Setting the record straight on union dues

We are so excited about voting for One Herald Guild on Oct. 30 to give ourselves the same right to negotiate with our parent company that our colleagues have at the L.A. Times, the Chicago Tribune, the New York Times, the Seattle Times, the Florida Times-Union and dozens of other newsrooms across the country as part of the NewsGuild.

In its effort to oppose our union, McClatchy has pushed misleading information about union dues. 

So we want to set the record straight: No one can be forced to pay union dues if they do not want to. And there is no “initiation fee.”

What are union dues?

  • We will be joining the NewsGuild, the primary union that represents journalists and media workers across the United States and Canada, from big newspapers like The New York Times to smaller ones like the Knoxville News Sentinel. The NewsGuild is made up of journalists like us, and we know best how to preserve our newsrooms.

  • Union dues are 1.3% of your annual salary, a percentage set by a democratically elected board of NewsGuild members. That money pays for a NewsGuild staff member who will be assisting us during contract negotiations with the company. (Remember: McClatchy has hired one of the most expensive law firms in the country to fight this effort.)

When do we start paying union dues?

  • Employees will have the option to begin paying dues once we have finalized a contract and the staff -- members of the union -- has voted in favor of approving it.

  • Until then, we will be supported by dues-paying journalists at places like the New York Times, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and dozens of other newsrooms across the country.

Why pay union dues?

  • It costs money to defend the best interests of our newsroom. We will be fighting for a contract that has stronger job protections like guaranteed severance, increased salaries and defined raise levels, paid parental leave, equitable treatment and pay scales between Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald employees, and better use of resources to serve readers.

Isn’t Florida a right-to-work state?

  • Yes. You do not pay any union dues, while still enjoying the protections of our contract, unless you actively agree to pay them.

Bottom line

  • No one can force you to pay dues. But consider: Ensuring the company treats us fairly is a strong reason to do so.

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