WGAE-Scientific American Union Statement on Springer Nature’s Sale and Layoffs

The following is a statement from Writers Guild of America East members at Scientific American on today’s decision to sell Springer Nature and lay off staff:

“Earlier today in an all-staff meeting we were informed that Scientific American was being sold to LabX Media Group. We are shocked by this news, which comes just three days before the NLRB will count our votes on unionizing—a vote we know we won by an overwhelming majority. We are also deeply saddened by the news that LabX Media Group wants to say goodbye to 15 of our hard-working colleagues, including 12 unit members—nearly one-third of our unit and 60% of our organizing committee.  Everyone played a role in the success of the publication.

We should call this action what it is – blatant union-busting. But there’s worse: we also have reason to believe that the sale was motivated by fear within Springer Nature that our attempts to doggedly report on the crisis facing science in America today would lead to repercussions from the Trump administration. On multiple occasions the company has sought to quash or tone down political or sensitive stories that were journalistically sound.

We are calling on our new owners to immediately recognize our unit and meet us at the bargaining table to work together to steer a sustainable future of Scientific American–including, but going far beyond, a commitment to respecting our editorial independence.  We have already developed a number of proposals for making our journalism more profitable that we look forward to discussing in these negotiations.

No matter who owns this storied science magazine, we are the powerhouse of this cell. We will not be intimidated or back down.

In solidarity,

The Scientific American Union”

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.