What is a union?
A union is an organization of workers that advocates for the interests of the group in the workplace through collective bargaining and a democratic process. 

What is the NewsGuild?
The NewsGuild is the largest union for news professionals in the United States. The NewsGuild of New York is its largest local arm, representing over 3,000 journalists and media workers at New York-based organizations and their related bureaus. The Guild is part of the Communications Workers of America, which counts more than 700,000 members nationwide. 

Other publications represented by the NewsGuild of New York include: The New York Times, BuzzFeed News, The Daily Beast, Fortune Magazine, The Markup, Meredith (Shape Magazine, Martha Stewart Living, Entertainment Weekly, PeopleTV), People Magazine, Law360, NBC News Digital, New York Magazine, The New Yorker, Quartz, S&P Global, Thomson Reuters, TIME Magazine, and more. The Wall Street Journal is also represented by the NewsGuild under a different local.

Learn more about the NewsGuild here. 

What is the Forbes Union fighting for?

This isn’t an exhaustive list of our concerns, but this is where we’d like to start:

  • Fair compensation: Guaranteed yearly cost of living raises, increased wage floors based on job title and pay transparency

  • Overtime pay: A framework to make sure that employees who work longer than an 8-hour day are appropriately compensated

  • Clear paths for growth: Job openings must be listed internally, formal mentorship program, mechanism to prevent being disciplined for failing to meet unclear goals

  • Newsroom diversity: Strong, legally enforceable diversity language that would mandate our employer to have more diverse hiring and promotion pools

  • Editorial Integrity: Language about the separation of editorial and business activities (sponsored articles and lists), mechanisms to hold management and ourselves accountable for upholding high journalistic standards 

  • Social Media Policy: Freedom to speak out (in person and on social media) without fear of being fired

  • Security: Enhanced severance and the ability to push back on layoffs in the event of terminations

  • A voice: The right to weigh in on issues that are important to us