Natasha Roy
@natasharoy.bsky.social
730 followers 280 following 81 posts
editor @rewirenewsgroup.com she/her
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Reposted by Natasha Roy
cameronoakes.bsky.social
I am so proud of the work my colleagues and I do at Rewire.
But by our calculations, management gave themselves $942,817.55 for their 7 salaries, and allotted $464,373.70 for our union's 6.

We are so disappointed by this and we want more equitable pay. Details on that below ⬇️
rngunion.bsky.social
Since we last shared an update on bargaining, we’ve received additional information about management salaries at Rewire.

The TLDR: The pay discrepancy between management and union members is deeply unsettling.
natasharoy.bsky.social
Our union members are proud of the work we do at Rewire, but we’re incredibly disappointed and jarred by the vast pay disparity between management and the unit.

By our calculations, mgmt gave themselves $942,817.55 for their 7 salaries, and allotted $464,373.70 for our 6. We deserve equitable pay.
rngunion.bsky.social
Since we last shared an update on bargaining, we’ve received additional information about management salaries at Rewire.

The TLDR: The pay discrepancy between management and union members is deeply unsettling.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
Since we last shared an update on bargaining, we’ve received additional information about management salaries at Rewire.

The TLDR: The pay discrepancy between management and union members is deeply unsettling.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
slooterman.bsky.social
I think part of why so many people who leave traditional media for Substack descend into Poster’s Madness is because everyone really, really needs editors to tell us “no” sometimes.
olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social
repost this if an editor has ever saved you from yourself
blipstress.bsky.social
An actual hot take: Too many authors are afraid of editors watering down their voice or whatever and not afraid enough of editors letting you put any old slop on the page.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
We want to—and do—work hard. We care about Rewire & its mission. But it’s clear to us that management doesn’t see dedication to the cause as enough compensation for themselves.

We do not need to make the same salaries as management. But we do need to live decently, and we need to be paid equitably.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
“I have confidence in our leadership’s vision and believe together we can create an environment that prioritizes fair compensation for all staff members. This change presents a crucial opportunity to align our values with our actions and foster a culture of collaboration and respect.”
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
“Without trust & transparency b/w the union & mgmt, how can we expect readers to find that in our coverage? By not paying unit members their worth & not staffing the newsroom adequately, we’re failing in our mission. I hope we can come together to reach resolution & align with our org values.”
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
“I was told during my annual review, 3 months into our executive director’s tenure, that while I deserved a raise, there was no budget for one. We now know that a member of management received a $24,000 raise this year. It’s inequitable and unethical.”
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
...We have 7 managers for 6 employees. When management is out the wheel keeps turning. When a unit member is out, the quality of work decreases, projects are dropped, and deadlines are missed even with clear handoff documents.” (2/2)
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
“I’m disappointed with the income disparity and the routine lack of integrity in management. We claim a culture we do not abide by. Management sidelines and gaslights employees, and refuses to take accountability for poor practices/systems... (1/2)
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
“I feel like I’m doing work that's important to the org as a whole, but my salary doesn't reflect that. A higher salary would mean I could focus fully on this job instead of piecing together multiple incomes & it would give me the stability to plan for my future without constant financial stress.”
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
“I’ve been working a second job. Not for extra spending money, not for fun: but to cover the costs of my gender-affirming care. It’s exhausting. And obviously, I’m doing it because this care is necessary for me to live fully as myself in the type of landscape we live in today, as a queer person.”
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
Here’s more from our members on why the pay disparity between unit members and management is such a problem:
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
Why does this matter?

