An administrative judge with the National Labor Relations Board has ruled against CNN in a dispute filed by the National Association of Broadcast Employees & Technicians (NABET). Judge Arthur J. Amchan ruled CNN must reinstate 110 workers with full back pay; retraining, if necessary; and it must recognize the union.
The workers were employed by a former CNN subcontractor Team Video Services (TVS). TVS provided technical work at CNN’s D.C. and New York bureaus for more than 20 years. In 2004 CNN terminated its subcontract with TVS and announced they would hire their own employees to provide the video and audio services. The complaint was filed in April, 2007.
Judge Amchan found that CNN was a joint employer with TVS and therefore the network was obligated to recognize and bargain with NABET. (CNN’s employees in the bureaus were not part of NABET).
Ed McEwan, president of NABET-CWA Local 11, said, the decision by the is a victory for workers. “Everyone in America should know that the network management we rely on to bring us the news are not above the illegal practices that they headline on a regular basis,” said McEwan.
“CNN disagrees with the recommended decision and denies that it violated the National Labor Relations Act,” a CNN statement emailed to TVNewser concludes. “CNN plans to appeal this decision to the full NLRB. Because an appeal will be filed, the Judge’s recommended decision is not enforceable and is not binding.”