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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · 9d

...only when pressed returned to the table, with no responses to our proposals.

This is not what good faith negotiations look like. We demand Sightline Media Group respond to our significant compromises by Friday, or we will escalate our actions further. 3/3

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · 9d

We met Monday morning with the intent to have collaborative discussions on our modest pay raise and 401k proposals (which would cost just $64,000) and move bargaining forward.

Unfortunately, after a short brief meeting, management chose to caucus for several hours and… 2/3

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · 9d

On Monday our union came to the table ready to bargain with management, six weeks after they last gave us a meeting. We sent them a counterproposal last week in which we compromised considerably on our very reasonable demands, expecting them to find some middle ground with us. 1/3

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Sep 4

Defense News and Military Times journalists past and present came together yesterday to stand up for our union and fight for a fair contract! We made sure people at these events heard us and what we want.

Thanks so so much to everyone who helped out and provided moral support to us. #UnionStrong

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Reposted by Sightline Media Union

Washington-Baltimore News Guild @wbng.org · Sep 4

At the company’s Defense News Conference, the journalists of
@defensenews.bsky.social and @militarytimes.bsky.social stood up for their rights.

📸 Sightline Guild members wore red, leafleted and spoke out — showing the industry that it’s time for management to stop union busting & bargain fairly!

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Reposted by Sightline Media Union

Kelsey Atherton @atherton.bsky.social · Sep 3

Solidarity for my former colleagues, some of the absolute best in a business that isn't so much dying as being actively killed

Stephen Losey @stephenlosey.bsky.social · Sep 3

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: Members of the
@sightlineunion.bsky.social are wearing red and leafleting outside the #DNconf this morning to tell Sightline Media to STOP its union busting and give us a fair contract!

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Reposted by Sightline Media Union

Stephen Losey @stephenlosey.bsky.social · Sep 3

Union leadership — myself, @jenjudson.bsky.social and @calbon.bsky.social — showing our colors at #DNconf to advocate for a fair contract for our members.

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Reposted by Sightline Media Union

Stephen Losey @stephenlosey.bsky.social · Sep 3

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: Members of the
@sightlineunion.bsky.social are wearing red and leafleting outside the #DNconf this morning to tell Sightline Media to STOP its union busting and give us a fair contract!

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Aug 26

...until we win the fair treatment, respect, and contract we deserve.

Together, we are strong. Together, we will win.

— Sightline Media Union

Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Aug 26

...and bring real movement on these core issues. We also demand another negotiation date before the already-planned Sept. 29 session.

If they refuse, we will show our unity and frustration by wearing red on September 3, a visible reminder that we will not stop ...

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Aug 26

We are the heartbeat of this company. Our work sustains it, and our voices must be respected at the bargaining table. Management cannot continue to stall while we shoulder the burden.

We demand management return to negotiations before the Defense News Conference on Sept. 3 ...

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Aug 26

❌ No consistent bargaining sessions: The company has only come to the table 2X over the past 3 months. CEO Michael Reinstein refuses to meet with us directly.

❌ No fair compensation for the 7 employees they laid off in a retaliatory action last year right after we unionized.

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Aug 26

❌ No plan to address pay disparities and stagnant wages persisting across the workforce.

❌ No 401(k) match, leaving us behind industry standards.

❌ No meaningful parental leave, far below what the market provides: The company has not moved beyond an inadequate one month offer of paid leave. ...

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Aug 26

...to drag its feet on reaching a fair first contract. Here’s where we stand:

❌ No progress on fair pay and regular raises to keep pace with the cost of living: The company has not moved beyond its offer of an insulting 1.25% pay raise for employees. ...

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Aug 26

SIGHTLINE MEDIA UNION UPDATE: ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

We are approaching 1 year at the bargaining table & management has shown little to no real movement on the issues that matter most to us. While we continue to show up every day & keep this company running, management continues... 🧵

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Reposted by Sightline Media Union

Casey Laughman @caseylaughman.bsky.social · Jul 21

I am proud to be part of the Sightline Media Union, and I appreciate the work the negotiating committee is doing to get us a fair contract.

Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Jul 21

Two weeks ago, we sent our CEO Michael Reinstein this letter asking him to come to the table to negotiate directly with us. We received no response, so are releasing it publicly. We renew our call for direct negotiations with our CEO to produce a fair and equitable contract. 1/2

A letter from the Sightline Media Union to Michael Reinstein: Chairman, Regent LP

We are writing today to respectfully ask for your help resolving the gridlock that we fear is endangering the survival of Sightline Media Group and its publications.

We know you are someone who cares deeply for journalism, and the military community these publications serve. We agree that it is an honor and a privilege to support service members and their families by providing truthful, timely and trailblazing news, in a way that both informs and entertains.

But today, we are increasingly alarmed by the situation that now exists at Sightline Media Group, and are worried that unless things change soon, the already-understaffed publications will continue to bleed talent that goes unreplaced. We have lost multiple vital staff members over the last year, and if this continues, we may reach a point of no return that places the papers’ very existence in jeopardy.

The heart of the issue is the unresolved contract negotiations, which have left in limbo efforts to bring on replacement reporters and severely damaged morale in the workplace. Reporters do not know what the future will hold, and as a result several vital employees have turned in their resignation notices.

We have been negotiating for nine months now, and at the table, we have clearly communicated the issues we hope to improve so we can continue creating this important journalism.

However, the company’s negotiating team has time and again rejected the vast majority of our substantive proposals. Often, they counter with nothing more than what the company already offers, or propose improvements that are so minuscule they do not come close to addressing the longstanding problems in our workplace.

Most recently, negotiators rejected our proposal to set up a merit-based pay system that would provide employees incentives to produce excellent work. In its place, negotiators offered a 1% raise, and then upped the proposal to a mere 1.25% — something that would not even keep up with inflation. This comes on the heels of the mass layoffs the company instituted exactly a year ago right after our unanimous vote to unionize. The slow, incremental pace of negotiations also means that one year later, those seven employees have not yet received severance packages despite their years of dedicated service to Sightline Media Group.

These — and other similar rejections — sends a message to experienced, knowledgeable and dedicated employees that we are not valued and not wanted. That is a hard message to receive, and if that is all the company is prepared to offer, that will prompt even more of our reporters to seek employment elsewhere.

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Jul 21

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Multiple times, those negotiating on your behalf have explicitly told your employees, if you do not like the way we are running things, you can leave. And they have disparaged the intelligence and professionalism of the employees’ negotiators. This is not creating a constructive dynamic, and is counterproductive when our goals are to create a better, more cooperative workplace.

We fear that you may not be well-served and accurately informed by your negotiators as to the state of the company here, the very real risk that the newsroom may collapse, and what we are asking for as part of this contract.

We ask for you to meet directly with us at the bargaining table to have a frank, open and constructive discussion about how we can come to a compromise on a contract that addresses all of our needs. Since the 1940s, these papers have been the gold standard of defense journalism, and still produce hard-hitting journalism that wins multiple awards. We look forward to engaging with you, and working together to ensure they produce the best military journalism in the world for the next 80 years, and beyond.

We would appreciate your response by Friday, July 18, so we can properly prepare for our already-scheduled August 15 negotiation session.

Signed,
Negotiating committee, Sightline Media Union
Stephen Losey
Jen Judson
Courtney Albon
Bryant Harris

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Jul 21

Two weeks ago, we sent our CEO Michael Reinstein this letter asking him to come to the table to negotiate directly with us. We received no response, so are releasing it publicly. We renew our call for direct negotiations with our CEO to produce a fair and equitable contract. 1/2

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Jul 14

Saturday marked one year since Sightline Media Group unjustly laid off 9 reporters and editors, including 7 union members. We in the Sightline Media Union continue to support our brothers & sisters, and still fight to challenge their layoffs and get them the fair treatment they deserve. #solidarity

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Sightline Media Union @sightlineunion.bsky.social · Mar 7

Today we filed the latest unfair labor practice charge against Sightline Media Group, protesting their full-time in-office mandate. Please share this and tell @mortgreenberg.bsky.social, Kelly Facer and Regent to rescind this order and bargain with @sightlineunion.bsky.social in good faith.

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