KGW-TV’s three unions are going public about a standoff with management negotiators for parent company Gannett. At noon on Saturday, April 25, they’ll assemble at Pioneer Courthouse Square — where the station has an office — for a public town hall.
All three unions are having a tough time negotiating new collective bargaining agreements with the station: International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 600, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 48, and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).
The big sticking point is a proposal by Gannett to eliminate union jurisdiction. As union negotiators understand it, that would mean contract terms would apply only to current union members, and the company could hire new employees to do the same work under different terms.
Blues musician Norman Sylvester will perform at the event.
