EXCLUSIVE: The editorial staff at Slate Media has ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with the WGA East that, for the first time, establishes guardrails around the use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom.
The guild revealed Wednesday that the 55-member bargaining unit had “unanimously” approved the latest three-year contract, which marks the third since the staff unionized in 2018.
Among the notable provisions, the deal introduces a new article establishing both protections against the implementation of AI, as well as guidelines for the development of a public-facing editorial policy on its use.
Company management will be required to provide advance notice and details before the introduction of any generative AI tool in an editorial capacity, and members “have the ability to remove their byline from any AI-related editorial asks that they feel would compromise editorial integrity,” the WGA East says. Additionally, the company must work directly in consultation with the union to develop editorial guidelines and review processes for the use of AI in an editorial context.
From a job security perspective, any unit member whose position is materially affected by the introduction of editorial generative AI will receive an additional three weeks of severance and an additional month of insurance.
Other contract highlights include:
Guaranteed raises for unit members in 2026
Increase in lowest minimum salary from $58,000 to $66,000
Minimum severance tripled from two to six weeks;
Bereavement leave doubled from five to ten days;
Parental leave increased from 13 to 16 weeks;
Out-of-title pay improvement;
Covered hostile environment training + anti-doxxing tools;
Guaranteed severance and COBRA for separation from Company due to editorial differences
“The Slate Union is proud to ratify a new contract with management,” the unit members said in a joint statement Wednesday. “We’re thrilled to have secured better parental leave and severance, raised salary minimums and annual increases, added new positions to the unit, and introduced a brand new A.I. article. This contact improves the livelihoods of all our members, and we hope it helps set even better standards for all of those in our industry.”
In addition to Slate, the WGA East’s Online Media Sector includes the Bustle Digital Group, Civic News Group, Committee to Protect Journalists, Fast Company & Inc., Financial Times Specialists, Future PLC, Gizmodo Media USA, Jalopnik at Static Media, Hearst Magazines, HuffPost Inc., Jewish Currents, NowThis, Onion Inc., Salon, Talking Points Memo, The Intercept, The Root, Vox Media and VICE.
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