Journalists form unions, some are striking

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

Journalists at the Bulletin in Bend and the Redmond Spokesman formed the Central Oregon NewsGuild to advocate for the reporters, photographers, and news assistants, according to the Oregonian/OregonLive.com. The NewsGuild, part of the Communications Workers of America, seeks voluntary recognition of their union by the owner, the Forrester family’s EO Media chain, which purchased the newspapers in 2019 for $3.65 million. Journalists at the Daily News in Longview, Washington, joined the guild in May 2021 and obtained a new contract in September that raised starting wages from $17 to $19 an hour, but at the Columbian in Vancouver, Washington, journalists who unionized in 2019 negotiated with management for 15 months without obtaining a contract. When a private equity fund in New York bought the Register Guard in Eugene, the guild couldn’t prevent the gutting of its staff.

This summer, hundreds of journalists representing two dozen newspapers in eight states conducted a strike.  They were striking for a change in leadership by their parent company.