Striking New York Times tech workers ask people not to play Wordle or other NYT games

Will you break your Wordle streak? Striking New York Times tech workers are asking players to honor its digital picket line by not playing Wordle, Connections, or its other games.

New York Times tech workers, who create and maintain the technology that powers the New York Times website and games, are on strike, the New York Times Tech Guild announced Monday. The strike began one day before the United States election day; the Times is famous for its live election night needle, something that is, of course, powered by the publication’s tech workers. The Times Tech Guild covers 600 workers across the publication. The workers are asking management to address concerns related to “remote/hybrid work,” “just cause” protections (something the newsroom union has), and “pay equity/fair pay.” The Times Tech Guild has filed an unfair labor practice charge against the Times for alleged labor violations.

“Our union members and bargaining committee have done everything possible to avoid this ULP strike,” senior analytics manager and Times Tech Guild unit chair said in a statement. “But management is more willing to risk our election coverage than they are to agree to a fair deal with its workers. They have left us no choice but to demonstrate the power of our labor on the picket line. Nevertheless, we stand ready to bargain and get this contract across the finish line.”

To some, it might be surprising to learn just how big of a deal the Times’ games section is to the company and its players; the company purchased Wordle for ‘low-7 figures’ in 2022 to bolster its already successful games. And it seems to have worked: In January, Axios reported that the New York Times Games app was downloaded 10 million times. Alongside Wordle, the Times publishes daily crossword puzzles, Spelling Bee, Connections, Strands, Tiles, and Sudoku. For the player base, “streaks” are a badge of honor for those who play — and win — each day. Skip a day and you lose your streak. And so, asking players to break their streaks is a big deal — but one that the Times Tech Guild says is worth it in solidarity with the Guild.

A hashtag was spun up on X for breaking their streak in solidarity, aptly using #BreakMyStreak. The Guild is also asking people to not use the NYT Cooking app.

Times Tech Guild workers walked off the job on Monday and intend to picket from 9 a.m. EST to 6 p.m. EST each day at the Times office. The strike, which continued into Tuesday, is the “first to coincide with a presidential election in the NewsGuild since the 1964 Detroit Newspaper Strike,” per the Times Tech Guild.

A Times spokesperson, Danielle Rhoades Ha, provided the following statement to Polygon:

“We look forward to continuing to work with the Tech Guild to reach a fair contract that takes into account that they are already among the highest paid individual contributors in the Company and journalism is our top priority.

We’re in one of the most consequential periods of coverage for our readers and have robust plans in place to ensure that we are able to fulfill our mission and serve our readers.

While we respect the union’s right to engage in protected actions, we’re disappointed that colleagues would strike at this time, which is both unnecessary and at odds with our mission.”

Update: This story has been updated to include a statement from the New York Times.

Update (Nov. 5): This story has been updated to reflect the strike continuing into Tuesday, the United States election day.