New York Times’s Wirecutter Staff Seeks Donations Ahead of Black Friday Strike

(Bloomberg) -- Journalists at the New York Times Co.’s Wirecutter product-review site are raising money to replace lost income as they prepare to strike during the busy Black Friday shopping day after Thanksgiving.

“This fund will go toward the lost income we will incur through this strike, which our members rely on to pay their bills, travel home for the holidays and generally support themselves,” according to a GoFundMe page supporting the workers. 

The group had raised more than $22,000 by Wednesday morning, with a goal of $25,000. 

Wirecutter employees plan to strike from Thanksgiving through Nov. 29, a big day for online shopping that’s known as Cyber Monday. Wirecutter recommends products and generates revenue in part by getting a cut of sales when readers buy products through affiliate links.

Employees are protesting what they say is the company’s refusal to agree to an initial collective bargaining agreement with significant guaranteed wage increases. They have said the Times is offering across-the-board raises of only 0.5% a year, with additional pay subject to management’s discretion about who deserves it.

A Times spokesperson said earlier this month its compensation proposal was more generous than the union had described and that it would continue to work toward an agreement.

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