June 11, 2021, 10:45am
After over two years of bargaining with Condé Nast, and a march on Anna Wintour’s house, the New Yorker Union is preparing to strike, in service of fair pay; reasonable health care costs; the ability to freelance without oversight from The New Yorker; enhanced severance; and a notice period for layoffs.
If The New Yorker Union strikes, New Yorker writers, contributors, and freelance editorial workers will stop working and submitting edits, and ask for their work not to be published. They’ll also call for a digital boycott: readers and subscribers will be asked not to use the New Yorker app or click/share any newyorker.com articles for the duration of the strike. Fans of The New Yorker’s journalism might be slightly saddened by this (though it’s a small price to pay for fair working conditions!), but they needn’t worry: New Yorker Union members have put together an entire “Strike Issue” that they plan to release if the union end up striking.
The Strike Issue, a full New Yorker-style issue, is entirely written, edited, fact-checked, designed, and produced by New Yorker Union members. The content—or if we’ll ever get to see the content—remains unknown, but the union has released the delightful pro-union cover artwork, “In Solidarity” by Genevieve Bormes.
If we strike, don’t fret! You’ll still have something to read. Here’s a sneak peek at the cover of our Strike Issue—written, edited, fact-checked, designed, and produced by @newyorkerunion members. “In Solidarity”: art by @BormesGenevieve; animation by @neetadotworks. pic.twitter.com/5Yzy9CpxTz
— The New Yorker Union (@newyorkerunion) June 10, 2021
Natalie Meade, chair of the New Yorker Union, said on Twitter that if the union’s demands are met, they’ll release a “Labor Peace Issue” instead. Let’s hope that’s the outcome—but if not, they (and we) are prepared.