Baltimore Sun Guild files an employment complaint over the firing of a reporter

The Baltimore Sun Guild filed a federal labor complaint Friday alleging that a former employee at the newspaper was fired because she participated in activities protected by the National Labor Relations Act — and said the firing was intended to discourage other employees from doing the same to do.

Madeleine O’Neill was fired from The Baltimore Sun in mid-September. At the time, the guild said she was fired “because of her outspoken advocacy for the journalistic and workplace norms the guild seeks to protect at the Sun.”

O’Neill was fired for speaking out about workplace concerns, which Christine Condon, the guild’s president, said were unlawful. The guild concedes that O’Neill was a probationary employee and therefore could be fired “at will,” but said this does not mean the Sun could have fired her for an illegal reason.

The National Labor Relations Act is a federal law that protects all employees, not just unionized employees, from disciplinary action or termination for engaging in “concerted activities.” According to the National Labor Relations Board, this includes multiple employees “discussing work-related issues beyond pay” and an employee “speaking to an employer on behalf of one or more coworkers about improving workplace conditions.”

Baltimore Sun management and owners did not respond to a request for comment.

Condon said O’Neill’s termination from The Baltimore Sun was related to O’Neill using the messaging platform Slack to share workplace concerns about journalistic standards and content in a public setting, and had nothing to do with the O’Neill’s work performance.

“We strongly believe that dismissing her for this reason is contrary to labor law,” Condon said.

O’Neill said in a text message that she was grateful for the guild’s support.

“My resignation was clearly intended to discourage other reporters from speaking out if they have concerns about the Sun’s reporting under its new owners,” she wrote. “The union journalists who still work there deserve better.”

O’Neill has been working freelance for The Baltimore Banner since she was fired from The Sun, where she covered the city’s ongoing lawsuit against opioid distributors.

The Baltimore Sun Guild also charges management with implementing a rule that “prevents or discourages employees from engaging in joint protected activities.”

After O’Neill was fired, Condon said, managers changed a channel description in Slack to discourage employees from publicly voicing criticism or concerns in the channel and instructed them to speak directly to a manager or supervisor instead.

The Baltimore Sun Guild, which represents reporters, photographers, representatives and other employees of the 187-year-old newspaper, has repeatedly raised concerns about “troubling changes” in the newsroom since it was purchased by David Smith and Armstrong Williams. journalistic ethics have been ‘cast aside’. Smith is also the executive chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group.