WGA East Members at Lemonada Media Ratify First Union Contract

NEW YORK, NY (September 8, 2025) – Writers Guild of America East (WGAE) members at Lemonada Media and management reached a deal on their first three-year collective bargaining agreement. The contract was unanimously ratified by the 15-member bargaining unit who work as producers and engineers at Lemonada Media. 

Lemonada produces such podcasts as “Confessions of a Female Founder with Meghan,” “Alive with Steve Burns,” “The Sarah Silverman Podcast,” “Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus,” “Fail Better with David Duchovny,” “My So-Called Midlife with Reshma Saujani,” and “No One is Coming to Save Us,” among others.

Contract highlights include: 

• Minimum salary of $70,000 for the most junior role, with Producer salaries starting at $87,000;
• Guaranteed 2% annual pay increase in Year 1 and 3% annual pay increases in Years 2 and 3; 
• Minimum 12 weeks of severance (after 6 months of service);
• Just Cause;
• Fair PTO for part-time employees;
• Codified 40 hour workweek and comp time;
• Four-week paid sabbatical for employees who have worked at Lemonada for at least five years. 

The Lemonada Media Union said, “We’re thrilled to have reached a first collective bargaining agreement that advances Lemonada Media towards a mutual goal of building a stable and equitable workplace. We want to celebrate our Union colleagues for their solidarity and full participation in the organizing process. We also want to thank Lemonada’s Management for working with the Union on many issues.

This is a hard time for our industry. Our colleagues at Lemonada and beyond are making wonderful podcasts that entertain, tell great stories, and even make life suck less – all while many large companies carry out layoffs and disregard the people  who built this medium by supporting each other and connecting with listeners. We are proud to still be making strong and meaningful work in this environment. As a Union shop represented by the WGAE, we look forward to many fruitful years of collaboration with our colleagues, our hosts, and Lemonada’s founders, Stephanie Wittels Wachs and Jessica Cordova Kramer.”

In addition to Lemonada Media, the WGAE includes podcast production companies Crooked Media, the iHeart Podcast Network, Pineapple Street Studios, Pushkin Industries, The Ringer and Spotify Studios.

ABOUT THE WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA EAST

The Writers Guild of America East, AFL-CIO, is a labor union of more than 7,500 members working in film, television, news, podcasts and online media. 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.