L.A. Times union walks out in protest of 'substantial' coming job cuts

Over 300 members of the Los Angeles Times Guild staged a one-day walkout in multiple cities Friday following an announcement from management about plans to lay off a “significant” portion of its journalists.

Guild leadership held a rally in Gloria Molina Grand Park near City Hall in Los Angeles, while other staffers joined the one-day strike from Sacramento, Washington and other locations.

It was the first newsroom union work stoppage for the Times since it started printing in 1881, according to a statement from the Guild, which represents about 400 editorial employees at the Times.

According to the Times’ own reporting, the cuts stem from offsetting steep financial losses that owner Patrick Soon-Shiong has absorbed since acquiring the paper almost six years ago. The proposed layoffs are the third round of cuts since June, when more than 70 positions, or about 13 percent of the newsroom, were removed. Last week, executive editor Kevin Merida abruptly resigned amid tensions with Soon-Shiong, the Times reported.

Negotiation meetings have occurred off the record, so the Guild is unable to say how many members are in danger of losing their jobs, according to the statement, which described the number as “substantial.”

“If management thinks our financial situation is untenable, they need to come to the bargaining table in good faith and work out a buyout plan with us that would first articulate a clear headcount or cost saying they’re aiming for, and then seek to hit that number with as many buyouts — and as few layoffs — as possible,” said Brian Contreras, chair of the Guild’s Unit Council, in the statement.

Union leaders are pushing for three demands: a public headcount or salary reduction that management is aiming for, a town hall with newsroom leadership, and a committee that includes Guild representatives in the search and selection of the next executive editor.

In a statement to POLITICO, communications vice president Hillary Manning wrote that the paper “has not missed a day of publishing in 142 years and we are publishing today.”

“We are disappointed in the Guild’s decision, but respect their right to strike,” Manning wrote.

According to the Guild statement, management is asking the union to remove senior protections from its union contract in order to secure more freedom to select which employees to lay off.

“The changes to our contract that management is trying to pressure us into accepting are obscene and unsustainable,” Contreras said in the statement.

The Guild asked readers on social media to refrain from crossing a digital picket line for 24 hours, including avoiding clicking on the Times' stories, engaging with brand accounts on social media or opening news alerts.

Ahead of the walkout, union members reported losing access to their company Slack accounts. Contreras said he and “pretty much everyone I know” were disconnected.

“From what we can tell, management is locking our legally protected Guild strikers out of Slack if they post there in support of the walkout,” Contreras told POLITICO in an email.

Contreras later added that employees showing support for the demonstration lost access to their Times email accounts.

"We haven't gotten any comms from management on this, but yeah, a lot of people who spoke out in support of the walk-out seem to have been locked out of both Slack and their work emails," he said in a follow-up email.

Manning did not immediately respond to POLITICO's requests for comment about staffers losing Slack and email access.

The Guild is a unit of Media Guild of the West, a local group for media workers in Southern California, Arizona and Texas under The NewsGuild-CWA.

Members of the California delegation took to social media to voice their support for the walkout.

Sen. Alex Padilla expressed his support for staffers “who are striking today to protect vital newsroom jobs and preserve the ability of the L.A. Times to effectively report on and reflect the diverse communities that it serves.”

Rep. Barbara Lee wrote that she stands for “journalists — who are critical to the preservation of our democracy — & urge the Times to put people over profits.”

“Good journalism is more important now than ever. And that requires adequate staffing,” Rep. Adam Schiff wrote. “We need the LAT to continue keeping our communities well informed. We can’t let journalism die in plain view.”

California lawmakers such as Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis and Assemblymembers Mike Gipson and Laura Friedman shared messages of unity, as well.

The NewsGuild, an affiliate of the Communications Workers of America, represents journalists from media outlets including POLITICO.

Alec Snyder contributed to this report.