Union wants to get back to bargaining table; company stalling

By ED FINKELSTEIN

Publisher

Coming off a very profitable political season rife with expensive TV ads pouring millions of dollars into local TV stations, KSDK Channel 5 has not budged off its demand that its photographers, editors and technicians agree to outrageous demands that include:

• A pay freeze, even though the union took a 10 percent paycut when the station was facing financial stress, which is no longer the case.

• No seniority for layoffs.

• Less working condition protections than other TV stations have for their Local 4 members.

TURN OFF CHANNEL 5

“Please continue to TURN OFF Channel 5 until management comes to their senses and decides to be fair to our members,” asks IBEW Local 4 Business Manager Mike Pendergast.

While the union has been working without a contract since July 15, the company continues to stall getting back to the bargaining table, now talking about sometime in December. The last negotiating session was Aug. 23. Talks began May 21.

And to complicate matters and prolong the stall, the company’s attorney announced he would be retiring at the end of this month.

HELP LOCAL 4

SPREAD THE WORD

“As we move into the holidays and TV viewing tends to increase, especially with kids home from school, IBEW Local 4 wants to remind everyone that we need your help by NOT viewing Channel 5 and helping us spread the word of our boycott through your social media outlets and to your friends and families,” Pendergast said, thanking the Labor Movement and union members for their ongoing support.

“Send an email or make a post on your Facebook page, or make a complaint on Channel 5’s Facebook page and let them know you’re not watching,” he said.

After you’ve done that, send station manager Alicia Elsner an email at aelsner@ksdk.com to let her know of your actions and that you won’t be watching until Channel 5 returns the bargaining table.

“Every bit will help our 40 members at Channel 5, “ Pendergast said.

For more information about the boycott, visit Local 4’s website turnoffksdk.com.