Striking Post-Gazette production and advertising workers accept buyout
Striking production and advertising workers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette have accepted a buyout offer, the Communications Workers of America union announced Thursday.
The news comes after the Post-Gazette outsourced production of its print edition to the Butler Eagle — eliminating 31 union jobs in Allegheny County.
The Post-Gazette has trimmed its print publication days over the years, citing its decision to become a “digital news organization,” and currently prints twice a week.
Management from the newspaper sent a letter on May 23 to the union representing journalists at the Post-Gazette, informing them that the newspaper would terminate its lease early at its printing facility in Clinton.
“The Post-Gazette chose to outsource jobs rather than do the right thing and bargain when they closed the main facility and all but two days of print production,” said Mike Davis, vice president of CWA District 2-13. “They have not bargained in good faith, but we have stood together to negotiate the best possible severance package for the production and advertising workers.”
All workers will receive 26 weeks of severance pay and additional compensation for commission-based staff based on historical commission averages, CWA said, which was negotiated by union workers.
“I am extremely proud to have stood on strike with my siblings in each of the unions at the Post-Gazette,” said John Santa, striking design editor and Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh-CWA member. “My hope is that they receive the best deal possible for themselves and their families and are able to move on after being treated so unfairly by the company for such a long time.”
Post-Gazette journalists, mailers, production workers and advertising staff have been on strike since October 2022 — in what is considered the longest media strike in the digital age.
Journalists and newsroom staff represented by the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh remain on strike. Some of the strikers have moved on to new jobs. Others have continued to post local news in the Pittsburgh Union Progress.
The Post-Gazette recently faced a hearing before the 3rd U.S Circuit Court of Appeals as the National Labor Relations Board seeks an injunction over a judge’s findings of numerous violations of labor law against its journalists and newsroom staff.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was formed in 1927 by Paul Block, the grandfather of John and Allan Block.
Megan Swift is a TribLive reporter covering trending news in Western Pennsylvania. A Murrysville native, she joined the Trib full time in 2023 after serving as editor-in-chief of The Daily Collegian at Penn State. She previously worked as a Jim Borden Scholarship intern at the Trib for three summers. She can be reached at mswift@triblive.com.
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