“For me, the difference between a non-union workplace community and a unionized one was night and day when I worked at Thrillist. It was and remains a lifestyle journalism brand obsessed with the idea of “having fun,” but when I started, morale was often low and management rarely made real commitments to build relationships across teams, beyond corporate events. Unionizing flipped that dynamic on its head. Almost immediately after we started organizing, members on separate teams within our bargaining unit quickly forged deeper connections that became generative, with editorial goals that felt mutually beneficial. All the corporate team-building exercises in the world couldn’t match the solidarity our union found together and spun into award-winning work.”

“Apart from the contract gains and protections that come with unionization, the relationships and internal community that has come out of this process has been and continues to be extremely rewarding and reassuring to all of us. I believe people at CPJ now feel more empowered and committed to be concerned with one another’s welfare, in a work context, but also on a more human level. It’s not just a sense of top level down concern, but there’s a real sense of connection and care horizontally, across teams and departments, among unit members.”