LOS ANGELES TIMES GUILD PAY STUDY APRIL 2018
Summary - Page 2 Demographics - Page 3 Salary Data - Page 5
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SUMMARY
Among unionized journalists at The Times, including all ages and job titles, women and people of color generally make less than white men. The L.A. Times Guild requested salary and demographic data on Feb. 9 for nearly 400 members of the newsroom bargaining unit to prepare for contract negotiations. Tronc provided data for only about 330 journalists. It excluded workers in our bargaining unit, such as line editors, whom the company is still contesting for inclusion in the union. Our analysis includes 323 full-time newsroom employees, on payroll as of Feb. 9. Hourly employees’ wages were annualized for the purpose of this study. Our findings: ● Tronc has underpaid women and journalists of color by thousands of dollars a year at the Los Angeles Times, suggesting systemic salary gaps by race and gender, according to an analysis of salary data by the L.A. Times Guild. ● Some of these gaps can be explained by The Times’ lopsided demographics. The more senior journalists in our bargaining unit, who make the most money, are more likely to be white and male. The younger journalists in our bargaining unit, who make the least money, are more likely to be women and people of color. ● However, there are significant and persistent gaps even when comparing women and people of color to their male and white peers in the same jobs, with similar experience. A detailed analysis conducted by the L.A. Times Guild found scores of individual women 2
and journalists of color with pay disparities. On average, they make thousands of dollars less than co-workers of similar ages and job categories. The Guild will seek feedback from our members about how best to handle this information while also protecting worker privacy.
DEMOGRAPHICS Gender
Women represent 43% of our bargaining unit. Our data shows that women’s representation falls off dramatically among older workers.
Age
The Times has a generational divide in the middle of its newsroom. We have many older journalists, and many younger journalists, and then a dearth of journalists in their late 30s and 40s. Over the past decade, the company has struggled to retain rising talent as newsroom wages have stagnated, with skilled journalists leaving for more lucrative offers from competitors. 3
People of color
Our newsroom does not reflect the region we serve. Of our unionized staff, 39% are people of color, compared to 73% of L.A. County residents. Our staff is 14.6% Latino, 15.8% Asian American and 5.6% black. Much of this diversity comes from our younger ranks: the majority of staffers in their 20s and 30s are people of color.
Many of the improvements in our overall racial and ethnic representation can likely be attributed to aggressive hiring through the MetPro training program, which aims to bring diverse voices to the newsroom. But these journalists, who are among the lowest-paid in our newsroom, even after being hired for regular staff positions, often do not stay at The Times.
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SALARY DATA Salaries by job category The following table shows average salaries by job group. Jobs with multiple tiers, such as Reporter I and Reporter II, have been combined. Only larger departments/groups are shown. If your salary isn’t represented, reach out to a Guild officer and we can provide you with a sense of where you fall relative to your peers. The percentiles measure where an individual salary falls relative to others in the group. If your salary is, for example, above the 50th percentile, you would fall in the top half. If your salary falls below the 25th percentile, it would be in the bottom quarter. The 50th percentile is the midpoint, or the median salary, where half are above and half are below. Job group
Average
25th percentile
50th percentile
75th percentile
Columnist/Critic
$153,087
$128,895
$147,112
$160,853
Editorial Writer
$113,883
$108,657
$109,079
$117,315
Photographer
$96,245
$88,022
$91,232
$99,268
Reporter
$95,232
$75,000
$95,000
$112,958
Multiplat. Editor
$90,903
$84,170
$90,942
$100,371
Graphics
$82,164
$69,500
$81,500
$95,406
Designer
$81,781
$68,000
$86,149
$95,561
Digital *
$68,084
$60,000
$72,468
$79,261
Admin
$56,302
$44,606
$55,874
$64,472
MetPro
$46,416
$44,209
$46,416
$48,622
TCN
$38,765
$36,005
$37,134
$39,214
* The Digital category includes members of the Hub and the Web Entertainment team, but not members of the Audience Engagement team or the Data Desk. The latter teams are too small to include in this table.
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Reporters For this analysis, the L.A. Times Guild grouped together the Reporter I and Reporter II job titles, as well as a few people with an Assistant Editor title who only do reporting. It does not include members of the MetPro program or Times Community News reporters. The average reporter salary at the L.A. Times is about $95,000. Reporters’ salaries vary dramatically by experience, but even adjusting for age, women and people of color make less across the board: ● The average salary for female reporters is $87,564, and the average for men is $101,898. ● The average for people of color is $85,622, and the average for white people is $100,398. ● Part of the gap can be explained by demographics: the more senior reporters, who earn more, are much more likely to be white men. Reporter salaries by age group Age group
Average
25th percentile
50th percentile
75th percentile
21-30
$71,829
$62,508
$70,001
$75,000
31-40
$85,289
$73,350
$84,302
$94,112
41-50
$102,205
$89,305
$101,114
$114,857
51-60
$109,963
$102,844
$111,623
$120,398
61+
$119,295
$110,167
$116,491
$126,493
Reporter salary gaps for women and people of color Overall, the wage gaps for both women and people of color — especially women of color — are stark.
