Online writers are putting their digital pens together in an attempt to unionize, reports Steven Swirsky of Epstein Becker & Green. And he says their efforts should be on the radar of employers in technology and other related fields as a test case on the labor movement's interests and vulnerabilities.

Last month, writers at the news site Gawker held a vote on whether to be represented by the Writers Guild of America. Of the more than 100 employees, 75 percent voted yes and 25 percent voted no. And now, Swirsky says all 26 writers and editors at online magazine Salon have given the publication a letter announcing the designation of the News Guild as their collective bargaining representative. He says media reports indicate the guilds are targeting a younger generation of employees who have more positive feelings about unions.

“These developments are further reminder that unions are not 'dead' and that in fact many are becoming more adept at focusing their messages and techniques to appeal to a new generation of workers,” he says. They're also sharpening up on their abilities to communicate and organize out of sight of employers.