What does the future hold for the journalists still on strike at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette after more than two years?
As a former journalist at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, it feels personal to watch my former colleagues not only have to go on strike in October of 2022, but engage in the longest strike ever in the history of the nation. And, unfortunately, there’s no end in sight.
While an administrative law judge has ruled that the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette failed to bargain in good faith and the National Labor Relations Board issued an injunction request to resume bargaining that could end the strike, the owners of the Post Gazette have appealed that move.
To make things even messier, with the incoming Trump administration more than hostile to unions in general…what will happen to the NLRB? And how could this impact the ongoing strike? President Joe Biden prided himself on being the “most pro union president,” but the GOP has been working to weaken unions, and the NLRB, for years. There’s no reason to think Trump wouldn’t continue that strategy to favor employers and corporations over workers and unions.
And we have to remember that Elon Musk, the richest man in the world who has been one of Trump’s largest campaign donors during the election, could add fuel to the fire and encourage Trump to turn his back on the NLRB all together.
If this happens, and the agency is neglected and employers aren’t prosecuted, we not only would see the union members on strike at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette suffer further, but unions seeking to organize and hold employers accountable across the country could be dealt fatal blows, as well.
So what can be done? Support union organizations in your community. Read the strike publication, the Pittsburgh Union Progress, instead of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette while the strike is ongoing to show support for the striking workers. Vote for representatives that support unions and want to strengthen them. When we stand together in our collective power and demand fair wages and working conditions, we win.
And that my friends, is a fact.
Harrisburg, PA