Unions representing Gimlet Media and The Ringer employees have announced that they have ratified their first employment contracts with parent company Spotify, the New York Times reported. The contracts, which have been negotiated since the first union was formed in 2019, include a higher minimum base salary for union members, annual salary increases of at least 2%, and provisions to improve recruitment diversity and limit the expanded use of unskilled contractors. Each agreement has a term of three years. Read more about the ratified contracts on WGA-East.
The contracts, which were concluded during the negotiating rounds in mid-March, do not contain provisions for writers and podcasters to retain the rights to work that arose while working in the respective companies, which was previously touted as a priority for the unions. “We started this process with the aim of improving working conditions and compensation in the company, especially for our worst-paid members,” Ringer Union wrote in a statement. “We are very pleased to have achieved this goal with this contract.”
Pitchfork has approached Spotify representatives for comment.
