EVANSVILLE, Ind. — After nearly four weeks of campaigning, the award-winning journalists of the Evansville Courier & Press have voted unanimously to unionize.
The union campaign was made public Jan. 8, with the staff citing slashed resources and jobs and the prospect that nothing would change without action.
Courier & Press journalists asked its parent company Gannett to voluntarily recognize its union, which would have erased the need for a vote. Gannett refused.
Gannett bought the newspaper in 2016, and since then Courier & Press journalists, who have been repeatedly recognized by their peers for their work, have steadily left the newspaper as resources are reduced. Others have been forced out. The newsroom is a fraction of its former size — but the care and effort shown by the remaining reporters and photographers has not wavered.
All nine of the editorial staff, two sports reporters, six news reporters and one photographer, voted yes to unionize on Wednesday.
As was shared when the effort went public in January, every member of the Courier & Press newsroom wants to continue to provide the top-notch journalism to which this community has become accustomed. And every member deserves respect and fair wages.
Evansville NewsGuild will be a bargaining unit of TNG-CWA Local 34070, which also represents workers of the Indianapolis NewsGuild and Courier Journal Guild.
The NewsGuild is part of Communications Workers of America (CWA), the largest communications and media labor union in the United States, representing about 700,000 members in the US and Canada.
You can find more information on the journey of the past few weeks at the Evansville NewsGuild Twitter – @EvansNewsGuild. The Guild can also be found on Facebook.
Thank you for your consideration!
FOOTNOTE- THE CITY-COUNTY OBSERVER POSTED THIS ARTICLE WITHOUT BIAS, OPINION, OR EDITING.
