Fusion is the latest digital media company whose newsroom is working to unionize with the Writers Guild of America, East.



A majority of online staff at Fusion have signed union cards with the WGAE, the union said in a letter to the site’s editorial staff on Wednesday. The union will continue to organize before eventually asking the company for voluntary recognition, a WGAE spokesperson said.

“Fusion has produced an impressive body of work about how the right to organize is critical for American workers,” said the letter, which was published online. “It’s time we practice what we preach.”

Fusion’s employees produce content for multiple platforms, including the company’s website, social media platforms, and its television channel. All digital-focused staff are eligible to sign up as part of the union drive, a WGAE spokesperson said, including video producers — in total, the union has identified 80 employees that are eligible to unionize, and a majority have already signed cards.

“It’s a continuation of the movement to unionize digital media that we’ve been public with for over a year, said Lowell Peterson, Executive Director of WGAE, of the drive. “I think what we’re seeing here is a real interest on the part of digital media employees to have a voice in the decisions that affect how they work and how they’re treated at work.”

Fusion was launched as a joint venture between Univision Communications and the Disney/ABC Television Network in October 2013, with Disney selling its stake in the company earlier this year. There has been a wave of unionizing in digital media in recent years, with the staff of legal news site Law360 most recently voting to unionize with the NewsGuild, in a 109-9 vote in August.

Digital outlets including The Huffington Post, Salon, Vice, ThinkProgress, and The Guardian have also recently unionized, as did Al Jazeera America’s online writers prior to its closure. Gawker Media, whose sites were recently acquired by Fusion, unionized in June of last year, also with WGAE.

“I think what we’re seeing here is a real interest on the part of digital media employees to have a voice in the decisions that affect how they work and how they’re treated at work,” said Peterson. “People at Gawker definitely know people at Fusion. It’s a small world, a community of editorial employees. Gawker people know people at the Huffington Post, know people at BuzzFeed."



In a statement provided to BuzzFeed News, a Fusion spokesperson said, "The company is dedicated to providing an environment where all of its employees can thrive. We respect the right of our employees to choose whether to unionize and will be discussing this important decision directly with them."



Read the full letter below.