New Unit Council members elected
Feb. 13, 2023
The Austin NewsGuild has elected three new members to its unit council in light of recent departures:
Luz Moreno-Lozano: Unit Chair
Nicole Villalpando: Vice Chair
Michael Coleman: At-large
They join the existing unit leadership
Cat Vasquez: At-large
Kara Carlson: Secretary
New Unit Council member elected
Meet the newest member of our Unit Council
Following the departure of Phil Jankowski, Austin NewsGuild members elected Luz Moreno-Lozano for the at-large position on Nov. 15, 2021. The unit council is now;
Chair: Katie Hall
Vice Chair: Madlin Mekelburg
Secretary: Kara Carlson
At-large: Luz Moreno-Lozano and Cat Vasquez
Meet our Unit Council
On Feb. 24, 2021, the votes were counted, and the journalists of the Austin American-Statesman voted 36 to 12 to unionize our newsroom. The National Labor Relations Board had originally set the ballot count for Feb. 19, but severe weather and statewide power outages caused the count to be postponed. The Austin NewsGuild was certified by the National Labor Relations Board on March 5, 2021.
On March 23, members elected Unit Council leadership for the Austin NewsGuild. They are:
Chair: Katie Hall
Vice Chair: Madlin Mekelburg
Secretary: Kara Carlson
At-large: Phil Jankowski and Cat Vasquez
Diversity Committee calls for change in letter to management
As journalists of the Austin American-Statesman, we have covered the inequities in our communities. Now we feel it's time to take a similar examination of the inequities in our newsroom.
Over the last several months, the Austin NewsGuild Diversity Committee has discussed how we can better serve our communities, support our colleagues of color and create an anti-racist, inclusive environment. We also included former employees of color to understand what factors may have led to their departure and seek their thoughts on how to improve the newsroom.
But we realize improvement does not happen overnight. We have to create an atmosphere where we embrace change — one in which management can accept constructive criticism and acknowledge the existence of systemic and implicit biases. And that takes brave leaders, a culture of courageousness and lots of tough conversations.
Current inequities are not the fault of any one person and cannot be solved by any one person alone. We know anti-racist work and all efforts to improve equity, inclusion and social justice — internally and in our coverage — starts with honest, vulnerable conversations. And that is where we, as a union, hope to start with our managers.
This week, as we celebrate and remember the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Austin NewsGuild recognizes the role we can play in creating a more equitable workplace.
Dr. King wrote, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
To that end, the Diversity Committee has written a letter addressed to the management of Gannett and the Austin American-Statesman demanding change and outlining measures to achieve these goals. We believe that having specific goals and regularly measuring progress in this area is key to holding ourselves and our managers accountable.
We hope that management will accept this letter in the spirit in which it is intended: To offer constructive criticism, propose solutions and to start a conversation that leads to long-lasting change.
Sincerely,
The Austin NewsGuild Diversity Committee
Our Letter to Management
Austin is made up of a diverse group of people from many different backgrounds and beliefs. As a newsroom, we believe that the makeup of our staff and our coverage should match that of Austin, better reflecting our readership.
As companies across the country work to make their work environments more diverse and inclusive, Gannett has announced it will also make an effort to do the same, but we believe more needs to be done at the local level.
Based on our own recent calculations, we are a newsroom of more than 50 reporters and editors, and only 34% are people of color, while Central Texas is made up of about 48% of people of color. An even smaller percentage of freelance writers and photographers are journalists of color.
We demand transparency from management in the hiring process for full- and part-time positions, and internships, as it is integral to improving our newsroom’s diversity and equity. While efforts have been made to provide staff demographics, managers must also make demonstrable strides to ensure that happens.
More aggressive measures can be taken to ensure that employment opportunities are clearly posted and shared on various job boards geared toward journalists of color, and we need to make extra effort to retain staffers of color, many of whom have left in recent years in search of better work opportunities.
Fostering an environment that cultivates and values multilingual and diverse reporters helps build a connection with communities and widens our audience, and should be a top priority.
Creating an inclusive and equitable environment for all leads to a stronger organization. We are asking for the same level of transparency and accountability that you, the editors, ask of us in our reporting.
The lack of training that addresses antiracism, gender and identity awareness and religion sensitivity for our newsroom, the deficiency of pathways that lead to larger roles in the newsroom for our colleagues of color, and the small group of multilingual teammates, demonstrates that there is still a long way to go.
Naming a community reporter that dives into the issues of race, ethnicity, religion and immigration demonstrates the paper’s desire to do better, but more collaboration must be done to improve our coverage in this area.
