NewsGuild-CWA Members Fight for the Fired Four

Earlier this month, members of the NewsGuild of New York-CWA (TNG-CWA Local 31003) hosted a huge rally to demand that mass media company Condé Nast reinstate members Alma Avalle, Jake Lahut, Jasper Lo, and Ben Dewey. Dubbed the “Fired Four,” the group of union leaders were singled out from a larger cadre of nearly 20 NewsGuild-CWA members who approached the head of human resources, Stan Duncan, about the decision to dismantle Teen Vogue. Days later, the company suspended another five employees without pay.

At the rally, New York Attorney General Letitia James energized the crowd, saying, “I’m proud to stand here with CWA and the NewsGuild because, since when is it illegal for an individual to express their First Amendment rights? Since when is it illegal to speak truth to power?” Attorney General James finished her fiery speech promising to take legal action against the company.

A statement from the NewsGuild of New York reads, “This is Condé Nast taking advantage of the government shutdown and the Trump Administration’s repression of the National Labor Relations Board to illegally exploit and punish workers, to ignore the union contract they agreed to, and to try to scare the rest of their unionized workforce into silence. The company is attempting to silence its workers in any way possible while the Trump administration is openly muzzling the free press. It will not work.”

NewsGuild of New York members are asking supporters to sign a petition demanding the immediate reinstatement of the Fired Four, the reversal of the suspensions, and for the company to pay out lost wages and benefits. Click here to sign the petition.

 
Members of the NewsGuild of New York (TNG-CWA Local 31003), along with retirees, allies, and supporters, hosted a Rally for Our Rights. NewsGuild-CWA President Jon Schleuss (center) and TNG-CWA Local 31003 President Susan DeCarava (left of Schleuss) joined New York Attorney General Letitia James and impacted members calling for an end to Condé Nast’s union-busting.

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This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.