Gender
White or non-white
Average
50th percentile
Female
non-white
$82,500
$76,696
white
$91,760
$87,125 6
Male
non-white white
$91,130
$91,250
$105,611
$106,650
Reporter salary gaps for women, by age group Even accounting for age, a rough proxy for work experience, women make less across the board. Age group
Gender
Average
50th percentile
21-30
Female
$71,041
$70,001
Male
$73,789
$75,000
Female
$80,816
$80,239
Male
$90,168
$85,000
Female
$100,395
$99,250
Male
$103,497
$101,890
Female
$105,834
$108,000
Male
$112,028
$113,006
Female
$107,322
$109,331
Male
$123,899
$120,000
31-40
41-50
51-60
61+
Reporter salary gaps for people of color, by age group People of color make less almost across the board — except in the 31-40 age group. Age group
White or non-white
Average
50th percentile
21-30
non-white
$68,171
$68,004
white
$76,484
$74,984
non-white
$87,835
$85,000
white
$82,743
$82,000
non-white
$92,183
$94,300
$105,545
$108,622
31-40
41-50
white
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51-60
61+
non-white
$104,583
$103,000
white
$111,040
$112,750
data withheld *
data withheld *
$119,801
$118,192
non-white white
* There are too few people in this category to publish averages. However, their pay is lower than their white peers.
Salary gaps for other job groups The following tables show salaries by gender and white/non-white for several job groups. Only larger departments, with about 10 or more people, are shown. Salaries by gender Job group
Gender
Average
50th percentile
Columnist/Critic
Female
$148,309
$145,135
Male
$154,149
$148,347
Female
$101,831
$92,253
Male
$94,251
$91,015
Female
$87,619
$87,210
Male
$93,571
$94,687
Female
$77,734
$70,000
Male
$86,503
$89,199
Female
$40,652
$38,477
Male
$38,136
$36,931
Average
50th percentile
data withheld *
data withheld *
$150,238
$147,344
Photographer
Multiplat. Editor
Designer
TCN
Salaries by white/non-white Job group
White or non-white
Columnist/Critic
non-white white
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Photographer
Multiplat. Editor
Designer
TCN
non-white
$93,461
$90,010
white
$97,870
$92,604
non-white
$86,168
$84,209
white
$94,245
$93,593
non-white
$77,447
$69,528
white
$83,707
$90,861
non-white
$36,857
$36,525
white
$39,910
$38,002
* There are too few people in this category to publish averages. However, there is some evidence of a pay disparity.
ADDITIONAL DATA & ANALYSIS ● The data: A handful of L.A. Times Guild members analyzed the raw pay data from Tronc, which included workers’ names and salaries; they anonymized the pay data for the purposes of this report in order to shield worker privacy. The analysis looked at 139 women, 183 men, and one person who identifies as gender nonconforming who are considered part of the bargaining unit; 196 were white, and 127 were people of color. ● Topline Conclusion: Across the newsroom as a whole, women make less than men, and non-white journalists make less than white journalists, though there are some exceptions. ● Salary midpoints around The Times: Pay ranges widely by job role. At the top end, the 50th percentile in pay for the paper’s columnists is $147,112. For photographers, the midpoint is $91,232. For the 143 reporters — the largest group of employees in the bargaining unit — the midpoint is $95,000. Among MetPros, the midpoint is $46,416. And for Times Community News journalists, the midpoint is $37,134. ● Salary midpoints by gender: The midpoint in annual salaries among all women is $78,000. That’s the 50th percentile among women -- meaning half of the female employees earned below that and half earned above it. Among men, the midpoint is $92,000. For white employees, the midpoint is $93,888.
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● Salary midpoints by race and ethnicity: For journalists of color, the midpoint is $75,000. A more specific breakdown shows the midpoint for Asian American employees is $77,000. For black employees, that midpoint is $71,234. For Latinos, the midpoint is $70,000. The midpoint for non-white women is $70,000; the midpoint for white women is $87,210. For men of color, the midpoint is $83,585. For white men, the midpoint is $101,228.
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