The New York Times Guild said on Tuesday that it has tentatively struck a new contract agreement with the New York Times marking the end of more than two years of negotiations.

The deal, if ratified, will raise the median salary of a NewsGuild member to $136,220 and to $160,011 for reporters and correspondents in the union, according to a note sent by the newspaper's deputy managing editor Cliff Levy to union members.

Other benefits include an overall 18.4% increase in salary, new job categories for reporters and editors, and doubling of fertility benefits to $50,000, according to the deal.

The New York Times, under the deal, will also allocate more than $100 million in new spending for NewsGuild members, Levy said in the note.

In December, more than 1,100 union employees at the newspaper had participated in a 24-hour walkout after failing to reach a contract with the company.

The union, which is part of the NewsGuild of New York, represents journalists, as well as ad sales workers, comment moderators, security guards and staffers at The Times Center, the NYT's events venue and virtual production studio.

(Reporting by Akanksha Khushi and Nilutpal Timsina in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)