ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The strike at the Democrat & Chronicle has ended after 19 days.

In a statement posted to X, a spokesperson for the Newspaper Guild of Rochester says they are going back to work Thursday morning despite not reaching a deal.

According to the union, the two sides negotiated Wednesday and had a possible agreement, but the union claims Gannett had inserted language that changed the meaning of the contract. They say they’ve lost faith in Gannett’s willingness to bargain in good faith and plan to file complaints with the National Labor Relations Board.

“We bargained with the company this morning for the first time in 13 days and they gave us a proposal that at first glance was something that didn’t include everything we hoped for but was something we could live with. Unfortunately, they gave it to us in a form that didn’t make clear where they had made changes. And as we read it through more this afternoon, it became obvious that they had inserted language in there that radically changed the meaning of the contract without flagging it; in some cases they took sections that had already been agreed upon and signed off on and added words that completely changed the meaning,” Justin Murphy, vice chair of the Newspaper Guild of Rochester, stated.

The Democrat & Chronicle released the following statement to News10NBC Thursday afternoon:

“We are pleased our Democrat and Chronicle colleagues are back to work focused on serving the Rochester community,” said Democrat & Chronicle Spokesperson Lark-Marie Anton. “When Guild leaders come to the table focused on serious negotiation rather than creating a circus of false narratives; our local management is always prepared to negotiate in good faith. You can see that in cities across the country where we have reached agreements. To be clear, no matter how long it takes, we will always put our readers first to ensure we deliver essential journalism and content.”