Unionized workers at Dotdash Meredith, one of the largest digital publishers in the U.S., have reached contract agreements with management after years of bargaining, the NewsGuild of New York announced on Tuesday.
The new contracts cover around 160 employees at People, Entertainment Weekly and Martha Stewart Living in a three-year deal that the union has been fighting for since 2021.
The union stated that the contracts establish “new standards” for union members across the company and the industry, including a 15% average pay increase, higher hourly wages for lowest-earning employees, and reasons for fair termination.
This is the first agreement for all negotiation groups of Dotdash Meredith, except for People print as they were bargaining for a subsequent contract. Union members voted to approve the new agreements on Monday.
“We’ve been in fight-mode since 2020, when we began organizing some of our brands besides People print,” People copy editor and bargaining committee member Gabrielle Danchick said in a statement. “We’ve withstood layoffs, COVID lockdown, deaths, departures, debt and all-around bad behavior from the company nearly every step of the way.”
“It’s a relief to finally flip the fight-mode switch off and take a breather as the company does the right thing. Because of our collective resolve and refusal to back down, we have a strong legally binding agreement that gives us the protections we need and the kind of pay that will make a huge difference in so many lives,” she continued.
The union’s contract wins include a pay increase to $30.63/hour for the lowest-paid current bargaining unit members, guaranteed 3% raises throughout the next three years, $1.6 million in lump-sum retroactive pay increases, an average pay increase for employees at ratification of nearly 15%, and a $1,500 signing bonus.
In addition, the agreements feature improved worker protections such as fair reasons for discipline and termination, reinstatement of recall rights after layoffs, 35-hour workweeks, and more.
“These agreements establish a new standard for our members at Dotdash Meredith,” president of The NewsGuild of New York Susan DeCarava said in a statement. “It’s why we do what we do as a union: We fight as one and win agreements that change our members’ lives.”
The union agreements were a long time coming, as management and the guild engaged in years of bitter bargaining to reach an agreement. In January 2023, Dotdash Meredith implemented layoffs impacting 7% of the workforce, equivalent to 274 employees.
CEO Neil Vogel noted the action was a “direct response” to conditions that span “broader challenges of the ad industry and of the economy as a whole.”
Then, that February, union members staged a rally at Dotdash Meredith headquarters in an effort to bring management closer to a deal. Additionally, union members marched on Vogel’s office in April.
Barry Diller’s IAC Dotdash acquired magazine publisher Meredith in 2021, in an all-cash deal valued at $2.7 billion dollars. Meredith’s diverse collection includes brands and media publications like People, InStyle, Real Simple, Better Homes & Gardens, AllRecipes, Southern Living and more.
However, the workers’ victory happens at the same time as Tuesday’s other announcement that Dotdash Meredith solidified a new partnership with OpenAI to obtain permission to use content for AI training. The company will collaborate with OpenAI to create new AI products and offer real-time information to ChatGPT. As part of the agreement, OpenAI will utilize Dotdash Meredith content and links to articles in Chatbot responses to users.
“We have not been hesitant to express that AI platforms should compensate publishers for their content and that content must be properly credited,” Vogel stated on Tuesday. “This agreement demonstrates the excellent work OpenAI is doing to collaborate with creators and publishers and ensure a sustainable Internet for the future.”
