COMMUNICATION WORKERS UNION
24/06/2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wikipedia workers in Britain are setting a “global first” by becoming the first body of workers at the online encyclopaedia to seek union recognition.
British-based employees at the Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) wrote a letter to management today (Wednesday 24thJune) requesting their right to be represented by the United Tech and Allied Workers (UTAW) section of the Communication Workers Union (CWU).
The workers have called on the WMF, as the effective management of the global non-profit operation, to uphold recent public commitments made by its leadership affirming the rights of staff to organise and form a union.[1]
The WMF has undergone a period of significant change in recent months, escalating workers’ concerns over transparency, trust, and the organisation’s future direction.
The workers are longtime contributors and organisers, and are deeply committed to the Wikimedia movement.
Over 1000 Wikimedia volunteers and community members have also signed petitions in support of the workers, who have networked globally under the banner of Wiki Workers United (WWU).[2]
The WMF is the non-profit organisation that operates Wikipedia and its sister projects. Collectively, they represent the world’s largest free knowledge websites, written and maintained by a global set of volunteers.[3]
Outside the United States, the United Kingdom is WMF’s largest employment location, and a substantial majority of its UK staff are union members.
Commenting, CWU tech national officer John Chadfield said: “This is the first attempt of Wikimedia Foundation workers to seek voluntary recognition anywhere – a global first.
“Our union is proud to stand with these principled workers, who are initiating this process in the hope of creating a durable workplace grounded in transparency, accountability and participation across the WMF workforce.
“We urge the organisation to meet them in this spirit of good faith and co-operation.”
ENDS
Editor’s Notes
[1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/User_talk:BMeehan-WMF#Update_from_Bernadette_May_24, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Village_pump_(WMF)&diff=prev&oldid=1355455480
[2] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wiki_Workers_United#Solidarity, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Wiki_Workers_United_solidarity#Signatures
[3] The WMF and its British-based staff should not be confused with Wikimedia UK, the legally independent UK nonprofit organisation that serves as the local chapter of the Wikimedia movement.
For further enquiries, contact CWU Press Officer Marcus Barnett at mbarnett@cwu.org.
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