NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 06: Anna Wintour attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
OAN’s Abril Elfi
5:34 PM – Monday, May 6, 2024
The Condé Nast union has reached a labor agreement with the publisher’s management just hours before the Met Gala.
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The Condé Nast union announced on Monday that it had reached a tentative labor agreement with the publisher’s management hours before the Met Gala, which is chaired by Anna Wintour, the company’s global chief content officer and editorial director.
After months of contentious negotiations that failed to produce the first labor contract for workers at the New York media company, an agreement was reached that still needs to be ratified by union members. On Monday night, union members were prepared to demonstrate against the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
“On behalf of the management bargaining committee and leaders throughout the business, we are pleased to come to tentatively agreed terms on a contract with the union,” Condé Nast Chief People Officer Stan Duncan said in a statement. “We are happy to have a contract that reflects and supports our core values: our content and journalism; our commitment to diversity and professional development; our industry-leading hiring practices; and our competitive wages and benefits.”
The union includes staffers at publications such as GQ, Allure, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Glamour, Bon Appétit, Epicurious, Self, Teen Vogue, Condé Nast Traveller, Ars Technica, Wired, Pitchfork, and Architectural Digest, as well as workers in audience development, commerce, and video.
The Costume Institute Benefit, also known as the Met Gala, is held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the first Monday in May. Celebrities from the entertainment, design, sports, and other industries come together for this event, which supports the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s fashion-related exhibitions and acquisitions.
Condé Nast’s union stated on X (Twitter) that the new contract will guarantee a minimum starting salary of $61,50 and it will end a two-tier wage system that led to lower pay for long-term freelancers. Additionally, it will offer two additional weeks of family leave, among other benefits.
They stated that the workers will see a combined wage increase of $3.3 million.
“Our persistent fight for our rights and for the best win possible is why we have this tentative agreement,” the union said.
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