We unionized the digital team at The Seattle Times. You can do it too.

by | May 8, 2021 | Industry News, Journalism, Organizing News

A mini-diary of the organizing experience, including a timeline, resources you can rely on, and decision points you might face

By Michelle Baruchman Posted on:

The digital journalists at The Seattle Times ended a decades-long, arbitrary divide within the company last fall by voting to unionize and join our peers in the existing Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild, which already represented more than 100 employees at the paper who are not categorized as “digital” employees.

The official process itself took four months, preceded by more than one year of organizing and several years of conversations among colleagues.

But securing our rights as workers was worth it. After completing contract negotiations, we’ll enjoy the same protections our colleagues have had for years, including vision insurance, “just cause” protections from firing, and more.

Our fight is emblematic of the journalism industry itself. The Seattle Times digital staff is composed of more people of color, more women, and more young people than the newsroom as a whole. We lead the way in innovative, forward-thinking work, but our fragile status underscored that we were being treated inequitably for our contributions.

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