Samantha Bee, Chris Gethard, John Oliver and 150 Comedy/Variety Writers Stand In Solidarity with Onion Inc.
Samantha Bee, Chris Gethard, John Oliver and 150 Comedy/Variety Writers Stand In Solidarity with Onion Inc.
NEW YORK, NY (APRIL 6, 2018) – John Oliver, Samantha Bee, Chris Gethard, Jon Glasser, Robert Carlock and The Onion’s former editor Joe Randazzo are among the over 150 comedy/variety television writers who are publicly supporting Onion Inc. unionizing with the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE).
Last week, the editorial and video staff at Onion Inc., which operates the popular satire, culture and humor sites The Onion, A/V Club and Clickhole, announced that over 90% of its staff had voted through a card check to unionize with the WGAE. Management has yet to voluntarily recognize the Guild as the staff’s collective bargaining representative.
The solidarity statement reads, “We are proud to welcome the creative staff of Onion, Inc. to the Writers Guild of America, East. Amid rapid media and political changes, media professionals continue to stand together to uphold and improve working conditions and freedom of creative expression. Our work is collaborative and standing together as union members is a logical expression of that collaboration. As comedy and entertainment writers, we applaud Onion Inc.’s inclusionary vision—with The Onion, ClickHole, The A.V. Club, Onion Labs, and the essential contributions of Onion Inc.’s video and art departments—coming together to build a union. We’re thrilled to stand with our colleagues.”
You can see the full list of people who signed the solidarity letter here.
Lowell Peterson, Executive Director of the Writers Guild of America, East, said, “Solidarity is a fundamental part of our union’s strength. Our members collaborate in their work and in their union, and we are proud that the editorial and production employees at Onion, Inc. will become part of this community of creative professionals.”
In addition to Onion Inc., the WGAE represents digital-first editorial and video staffs at Gizmodo Media Group, Vox Media, HuffPost, VICE, The Intercept, ThinkProgress, MTV News, Thrillist and Salon.
ABOUT WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA, EAST
The Writers Guild of America, East, AFL-CIO (WGAE) is a labor union representing writers in motion pictures, television, cable, digital media and broadcast news. The Guild negotiates and administers contracts that protect the creative and economic rights of its members; conducts programs, seminars and events on issues of interest to writers; and presents writers’ views to various bodies of government. For more information on the Writers Guild of America, East, visit wgaeast.org.
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