Unit members are an essential part of newsroom functioning. We make sure RNG’s content is fair, accurate, transparent and accessible to our audiences. And our unit is staffed with queer folks and people of color—communities historically underpaid and underrepresented in media.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
So we’re asking for a minimum unit member salary of $90,000. And we’re asking management to forgo COLA for the remainder of the three-year contract. This will bring our members’ salaries closer to moderate income levels in the cities where we live.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
Our pay is well below industry averages and median incomes in the areas we live and work.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
By our math, one member of management also appears to have been given a $24,000 raise in the last year. Meanwhile, multiple members of the unit have been told there is no budget for pay increases.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
The total management salary budget for 7 people is $942,817.55, while the unit salary budget for 6 people is $464,373.70.

The average management salary is $134,688.22. Meanwhile the unit salary averages to $77,395.62. It’s only $71,269.67 without the highest-paid unit member, who makes six figures.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
rngunion.bsky.social
Currently there are seven members of management and six unit members at RNG. But management salaries make up 67% of the salary budget (excluding one employee who is neither a member of management nor the unit). Meanwhile, RNG unit members’ salaries account for only 33%.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
susanrinkunas.com
“Four months ago, in Skrmetti, the Court used purported medical uncertainty to give Tennessee more flexibility to discriminate. Today, Alito used purported medical uncertainty to give Colorado less flexibility to protect.”
audrelawdamercy.bsky.social
I've written my analysis of today's grim Supreme Court oral argument in the conversion therapy case:

As far as the Court's concerned, imaginary medical uncertainty gives states the authority to hurt queer kids, and takes away states' authority to protect them

ballsandstrikes.org/scotus/chile...
The Conservative Justices Don't Trust Any Science That Supports LGBTQ Kids
States that want to facilitate discrimination against LGBTQ people have the Court's blessing. States that want to protect LGBTQ people from discrimination do not.
ballsandstrikes.org
Reposted by Natasha Roy
darrigomelanie.bsky.social
I feel like this photo of masked, armed men pepper spraying a pastor protecting his community is going to be a defining picture of this moment in America for a long, long time.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
jackjenkins.me
Gonna be thinking about this lede for a minute.
(RNS) — Last month, the Rev. David Black stood in front of a Chicago-area U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility and spread his arms wide. Adorned in all black and wearing a clerical collar, the pastor looked up at a group of masked, heavily armed ICE agents on the roof and began to pray.

“I invited them to repentance,” Black, a minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), said in an interview. “I basically offered an altar call. I invited them to come and receive that salvation, and be part of the kingdom that is coming.”

But when Black began to lower his arms a few seconds later, the agents responded to his spiritual plea by firing pepper balls, or chemical agents that cause eye irritation and respiratory distress, video footage shows. One struck Black in the head, exploding into a puff of white pepper smoke and forcing him to his knees. Fellow demonstrators rushed to his aid, and as the pastor rubbed his face in pain, the agents continued to fire.

“We could hear them laughing,” Black said.
Reposted by Natasha Roy
shefali.bsky.social
“My biggest fear is going to the hospital."

Pregnant immigrants are terrified ICE will show up outside the doctors' office or at the hospital. So they're skipping the care necessary to ensure a healthy birth.

Some experience dangerous complications as a result.

19thnews.org/2025/10/preg...
ICE fears put pregnant immigrants and their babies at risk
Fear of deportation is deterring people without permanent legal status from critical care. Doctors are worried for their health — and the health of their pregnancies.
19thnews.org
Reposted by Natasha Roy
anjalienjeti.bsky.social
My god.

“Watson said she saw agents dragging residents, including kids, out of the building without any clothes on and into U-Haul vans. Kids were separated from their mothers…’It was heartbreaking to watch…seeing kids coming out buck naked and taken from their mothers, it was horrible.’”
Massive immigration raid on Chicago apartment building leaves residents reeling: 'I feel defeated'
The Department of Homeland Security said federal agents with Border Patrol, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested 37 people in the raid.
chicago.suntimes.com
Reposted by Natasha Roy
kyledcheney.bsky.social
JUST IN: A U.S. citizen from Alabama who has been detained twice by ICE while working at a construction site, has filed a class action suit claiming ICE's broad warrantless arrest powers violate the constitution. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...