>From: James Carrott <carrott@cs.wisc.edu>
>Subject: Pacifica story 8/7/96
>
>The following story was aired on WORT FM's "In Our Backyard" Wednesday
>August 7th.  (Madison, WI)
>
>Reporter: Jaclyn Jacunski
>Producer: James Carrott
>
>Pacifica Labor Summertime Blues
>
>        Community radio station WBAI in New York plans to air a labor
>program called "Union Summer."  The program is designed to report
>labor-related events around the U.S.  Many supporters of community radio,
>however, feel that the station has plenty of labor issues to deal with on
>its own.  Currently WBAI is owned by Pacifica, and alternative national news
>network whose programming is carried here on WORT.
>        Pacifica radio has hired a labor relations firm, the American
>Consulting Group, which the AFL-CIO has labelled as a union buster.
>Pacifica's proposed new labor contract would remove WBAI's unpaid staff from
>the collective bargaining unit and therefore from union protection.  The
>contract was proposed in order to professionalize progressive radio, even
>though many of the volunteers have been working at the station for many
>years.  Pat Scott, Pacifica's Executive Director, said that their audience
>has increased since they began making program changes over the past year.
>She feels that this expansion goes along with their commitment to provide
>voice to the disempowered.
>        WBAI employees are standing united in support of the volunteers.
>Ken Nash, organizer of the program "Union Summer" said that Pacifica has
>been unwilling to compromise on these issues and doesn't see the necessity
>of cutting out the unpaid workers.  He told W-O-R-T that "the station has
>worked this way for a number of years and has been very successful because
>of volunteer staff."
>        Pacifica's connection with the American Consulting Group has been a
>problem for the network, whose audience and supporters are strongly
>pro-labor, and Pacifica announced it will not be renewing their contract
>with the group.  They have not, however, made a commitment to support their
>union, and are continuing to professionalize the station at the cost of
>their volunteer base.  WBAI general manager Valerie Van Isler did not return
>our call.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>James Carrott
>carrott@cs.wisc.edu
>Department of Computer Sciences
>1210 West Dayton Street
>Madison, WI  53706
>(608)262-5776
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