Practice Makes Perfect: ProPublica Guild Members Prepare to Strike
Last week, our members walked out of ProPublica offices across the country to show our management that we are ready to strike if necessary in our fight for a fair contract. We practiced walking picket lines in New York City, Washington, D.C., Austin and Chicago — in addition to dozens of workers joining virtually.
“I’ve spent my career covering protests. Last week, I stood on a picket line for the first time,” said Katie Campbell, a ProPublica Guild member and video journalist. “I was nervous at first. Then, I felt proud — proud to stand with my colleagues for fair pay, Just Cause protections and to not be replaced by AI. We’re not asking for anything extraordinary. We’re asking for the basic security that allows us to do our jobs well. That’s good for journalists and good for the public we serve.”
Our union has our backs in this fight. In New York City, Susan DeCarava, president of the NewsGuild of New York, marched on our picket line, while Jon Schleuss, president of the international NewsGuild, joined us in Washington, D.C.
Our readers have our backs, too. More than 3,100 people have so far signed our petition calling on ProPublica’s management to agree to a fair contract now. And supporters have so far donated nearly $25,000 to our strike fund that will go to our members who can not afford to miss a paycheck if we have to walk off the job. We greatly appreciate their support, and, if you haven’t yet, we would love it if you would sign and donate as well. Your solidarity will help us win the contract we deserve!
“It’s a calling to be able to serve our community,” Cassandra Jaramillo, our unit’s vice chair and an investigative reporter, told KVUE in Austin, which was on the scene at our Texas practice picket. “And so, when you’re supporting the workers and journalists who are fighting for their rights, you’re supporting good journalism as well.”
Our Bargaining Committee is negotiating in good faith with ProPublica’s management, but we have been met with a continued resistance to compromise. We will continue pushing for reasonable and common-sense provisions in our contract: job security, guardrails around AI usage, wage minimums that will raise especially our lowest-paid members and a transparent disciplinary process.
“Our members are asking for basic union protections and are disappointed that management at a mission-driven place like ProPublica has resisted agreeing to them,” said Agnel Philip, our unit’s chair and a data reporter, who also spoke with Hell Gate at the practice picket. “We will do whatever it takes to win the contract we deserve.”
After a successful practice picket, our membership is energized and ready to do the real thing.
