Union journalists and employees at The Texas Tribune secured protections against layoffs due to use of artificial intelligence, pay raises and other provisions in their first-ever contract, ratified this week.

Under the three-year contract, the non-profit newsroom’s management committed to not laying off union journalists in order to replace their work with AI, and to paying an extra eight weeks of severance pay to non-journalist union members if they are laid off due to AI implementation, the guild said in a social media post announcing the contract Thursday. The move comes as AI has become a point of tension industry-wide as media organizations begin experimenting with the potentially disruptive technology.  

More than 54 staff members represented by the Texas Tribune Guild, which includes reporters, photographers, editors and non-editorial employees, will also receive a pay raise over the course of the contract, the guild said. Most union employees will see their pay rise 3% this year, and all union employees will get a raise of at least 1% in both 2027 and 2028.

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“We are excited to continue producing impactful journalism for Texans under a contract that reflects and rewards our staff’s contributions with pay and policies that are more transparent and fair,” Texas Tribune Guild Chair Alejandro Serrano said in a statement.

Texas Tribune Editor-in-Chief Matthew Watkins said the contract “will keep The Texas Tribune a great place to work while allowing us to stay focused on our mission of pursuing the truth so Texans can shape our future” in a statement to the Houston Chronicle.

The guild ratified the contract unanimously, with around 90% of guild members participating in the vote, the guild said. The contract, the guild’s first since launching in January 2024, came after two years of negotiations with management.

Under the agreement, new reporters, newsroom and business staff are guaranteed a $62,000 salary minimum. There were previously no set salary minimums, though the lowest-paid guild members earned around $58,600, the guild said. The contract also standardizes pay raises, which were previously given out solely at management’s discretion, including ongoing 2% retention raises for every three years an employee spends at the Tribune, in most cases.

Union employees will also receive 20 days of paid time off, 10 sick days and 10 days of bereavement leave, the guild said. The agreement also formalizes the Tribune’s existing retirement match, locks in coverage rates for insurance premiums and adds protections against layoffs, including a required 21-day notice for planned layoffs or terminations, the guild said.

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The Tribune set guidelines around AI use in the newsroom as part of the agreement, the guild said. The news organization encourages its employees to experiment with AI tools for tasks like data analysis, transcription and headline writing but requires journalists to verify AI’s outputs and disclose significant AI use to editors and to readers, according to the Tribune’s code of ethics.

Other contract protections include stipulations around mental health, safety, and work permit processes, the guild said.

The Texas Tribune is a statewide, nonprofit news organization that was founded in 2009. Some of its staff members unionized in 2024 after a wave of layoffs in 2023, and management voluntarily recognized the union shortly after, according to the guild.

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This article originally published at Texas Tribune journalists, staff secure AI protections and pay raises under first union contract.