NEW YORK – According to the employees’ union, more than a thousand people employed by The New York Times went on strike at the stroke of midnight on Thursday, marking the first strike of its kind in more than four decades.

The union said that journalists and other workers at the famous newspaper, which is often called “America’s paper of record,” walked off the job for 24 hours because they couldn’t come to an agreement with the company on a new round of contract talks.

According to the NewsGuild of New York, which is the union that is representing the striking workers, a key sticking point is the management’s refusal to raise wages in line with the surging inflation.

Early on Thursday morning, the union tweeted that more than 1,100 workers at The New York Times had begun an official work stoppage, which was the first strike of this magnitude at the company in four decades.

Danielle Rhoades Ha, a spokeswoman for the New York Times, issued a statement to the US media in which she stated that negotiations had not reached an impasse and that it was disappointing that the other party was taking such an extreme action when we were not at a standstill.

A podcast producer at the news organisation by the name of Phoebe Lett tweeted the following: “It is heartbreaking to have to stand with nearly 1,200 colleagues who sacrifice everything for the good of this place, hat in hand, asking @nytimes to show us they value us.” Nevertheless, here we are.”

According to the statement released by the union, its members are “willing to do whatever it takes to win a better newsroom for all.”

Info source – AFP