strike as a critical move as it would occur at the busiest and most crucial time of year for media, resulting in a work stoppage on Election Day.

Over the past two years, the tech union has struggled to reach contract negotiations. The guild has issued a laundry list of demands that include mandatory trigger warnings when discussing new events, a ban on scented products in break rooms, a four-day work week, unlimited sick time, job security for non-citizens who are in the US on work visas in the event of layoffs, and pet bereavement leave, as reported by Semafor.

Chairman of the New York Times, AG Sulzberger, told Semafor that the guild's economic demands would result in a cost of over $100 million in compensation and benefits for the company over the course of the proposed three-year contract. The Tech Guild's members receive an average annual salary of $190,000, which encompasses salary, bonuses, and restricted stock options.

This amount is approximately $40,000 higher than that of their colleagues in unions that represent journalists at the publication, according to the company. Additionally, The Times stated that it already offers employees certain benefits that most organizations do not, such as $10,000 reimbursements for adoption or surrogacy expenses, $50,000 for fertility care, and discounts on pet, home, and auto insurance.

Danielle Rhoads Ha, an NYT spokesperson, told the New York Post in a statement on Tuesday that the Times "looks forward to working with the group to reach a fair contract, that takes into account that they are already among the highest paid in the company and journalism is our top priority."

"Since July 2022, bargaining has been focusing on a broad range of non-economic proposals from the TechGuild such as pet bereavement leave, unscented cleaning products, and banning machine learning among many other topics that are typically not part of the collective bargaining agreements," Rhoads said.