We demand disclosure of pay to the Austin NewsGuild, which would be used to conduct an anonymous pay equity study. Other guilds, such as the Washington Post have done so, and discovered disparity in pay based on differences in gender, age and race/ethnicity.
On the week when we celebrate the country's most iconic civil rights leader, the Diversity Committee of the Austin NewsGuild are proposing an action plan detailing how the American-Statesman can address and dismantle the inequities in our newsroom that exist in our hiring, training opportunities, coverage and pay.
Demands:
Begin developing a plan to bring back ¡Ahora Sí!: The elimination of our Spanish-language newspaper has created a gap between the American-Statesman and our Spanish-speaking community, leaving them without access to important news. The American-Statesman needs to revive ¡Ahora Sí!, and work with the diversity committee to introduce and execute a five-year plan to bring back ¡Ahora Sí!
Career development: We want more financial support to attend conferences hosted by the National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, National Association of Asian Journalists and similar events. Attendance should not require using paid-time off. We believe newsroom leaders should be transparent about the available conference budget. These conferences provide networking and growth opportunities that are critical to our diversity efforts and lead to a thriving newsroom.
Create a streamlined complaint & review process: The Statesman should implement a two-way review process so staff members can provide anonymous feedback about discriminatory treatment or other equity and inclusion issues. Resources should also be invested into legal and IT to protect and support reporters targeted by online violence and abuse. We want our reporters to feel comfortable and supported when it comes to dealing with issues of race, ethnicity, religion and gender and identity. Also, journalists who are facing allegations from the public should have a platform to defend themselves.
Annual newsroom diversity report: We want newsroom management to continue to release a diversity report, and include an assessment of the retention of journalists of color and women, for our readers each year. Our readers deserve to know who is covering their stories and who is shaping the narrative.
Diverse hiring: Newsroom managers should be transparent of their efforts to recruit candidates of color and the channels they used to do so for all newsroom positions, including internships. Posting job opportunities in places where candidates of color are likely to look should be a top priority. We believe by giving a transparent look at the makeup of our newsroom, including how many people of color were interviewed, and disclosure of pay, which would be used to conduct a pay equity study, can help identify where we stand, and how we can work toward a more diverse culture.
Value multilingual skills: Multilingual reporters applying for jobs should be fairly compensated upon hiring, and should be eligible for a stipend or higher pay rate. Management should also create a language assessment test to measure level of skills. Multilingual reporters who partner on a story for newsgathering and interpretation purposes should also be granted a co-byline. Stories that require full translation should not be up to an internal employee. The company needs to create a database and pay for an outside translator for that particular assignment.
Implicit bias training: All staff should be required to participate in annual training sessions that are conducted by a person of color and are different each year. This training should allow reporters to review and examine their strengths and weaknesses and cover topics such as LGBTQ awareness, race, ethnicity, religion and how to ask for language interpretation assistance.
Progress report: Gannett and the American-Statesman will provide a six-month check up to staff and the public that demonstrates how the company is making strides toward diversity and inclusion.
Create a racially diverse management group: The lack of representation has a huge impact internally and in our community, as they control what news we cover, how we cover it and who covers it. Our leaders must find a way to expand the management ranks to include diverse leaders that represent a variety of perspectives on all protected classes.
Ensure multiple journalists of color are included in every news planning meeting.
Religious observance: Managers will explain to staff when they are hired how floating holidays work and explain that staff will not be penalized for requesting time off for religious holidays that are not national holidays.
If these goals are not met by Jan. 17, 2022, we expect the company to:
Acknowledge the company’s lack of efforts toward diversity through a letter to readers and staff explaining the failure of demands listed to the Austin NewsGuild.
Develop a plan that outlines how to rectify this failure to the public and its staff, and work to reinvest money into diversity training and workshops as well as other diversity efforts.
Letter of apology in Spanish published in the Opinion section to our Spanish-speaking readers for ceasing publication of ¡Ahora Sí!, and explore options on how to revive the publication, such as funding Spanish-language reporter positions through fellowships.
Signed,
The Austin NewsGuild Diversity Committee
Austin cuenta con un grupo diverso de personas de diferentes procedencias y creencias. Como sala de redacción, pensamos que la composición de nuestro personal y nuestros reportajes deberían coincidir con Austin, y reflejar de manera más adecuada a nuestros lectores.
A medida que las empresas de todo el país se esfuerzan por lograr que sus entornos de trabajo sean más diversos e inclusivos, Gannett ha anunciado que también hará lo mismo, pero consideramos que es necesario hacer un mayor esfuerzo a nivel local.
Según nuestros cálculos más recientes, somos una sala de redacción constituida por más de 50 reporteros y editores, y sólo el 34% son personas de color, mientras que el área central de Texas está constituida por un 48% de personas de color. Un porcentaje aún menor de escritores y fotógrafos independientes son periodistas de color.
