Angry journalists at BuzzFeed staged a walkout in four cities on Monday to protest what they say is management’s stonewalling of their efforts to hammer out a first-ever union contract.

The union for the website known for cat videos and listicles says the company has been stalling over contract negotiations — leading to dozens of editorial workers in New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles and San Francisco spending a few hours of the workday outdoors on Monday.

“Our members have grown tired of management stalling and demand they return to the table in good faith,” said Grant Glickson, president of the NewsGuild of New York.

He said the union has grievances about pay disparities, layoffs, weak benefits, rising health care costs and diversity.

BuzzFeed’s CEO, Jonah Peretti, says there has been an offer on the table for weeks that the union has ignored.

He also says the company continues to negotiate.

About 90% of eligible employees voted to unionize in February, shortly after Peretti announced in late January that the site was laying off 15% of its workforce.

Peretti in a note to “BuzzFeeders” on Monday said the company on June 4 made an offer to voluntarily recognize the NewsGuild as the bargaining union and put a contract offer on the table.

“Our proposal is both responsive to our employees’ requests, and mindful of the way the company operates,” Peretti said in the email. “It’s the product of more than three months of discussions and negotiations with the NewsGuild.”

A big sticking point for the union centers on which employees will be officially recognized as union members, including some workers who were classified as managers despite having no supervisory role, the union claims.

“I wish BuzzFeed management could see this as an opportunity to show that they respect and value their employees rather than reacting out of fear, and I hope they can come back to the table so we can have a real conversation,” said Deputy Culture Editor Rachel Sanders.

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