Journalists at Wisconsin Watch ratify first union contract
MILWAUKEE – Wisconsin Watch journalists, represented by Wisconsin Watch Union and Milwaukee NewsGuild Local 34051, have secured their first union contract, which includes meaningful gains in wages, job security and workplace protections.
Wisconsin Watch Union members last week voted unanimously to approve the contract.
After more than a year of bargaining, Wisconsin Watch Union members — based in both Milwaukee and Madison — have a contract with several key wins:
- Increased wages: Minimum salary guarantees and annual cost-of-living increases.
- Expanded job security: “Just cause” protections, layoff restrictions and eight weeks of severance pay with extended benefits.
- Workplace protections: Remote work guarantee with protected flexible schedules.
- Leave assurances: Meaningful medical leave, parental leave, caregiver leave and bereavement leave, among others.
Wisconsin Watch’s newsroom is part of a growing number of journalists at nonprofit newsrooms across the country choosing to unionize to win rights like these, such as ProPublica, Spotlight PA, Texas Tribune, The Marshall Project and more.
“This union has already provided me with tangible and obvious benefits, but one thing I didn’t anticipate is how much closer I would feel to my coworkers,” said Devin Blake, Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service criminal justice reporter and a bargaining committee member. “I have such a clearer sense of what matters to their lives and work.”
“I am proud of the contract Wisconsin Watch Union has won,” said Wisconsin Watch statehouse reporter Jack Kelly, who served on the union’s bargaining committee. “This deal will allow reporters in our newsrooms to continue to focus on serving their communities knowing they have greater security and stability.”
The three-year agreement was signed Friday, March 28, 2025.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
