Signal Ohio's Newsrooms Are Unionizing

Editor-in-Chief Lila Mills says Signal has to be relevant in a daily way to establish an audience and influence Credit: Signal Cleveland

Reporters at Signal Ohio’s three newsrooms today announced their union drive.

The three-year old nonprofit journalism outfit, funded by millions of dollars from local and national foundations and organizations, operates locally in Cleveland and Akron with a statehouse bureau in Columbus. Plans have already been announced to open a fourth newsroom in Cincinnati.

All 14 full-time reporters at the organization are backing a union drive, according to a release, in an effort to keep reporting strong. Signal’s newsrooms in Cleveland and Akron cover community-driven topics, write explainers on civic life, and report on local government, health and labor. Signal’s statewide coverage includes reporting on the Statehouse and higher education. It also operates local Documenter programs, where residents are paid to cover regular governmental meetings.

Officially dubbed the Signal Ohio News Workers Guild, the group is joining the Northeast Ohio NewsGuild, Local 34001 of Communications Workers of America. If solidified, the union will also join four other Northeast Ohio newsrooms at Local 1, which includes the Canton Repository.

In a statement to press, the union-eligible—about 80 percent of the company—framed the push as a natural part of growing up as a new media outlet. Signal Ohio has roughly 35 employees as of this month, with plans to expand to 50.

“We care deeply about the communities we serve and the journalism we produce,” those employees said in a statement. “Many of us are founding members of our newsrooms, the first of which launched nearly three years ago, and all of us are committed to seeing them succeed.”

The members are asking for Signal Ohio to voluntarily recognize the union and begin negotiating on a contract.

“My role has led me to telling the stories of the working class citizens who are the heartbeat of the city,” Najee Hall, Signal Cleveland’s Community Reporter, said in a release. “Supporting unions means supporting the rights of people to stand together, negotiate fairly and build a future rooted in mutual respect and shared success.”