Exigimos transparencia a la Administración a la hora de contratar personal a tiempo completo y parcial, así como pasantías, pues es fundamental para mejorar la diversidad y la equidad de nuestra sala de redacción. Pese a que se han tomado medidas para proporcionar datos demográficos del personal, los directivos también deben tener progresos demostrables para asegurar que eso suceda.
Podemos tomar medidas más estrictas para asegurar que las oportunidades de empleo se anuncien y compartan claramente en las diversas bolsas de trabajo dirigidas a los periodistas de color, y tenemos que hacer un esfuerzo adicional para retener a los empleados de color, muchos de los cuales se han ido en los últimos años en búsqueda de mejores oportunidades de trabajo.
Fomentar un entorno que promueva y valore a los reporteros multilingües y diversos ayuda a construir una conexión con las comunidades y expande nuestra audiencia, lo cual debería ser una prioridad fundamental.
La creación de un entorno inclusivo e igualitario para todos conlleva a una organización más fuerte. Solicitamos el mismo nivel de transparencia y responsabilidad que ustedes, los editores, nos demandan en nuestros reportajes.
La falta de formación para abordar el antirracismo, la conciencia de género e identidad y la sensibilidad religiosa en nuestra sala de redacción, la carencia de medios que permitan a nuestros colegas de color desempeñar un papel más importante en la sala de redacción y el pequeño grupo de compañeros de equipo multilingües, ponen en evidencia que aún queda mucho por hacer.
Designar a un reportero de la comunidad que se dedique a tratar asuntos de raza, etnia, religión e inmigración demuestra el deseo del periódico de mejorar, pero es imprescindible una mayor colaboración para mejorar nuestra cobertura en estas áreas.
Exigimos divulgación de salarios al Austin NewsGuild, lo cual será utilizado para realizar un estudio de igualdad salarial. Otras compañías, como el Washington Post, lo han hecho, y han descubierto desigualdades salariales basadas en diferencias de género, edad y raza/etnia.
En la semana que celebramos al líder de derechos civiles más emblemático del país, el Comité de Diversidad del Austin NewsGuild propone un plan de acción que detalla cómo el American-Statesman puede abordar y disolver las desigualdades que existen en nuestra sala de redacción en cuanto a contratación, oportunidades de capacitación, cobertura y salario.
Exigencias:
Comenzar a elaborar un plan para recuperar ¡Ahora Sí!: La eliminación de nuestro periódico en español ha creado una brecha entre American-Statesman y nuestra comunidad hispanohablante, dejándolos sin acceso a noticias importantes. American-Statesman necesita recuperar ¡Ahora Sí!, y unirse al comité de diversidad para introducir y ejecutar un plan de cinco años para recuperar ¡Ahora Sí!
Desarrollo de Carrera: Queremos un mayor apoyo financiero para asistir a las conferencias organizadas por la Asociación Nacional de Periodistas Negros, la Asociación Nacional de Periodistas Hispanos, la Asociación Nacional de Periodistas Asiáticos y eventos similares. La asistencia no debería requerir el uso de tiempo libre pagado. Consideramos que los líderes de las salas de redacción deben ser transparentes en cuanto al presupuesto disponible para la conferencia. Estas conferencias proporcionan oportunidades de creación de conexiones y de crecimiento y son fundamentales para nuestros esfuerzos de diversidad y permiten lograr una sala de redacción próspera.
Establecer un proceso de reclamo y revisión estandarizado: Statesman debería implementar un proceso de revisión bidireccional que permita a los miembros del personal proporcionar información anónima sobre el trato discriminatorio. Además, es preciso invertir recursos en el ámbito jurídico y tecnológico para proteger y apoyar a los denunciantes que son objeto de violencia y abusos en línea. Es importante que nuestros reporteros se sientan cómodos y apoyados cuando se aborden cuestiones de raza, etnia, religión y género e identidad. Asimismo, los periodistas que se enfrentan a denuncias del público deberían tener una plataforma para defenderse.
Informe anual sobre la diversidad en la sala de redacción: Deseamos que la Administración de la sala de redacción mantenga un informe sobre la diversidad, e incluya una evaluación de la retención de periodistas de color y mujeres, para nuestros lectores cada año. Nuestros lectores merecen saber quién está cubriendo sus historias y quién le da forma a la narrativa.
