NABET Members at Chicago TV Stations March for Fair Contracts

Solidarity Rally Takes Stand Against Media Giants' Attacks on Workers

NABET-CWA Local 54041, fighting for fair contracts at competing Chicago TV news stations, rallied together last week, sending a strong message to their corporate media employers.

Putting aside any rivalries, NABET-CWA members working at competing broadcast TV news stations in Chicago marched in solidarity last week to demand fair contracts from three media giants.

The Local 54041 members — including news photographers, videotape editors, audio engineers, technicians, producers and writers — work at stations owned by Disney/ABC, NBC Universal and FOX.

NABET-CWA President Jim Joyce said workers are fighting for their futures as the stations and their corporate owners run "an orchestrated campaign of economic attacks on working families."

Determined not to let them get away with it, the NABET members were among some 300 activists from CWA, entertainment unions and allies who marched from one station to the next beginning at lunch time June 25.

"This strong showing of solidarity is greater than any statement or proposal that we can make at the bargaining table," Joyce said. "With ABC, NBC and FOX members standing united and marching together to each one of their three employers, they demonstrated that they will not tolerate unlawful behavior or corporate greed."

The longest fight of the three battles is at NBC5, where the NABET contract expired March 31, 2009. The NLRB has issued a complaint against the station alleging serious violations of the National Labor Relations Act.

Contracts at ABC7 and FOX32 expired March 31, 2011. Among key issues at ABC, members are fighting to protect one of the healthiest defined benefit pension plans in the country. "For years, members at ABC7 have written and covered news stories involving poorly funded private and public pensions," Joyce said. "They were shocked to learn that the company wants to dismantle their hard-earned and healthy pension plan."

At FOX, members are battling the company's attempts to bust the union by outsourcing jobs, changing work rules and compromising jurisdiction.