(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) The staff of NBC and MSNBC news are threatening to host a performative walkout as a reaction to the recent rash of layoffs.
The network’s union, known as The NBC Guild, is staging the walkout on Thursday in protest of the layoffs. An estimated 300 employees will be participating, according to the Daily Caller.
“In three years of bargaining our first contract, NBC News has repeatedly broken the law — cutting union salaries and conducting layoffs behind closed doors, without bargaining,” the guild posted in a flyer on Twitter. “But the newsroom doesn’t run without us.”
And everyone is welcome to join us for a solidarity rally Thursday outside 30 Rock (N side of 49th St. b/w 5th and 6th Ave) at 11 AM ET where we’ll be hearing about the union fight from workers across NBC.
Invite a friend, bring your union colleague and make some noise with us! pic.twitter.com/7CW0ihWzi7
— NBC Guild (@nbcnewsguild) February 8, 2023
The Guild repeatedly appealed to federal labor laws and the company’s refusal to “bargain” with the union employees.
“NBC News management has repeatedly violated federal labor law and refused to bargain with its unionized employees, most recently by laying off seven union journalists during contract negotiations and stripping a separate team of its union protections,” the guild said in a statement. “These hostile unilateral actions come on the heels of a federal court ordering NBC to repay union journalists for hundreds of thousands in stolen wages from 2020.”
Major news outlets, entertainment companies and tech giants across the country are also facing similar backlash over their sudden layoffs.
The Washington Post unexpectedly laid off 20 journalists, and received similar treatment from their union, The Washington Post Guild.
“We believe any job eliminations right now—at a time of continued growth and expansion—are unacceptable,” the guild wrote in a message to its members.
Conservative audiences had a hard time feeling bad for the journalists who constantly attack them as vicious “MAGA Republicans” and tyrannical insurrectionists.
“I wish you all felt about reporting the truth on national television as you do about this!” user CarmenIvy posted. “You sure would be getting tons more support if NBC/MSNBC would #JustTellTheTruth.”
“Don’t just walk out, leave!” another user said. “You are the fountain of fake news!”
