E tū members at media company Stuff are striking on Thursday afternoon.
They are protesting in response to what they say are low pay offers and attempts to divide the workforce.
From 3pm until 5pm, staff are walking off the job to picket outside newsrooms in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, and Christchurch.
Auckland-based journalist and E tū delegate Sapeer Mayron said the strike was about years of being undervalued.
Staff at Stuff are striking over low pay offers and what they say are attempts to divide the workforce. Photo: Marika Khabazi
"Stuff has shown its employees over and over again that it thinks we are replaceable and not worth investing in with decent wages and working conditions. And yet we stay, because we believe in the work and care about the communities we report in.
"But after years of miserly increases, with our pay going backwards in real terms - some years with no increases at all - we simply can't afford to keep working here unless Stuff pays us properly. That means more than CPI, to catch up on all those years of falling behind.
"Going on strike today comes after months of asking this company to live up to its reputation in Aotearoa's eyes, and in the eyes of its staff, each of whom become more disillusioned every day as our leaders deny us the decent wages and conditions we deserve."
The union says the pay rise that has been offered to staff is insulting. Photo: Marika Khabazi
Wellington-based journalist and E tū delegate Tom Hunt said the company seemed to be showing contempt for staff.
"Stuff journalists have taken hit after hit to get Sinead Boucher's company through hard times. We accepted no increases during Covid and effectively nothing last year, because we believed the company when it told us times were tough.
"To now be offered an insulting pay rise, and to see the company trying to split us into different collective agreements, is disgraceful. It shows they plan to keep screwing us for years to come.
"This is from a company that boasts about being a wonderful corporate citizen, all while our owner takes a secret payday from selling a share of the business to Trade Me. The hypocrisy is staggering."
Sinead Boucher. Photo: RNZ/Nick Monro
A Stuff spokesperson rejected their claims.
"While we do not comment on our ongoing negotiations with E tū due to good faith and confidentiality commitments, we have plans in place to ensure our audiences and commercial partners remain unaffected," they said.
"The statement from E tū contains a number of deliberate untruths. Since Covid, we have given our staff pay rises every year which are in line with the market, there has been no 'secret payday' and no one has been 'screwed'. It is disappointing to see two journalists mischaracterise the issues in this manner."
It is understood staff are also unhappy about the company's plans to split their collective agreement into two, which they feel would reduce their bargaining power.
The company separated into two different entities last year.
Stuff Digital administers stuff.co.nz, Neighbourly and its audio and video divisions.
Newspaper brands and their own websites like The Post, The Press and The Waikato Times are run by Masthead Publishing.
Trade Me recently took a 50 percent stake in Stuff Digital.
Stuff staff also went on strike in 2022 over their pay negotiations.
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