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New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

washingtonpost.com

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Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#71

Post by bloomingkales »

rsynnott wrote: post #52
corndoge wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're striking against return to office? I work from home and value it but it never would occur to me to strike for that. I view it as a privilege and not a right. Almost everyone in the world has to go on location for their jobs. I am curious why it is so important to NYT workers in particular that they would strike over it - is there something particularly bad about the location?

> They're striking against return to office? I work from home and value it but it never would occur to me to strike for that. I view it as a privilege and not a right Meanwhile in the early 20th century: > They're striking over a weekend? I work five days a week and value it but it never would occur to me to strike for that. I view it as a privilege and not a right Like, this is generally how it goes; workers' rights…

Let’s not forget they fought for the 8-hour work day too:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight-hour_day_movement

In the United States, Philadelphia carpenters went on strike in 1791 for the ten-hour day. By the 1830s, this had become a general demand. In 1835, workers in Philadelphia organised the 1835 Philadelphia general strike, the first general strike in North America, led by Irish coal heavers. Their banners read, From 6 to 6, ten hours work and two hours for meals.[37] Labor movement publications called for an eight-hour day as early as 1836. Boston ship carpenters, although not unionized, achieved an eight-hour day in 1842.

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#72

Post by conartist6 »

dbalatero wrote: post #51
conartist6 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't doubt it. While I wholeheartedly support their legal right to organize, I am not required to celebrate at the cynicism of attempting to undermine faith in democracy to win a better job

> I am not required to celebrate at the cynicism of attempting to undermine faith in democracy to win a better job You're being melodramatic. There are piles of news sources to choose from, absent NYT. And that assumes it falls over due to the strike, although it seems likely they need workers on hand to do ops.

I am being a bit melodramatic, yes. My working assumption is that the services they offer are critical enough that management will somehow make sure they stand up, because it is their obligation to me as their customer to do so.

But with there being such a strong probability that there will be coordinated far-right attempts to undermine faith in our system of elections tomorrow, I do really do think of tomorrow as a kind of holy day for democracy that is not acceptable to use as bargaining chip.

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#73

Post by dfxm12 »

corndoge wrote: post #13
bwestergard wrote: post #3

I am also a member of the union at NPR, on the subway headed to the picket line in solidarity right now. Happy to answer any questions. I encourage everyone to respect the picket line and get your news elsewhere until the workers get a deal. The Times Workers are holding the line against arbitrary return to office mandates and for Just Cause protections. The vast majority of HN consists of developers, designers, QA,…

They're striking against return to office? I work from home and value it but it never would occur to me to strike for that. I view it as a privilege and not a right. Almost everyone in the world has to go on location for their jobs. I am curious why it is so important to NYT workers in particular that they would strike over it - is there something particularly bad about the location?

One of the things they're striking against is arbitrary return to office mandates. Why did you leave off two words that change the nature of what they're fighting for?

Other folks have already pointed out the "rights" unions have fought for that we take for granted today. On top of that, being in a union is about solidarity with your fellow workers. You can support your coworkers' who need or just want to work from home. This should be easy, since it would affect you in approximately zero ways. They'll have your back for fighting for Just Cause protections.

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#74

Post by [deleted] »

lolinder wrote: post #44
corndoge wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're striking against return to office? I work from home and value it but it never would occur to me to strike for that. I view it as a privilege and not a right. Almost everyone in the world has to go on location for their jobs. I am curious why it is so important to NYT workers in particular that they would strike over it - is there something particularly bad about the location?

I would totally join a strike against RTO if I were in a union or if someone organized one in response. The only other option for me would be to quit and look for another remote job. I'm not going back to having to bring earmuffs and blast music all day just to have any hope of getting anything done, I'm not starting a commute, and I'm not sacrificing lunches with my kids for some executive's opinion about how I ough…

[deleted]

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#75

Post by conartist6 »

bwestergard wrote: post #54
conartist6 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't doubt it. While I wholeheartedly support their legal right to organize, I am not required to celebrate at the cynicism of attempting to undermine faith in democracy to win a better job

There are many other excellent news sources. I suggest NPR, The LA Times, or the Washington Post.

Did Wapo roll back their cost-saving plan to coerce their reporters into using AI to write the news?

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#76

Post by vijucat »

lolinder wrote: post #69
vijucat wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Genuine question: what prevents the NYT from offshoring these jobs if they can be done from home? I feel for you, as a fellow worker, but unless there is something hyper-local about the job such as regulatory requirements or trust issues with IP protection, the jobs will go to the ones who work hard without complaining too much.

Not OP, but I work in a company that is fully remote with a mix of offshore and onshore. It's possible we'd hire junior engineers locally for the offshore roles if we went fully local, but there's zero chance that we could offshore any of our existing onshore roles. This is for a few reasons: 1. Data law compliance. We can't let people outside the US see PII, which precludes them from participating fully in many supp…

Great list! All make sense to me.

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#77

Post by francisofascii »

meibo wrote: post #35
7thpower wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

That is what strikes are by definition, yes. It doesn't just seem like it. There is no other weapon workers can wield if they don't have a legal basis to make leadership meet their demands. Obviously this can backfire in countries that don't have good union law and if you are too replaceable (hello AI).

Except this is legal. Extortion is typically not.

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#79

Post by dfxm12 »

infecto wrote: post #45

Just cause feels like a stretch. Is that common in a lot of employment contracts? Feels like one of those rules that sounds like it could make sense but in reality it does not play out and you get this weird cohort of unproductive employees that you can never get rid of.

The default for the US is "at-will employment", which means that your employer can fire you at any time, no reason needed. The definition of "just cause" would be collectively bargained, so both management and the union will understand and agree on what constitutes just cause or not.

FWIW, layoffs are regulated differently from firings.

Re: New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike

#80

Post by impish9208 »

From the WSJ’s reporting on this:

> Most employees in the tech union receive pay of more than $100,000, and average compensation, including bonus and restricted stock units, is $190,000, according to a Times spokeswoman. That figure is an average of $40,000 more than members of the Times’s journalist union, she said.

> Times leaders have also bristled at the nature of some of the guild’s requests. The union previously sought a requirement that the company use unscented cleaning supplies and offer a pet bereavement policy that included a leave of up to seven days, though it has since backed down from those demands.

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