• More than 650 tech workers at The New York Times have formed a union called the Tech Times Guild.
• The union said workers are facing “unexplained termination and opaque promotion processes.”
• It’s organizing the formation with the NewsGuild union and awaiting recognition from the Times.
• See more stories on Insider’s business page.

Tech workers at The New York Times on Tuesday announced they have formed a union and asked for recognition from the publication. 

The union, called the Tech Times Guild, represents more than 650 employees who work for the digital side of the company in roles such as software engineers, data analysts and product managers.

The Tech Times Guild said in a statement on Twitter that it’s organizing its formation with the NewsGuild of New York — an editorial union of more than 3,000 media workers at the Times, The Daily Beast, The Nation, and other media outlets.

Tech workers weren’t included in the NewsGuild because they weren’t allowed to join. The Tech Times Guild is looking to become a separate bargaining unit from the NewsGuild. It would communicate with the Times management independently.

“As of now, we face a number of challenges, including sudden or unexplained termination, opaque promotion processes, unpaid overtime, and underinvestment in diverse representation,” the Tech Times Guild tweeted.

“Without a union, we lack the data or bargaining rights to address these issues,” it said, adding that the tech workers will be able to build digital products and platforms in a company, which is more “equitable, healthy and just.”

Insider has reached out to The New York Times for comment.

“At The New York Times, we have a long history of positive and productive relationships with unions, and we respect the right of all employees to decide whether or not joining a union is right for them,” a spokeswoman from The New York Times Company said in a statement, per a Times report.

“We will take time to review this request and discuss it soon with representatives of the NewsGuild,” she said, adding that the company wants to “make sure all voices are heard.”

The forming of the Tech Times Guild comes three months after more than 200 Google employees formed a union to promote inclusivity, transparency, and ensure the company acts ethically. At Amazon, there was a historic push to form the company’s first union in the US last month but workers voted against it on April 9th.