Gannett, The Record Guild agree to contract, avert walkout

Gannett has avoided a walkout by journalists from three North Jersey newspapers by agreeing to a two-year contract that increases salaries by over 25%.

Members of The Record Guild, representing reporters from the Bergen Record, Daily Record, and New Jersey Herald, ratified the contract with 95% of the vote, ending three years of combative negotiations and walkouts.

“Our members showed Gannett they would not be pushed around by their games and stood up for each other, showing we wouldn’t be cowered by bad contract language, questionable protections, and low wages,” said Kaitlyn Kanzler, the Record Guild unit chair.  “We know our worth as journalists, and we’re finally being paid for it.”

The new contract ends “at will” employment and establishes a process for dealing with visas and immigration issues, including time off.  The deal includes an ten weeks of paid parental leave, and a three-hour minimum pay/work when journalists are called back for more than fifteen minutes on a day off.

Moreover, Gannett has agreed to some controls over the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

The thirty lowest-paid union members will receive an average of a $15,000 annual race.

Gannett reached a contract deal with the APP-MCJ Guild earlier this month, averting a walkout by reporters from the Asbury Park Press, Courier News, and Home News Tribune

Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-Tenafly) had backed the union members after they voted to walk out.

“I stand with journalists and employees at the Bergen Record in their fight for a good contract,” said the Democratic gubernatorial candidate.  “The Record is a cornerstone of the North Jersey community, and their workers deserve wages that let them live and thrive in the communities they serve.”

Record Guild reporters, who voted to unionize nearly four years ago, have since lost 45% of their original union members.

Print circulation at The Record is down by over 90% since Gannett purchased the newspaper from the Borg family in 2016 and now prints less than 14,000 newspapers daily.