Pro-Union Young Turks Founder Throws Tantrum, Refuses to Recognize His Company's Employee Union

This is the most delicious story to ever come out of the “snake-eats-tail” category. The Young Turks, the obnoxiously far-left and self-proclaimed “progressive” news organization, is feeling the effects of its own pro-union philosophy and they don’t like it one bit! Founder Cenk Uygur actually threw a temper tantrum at an employee meeting in early February when he was informed that the writers and staff at TYT were unionizing. The Huffington Post had the story.

Earlier that day, a Twitter handle claiming to represent TYT employees had announced on the social media platform their intention to form a union. In the staff meeting, the network’s co-founder and influential host, Cenk Uygur, urged employees not to do so, arguing that a union does not belong at a small, independent outlet like TYT, according to two workers who were present. He said if there had been a union at the network it would not have grown the way it has.

His talk ― at times emotional, the staffers said, with Uygur throwing his papers to the ground at one point, and chastising an employee ― seemed to contradict the progressive, worker-first ethos that TYT broadcasts to its millions of lefty followers. Jack Gerard, who is acting as the company’s chief operating officer as Uygur runs for Congress in California, told the staff they were not discouraging unionization.

But the message from Uygur was clear ― and, to at least some staffers, discouraging.

But wait! It gets funnier! Uygur told HuffPo that he “worries a unionized workforce would bring new legal and bureaucratic costs that TYT can’t sustain.” You don’t say! Well, that’s not news to any of us over here on the sane side of the aisle, who have been telling people forever that unions are mostly political organizations that destroy companies and prop up the Democrat party but don’t mind us. We’re just over here eating our popcorn and laughing.

The Young Turks have had a special reservation somewhere between the eighth and ninth circles of Hell in the afterlife ever since the pointy-faced and despicable Ana Kasparian announced to her audience that they should call social services on me and have my children removed from my care. This, she self-righteously declared, was necessary because I was exercising my rights as a citizen to protest a library that was allowing men to watch x-rated material in a building full of children. Since her demonic proclivities didn’t agree, she sicced her band of atheist psychopath fans on an innocent mother. I hope she chokes on her unemployment check.

But enough about me and my personal enjoyment of TYT’s hilarious and deserved employee troubles. Let’s get back to the immutable fact that socialism is painful, even to its proponents (and they know it). The absolute hypocrisy of a couple of elite “news” people who are making big bucks—their YouTube video subscriptions are in the millions and they want to share everyone’s wealth but their own—is delicious.

Imagine that these are the people who want to run the country and they can’t even run their own businesses according to their own economic beliefs. The left says “unions are good! (Except when we have to suffer them).” AOC is in the news today because she got her goddaughter into one of those charter schools they don’t want any of our kids to go to. Do you see a pattern here?

When we announced our decision to go union with @IATSE over a week ago, we had hoped @TheYoungTurks would respect our choice and voluntarily recognize our union. We are dismayed to report that they have refused. #TYTlive

— TYTUnion (@TYTUnion) February 21, 2020

Oh, the irony. Dear Jesus, thank you for this unexpected gift of joy and mirth. I may have to go to confession later for the delight I’m taking in their misfortune, but I’m willing to risk it.

TYT finally responded in a lengthy Twitter thread where they claimed none of this actually happened and they’re waiting on a secret ballot, and the International Employees of Theatrical Stage Employees are acting in bad faith, and they think the TYT union isn’t real or something. It’s a riot.

(1/10) TYT puts its employees first. We have been clear that we will honor the majority decision of our staff and want to provide them with the most democratic approach for sharing their preference.

— The Young Turks (@TheYoungTurks) February 24, 2020

There’s nothing more fun than watching the left destroy itself with its own policies, illustrating for the rest of us why we should never, under any circumstance, give them power over our lives.