We’ve Got a Union, Now What?

Abstract

Precarious economic conditions, low pay, layoffs, and dwindling job security motivated journalists to organize in record numbers in the 2010s and 2020s. Cohen and De Peuter’s 2020 research on newsworkers’ motives and organizing strategies in digital newsrooms finds that economic, political, and cultural factors play a role. Pay equity, a more diverse and inclusive newsroom, and a voice in editorial and strategic decision-making are often cited as arguments for union membership. This monograph asks how newsworkers assess the effect of unionization and guild membership on their work, working conditions, and culture. Interviews with 45 journalists in 16 U.S. newsrooms with unions, both established and recently organized, suggest that several goals, such as pay equity, diversity, and inclusion, have not been achieved. Nevertheless, the act of organizing and the managerial work accomplished by union leadership in the newsroom is creating both institutional change and opportunity. A parallel organizational culture is emerging that mitigates poor leadership and human resource management and serves as training ground for a new class of journalists.