Contratación diversa: Los directores de la sala de redacción deben ser transparentes en sus esfuerzos por reclutar candidatos de color y determinar qué métodos utilizaron para hacerlo respecto a todos los puestos de la sala de redacción, incluidas las pasantías. La publicación de oportunidades de trabajo en lugares donde es probable que los candidatos de color busquen, debería ser una prioridad principal. Creemos que, al proporcionar una mirada transparente a la composición de nuestra sala de redacción, incluyendo cuántas personas de color fueron entrevistadas, y la divulgación de los salarios, que se utilizaría para llevar a cabo un estudio sobre la igualdad salarial, puede ayudar a identificar dónde estamos y cómo podemos avanzar hacia una cultura más diversa.
Valorar las habilidades multilingües: Los reporteros multilingües que solicitan empleo deben recibir un salario justo al ser contratados y deben tener derecho a un estipendio o a una tasa de pago más alta. Por otra parte, la Administración debería crear una prueba de evaluación de idiomas para medir el nivel de conocimientos. Los periodistas multilingües que se incorporen a un reportaje con fines de recopilación de noticias e interpretación también deberían recibir una mención de co-autoría. Las historias que requieran traducción completa no deben depender de un empleado interno. La empresa debe crear una base de datos y pagar a un traductor externo para esa tarea en particular.
Programas de capacitación sobre sesgos implícitos: Es necesario que todo el personal participe en programas de capacitación anuales dirigidos por una persona de color que son distintos cada año. Esta capacitación le permitirá a los reporteros analizar y evaluar sus fortalezas y debilidades y abarcará temas como la conciencia de la comunidad LGBTQ, la raza, la etnia, la religión y cómo solicitar asistencia para la interpretación de idiomas.
Informe de progreso: Gannett y el American-Statesman proporcionarán un seguimiento de seis meses al personal y al público que demuestre cómo la empresa está avanzando hacia la diversidad y la inclusión.
Crear un grupo de Administración racialmente diverso: La falta de representación tiene un enorme impacto interno y en nuestra comunidad, ya que ellos controlan las noticias que cubrimos, cómo las cubrimos y quién las cubre. Nuestros líderes deben encontrar la forma de ampliar las filas de la Administración para incluir a líderes diversos que representen una variedad de perspectivas sobre todas las clases protegidas.
Asegurarse de que se incluyan periodistas de color en cada reunión de planificación de noticias.
Prácticas religiosas: Los directores le explicarán al personal, al momento de su contratación, cómo funcionan los días festivos flexibles y le explicarán que el personal no será sancionado por solicitar tiempo libre para fiestas religiosas que no sean fiestas nacionales.
Si estos objetivos no son alcanzados para el 17 de enero de 2022, esperamos que la compañía:
1. Reconozca la falta de esfuerzos para lograr la diversidad de la compañía a través de una carta a los lectores y al personal explicando el fracaso de las demandas enumeradas al Austin NewsGuild.
2. Desarrolle un plan que describa al público y a su personal cómo rectificar este fallo, y trabaje para reinvertir dinero en capacitaciones y talleres de diversidad, así como en otros esfuerzos de diversidad.
3. Publique una carta de disculpa en español en la sección de Opinión para nuestros lectores hispanohablantes por el cese de ¡Ahora Sí!, la cual explique algunas opciones para recuperar ¡Ahora Sí!, como la obtención de financiación mediante becas para periodistas de habla hispana.
Firmado por,
El Comité de Diversidad de Austin NewsGuild
Why a union, why now?
A union is a critical step toward making sure that the Statesman remains a place where journalists feel at home and empowered to tell stories that matter to Austin.
A union is a critical step toward making sure that the Statesman remains a place where journalists feel at home and empowered to tell stories that matter to Austin. We’ve lost dozens of reporters of the past 10 years, some to buyouts and layoffs, and others who have left because of unsatisfactory working conditions. We want to identify what we love about the newsroom so we can protect it — and we want to have a seat at the table to fight to change what’s not working.
The Austin NewsGuild is comprised of dozens of reporters, photographers, videographers and web specialists who will represent the needs of the non-managerial staff in the newsroom, but the group is also focused on finding ways to advocating on behalf of the newsroom outside of the bargaining meetings, as well as providing mutual aid for each other in ways both big and small.
We are hoping that Gannett follows the lead of other large media companies and voluntarily recognizes the unit over the next few weeks. That’s what happened last month when the editor of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram announced the voluntary recognition of their guild, which has similar strong support across the newsroom. The Dallas News Guild, Texas’ first guild, won its election earlier this year by a strong margin, and their guild is already entering the bargaining process. When we officially become the Austin NewsGuild, through a vote or voluntary recognition, we will be the third unionized newsroom in Texas.
For the latest developments and more information on how you can support the collective bargaining until, follow us on social media @austinnewsguild on Twitter and Instagram.