Wages, work options central issues

at 12:01 a.m. Thursday unless a deal could be reached to replace a contract that expired in March 2021. The two sides negotiated until Wednesday evening but remained far apart on issues including wages, remote work policies and the company’s employee evaluation system, which the union says is vulnerable to racial bias.

“It’s never an easy decision to refuse to do work you love, but our members are willing to do what it takes to win a better newsroom for all,” The Newsguild tweeted. “We know what we’re worth.”

The Times, which has grown its subscriber base in recent years, projected an adjusted operating profit of between $320 million and $330 million for 2022 in its most recent earnings report. However, Times Chief Executive Meredith Kopit Levien said in a companywide email that profits are still not what they were a decade ago, the Times reported.

The strike comes as other U.S. media companies including CNN and the digital media outlet Buzzfeed have cut staff, citing difficult economic conditions and a pull-back in advertising.

The New York Times has seen shorter walkouts in recent years, including a half-day protest in August by a new union representing technology workers who claimed unfair labor practices.

In one breakthrough that both sides called significant, the company backed off its proposal to replace the existing adjustable pension plan with an enhanced 401(k) retirement plan. The Times offered instead to let the union choose between the two. The company also agreed to expand fertility treatment benefits.