In support of the Condé Nast Union walkout on Tuesday morning, Anne Hathaway left a Vanity Fair photo shoot. Condé Nast employees who belong to a union are presently participating in a 24-hour work stoppage in protest of bargaining tactics they believe to be illegal.
When Hathaway arrived for the picture shoot in New York City, she was not aware of the work stoppage. When a SAG-AFTRA employee alerted her colleagues to encourage Hathaway to support the work stoppage, she was still wearing cosmetics.
“They hadn’t even begun shooting pictures yet,” a source claims to media. “After learning what was happening, Anne simply got up, put on her makeup, and left.”
Tuesday morning at 8:30 a.m. ET saw the announcement of the 2024 Oscar nominations, which was timed with the labor stoppage. Workers from Condé Nast publications, including Teen Vogue, Architectural Digest, Glamour, Self, GQ, Allure, and Vanity Fair, marched in front of the company’s New York headquarters.
Videos on the union’s X/Twitter page include demonstrators brandishing signs that declare, “Layoffs are out of style.” In a clear reference to Anna Wintour, they can also be heard saying, “Say it loud, say it clear, winter’s extra cold this year.”
Condé Nast combined Pitchfork with men’s magazine GQ this week, which led to layoffs at the digital music publication. Editor-in-chief Puja Patel was among those let go.
In an email to employees, Wintour—who serves as both the global editorial director of Vogue and Condé Nast’s chief content officer—explained the changes, saying, “Today we are evolving our Pitchfork team structure by bringing the team into the GQ organization.” This choice was taken following a thorough assessment of Pitchfork’s performance and what we feel is the best course of action for the brand in order to maintain the success of our music coverage inside the organization.
Last Thursday, the Condé Nast Union revealed on X its possible plans for a walkout: Our longest yeah boy ever: When our bargaining committee orders a 24-hour walkout, over 400 of us have vowed to STOP WORKING. RT to let @CondeNast know you support employees and urge them to stop defying the law, violating their union, and implementing layoffs. Keep checking back for more soon.
In order to increase efficiency, Condé Nast CEO Roger Lynch stated in November 2023 that the business would be laying off as many as 300 workers and implementing other cost-cutting measures.