2 weeks Ago By Alayna Hutchinson
Legal proceedings for an injunction filed in federal court by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette are delayed after a hearing on Monday as a group of employees enter their third year of the ongoing strike. The NLRB’s attorneys were granted a continuance after requesting more time to gather evidence for their argument, which claims that Post-Gazette management violated federal labor laws by engaging in bad faith bargaining with four different unions. “After two years of being on strike, it’s not fun being on strike.
It’s hard, really hard,” said Joseph Baker, one of the striking Post-Gazette employees and a member of the Communications Workers of America, during testimony. The injunction , filed in August, seeks a court order forcing the Post-Gazette back to the bargaining table with employees and rescinding all unilateral contract changes. It also wants the company to reimburse healthcare costs for production and distribution workers, whose health benefits were canceled in 2022 — a key action that initially provoked workers to strike in October 2022 .
Baker was one of six striking employees to testify on behalf of the NLRB today about financial and health consequences they’ve endured because of the strike. Robert Weber, the director of operations at the Post-Gazette, testified on the paper’s behalf, describing the financial impact of the evolving news industry on the paper. “To survive as a company, we were going to have to really figure out how this business was going to survive,” Weber said during his testimony.
Prior to the hearing, around 20 striking union members gathered outside of the U.S. District Court building for a rally, where some members spoke about the importance of the event.
“All of this over and over again has proven how correct the workers were, how mistreated we were, and how correct the unions were at the bargaining table since 2017 and just how unlawful the Post-Gazette has acted,” said Zack Tanner, President of the Pittsburgh News Guild. Tanner said he’s hopeful as they enter their third year on the picket line. “There hasn't been one moment of this that I haven't felt encouraged because I know that we're on the right side of things, ” he said.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette declined to comment, “due to the ongoing nature of this case.” The date for the next injunction hearing is to be determined..
