Crooked Media Union Reaches Deal, Withdraws Unfair Labor Practice Charge Against Company

Four days after staging a walkout, the content creators of the Crooked Media Union have reached a deal with their employers.

The union and the company announced the new contract in a joint statement on Friday, writing that the deal “reflects the values of Crooked Media and that can serve as a new benchmark for our industry.”

“The union is also withdrawing the unfair labor charge and can unequivocally say that Crooked and its founders have upheld and continue to live up to the progressive principles, including support for unions, that our audience should expect,” the statement continued. “Bargaining can be contentious, but we’re excited about this agreement and ready to channel the immense talent, passion, and creativity of this team into calling JD Vance a creepy weirdo.”

(The last line is not the first time in recent days that a union has taken a swipe at the Republican vice presidential candidate. On Tuesday, IATSE called out Donald Trump and his running mate for not using union crews on the campaign trail.)

More than 95% of the 61-member Crooked Media bargaining unit signed the walkout pledge on Monday after more than a year of bargaining with management on its first contract since organizing under the Writers Guild of America East.

The one-day walkout came one week after the WGAE filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge against Crooked Media with the National Labor Relations Board for “unilaterally changing the status quo of the previously negotiated Recognition Agreement and by insisting on a permissive subject of bargaining.”

The WGAE accuses Crooked Media of excluding several staff members from the bargaining unit “in an effort to undermine the union and deprive those workers of their collective bargaining rights.” But, as the statement above indicates, the union has withdrawn this charge.

Founded in 2017 by former President Barack Obama staffers Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor, Crooked Media produces podcasts including Pod Save America, What a Day, Hall of Shame and Lovett It or Leave It.

The trio released a statement of their own on Friday, writing: “We’re proud of this deal because it sets a new standard for how media companies treat their workers – which is exactly what we set out to do when we first recognized the union. We also appreciate the union clarifying that we *never* engaged in any kind of union-busting, and are glad they withdrew the unfair labor practice charge, which – as we said when it was first filed – was based on nothing more than a misunderstanding.”