The Writers Guild of America East filed a complaint with CBS News about alleged unpaid wages, nearly two months after members ratified a three-year contract with the division.
The union, which along with its sister union WGA West represents about 260 CBS News reporters, producers, graphic artists and others in various cities under a collective bargaining agreement, filed the complaint Friday morning in an email. to CBS News’ legal representatives that was agreed in the latest round of contract negotiations. Some salary changes have not yet been implemented. In particular, the union says most of the company’s employees have not received back pay since April 3, which the new ratified contract provides. According to union information, no one received retroactive overtime compensation.
In addition, WGA East states that “temporary workers” (daily workers) have not received back pay nor have they yet received the negotiated minimum wage increase (3.5% increase in the first year of contract). The new higher fees for active producers and publishers, the union said, have not yet been set, nor have they been paid retroactively from these higher fees.
In a comment, a spokesperson for CBS News and Stations said: “We are very grateful to our employees at CBS News and Station who are members of the WGA. We are pleased to have reached agreement with the WGA on a new contract which was ratified by the members at the end of May. The spokeswoman added: “Since then, we have worked to process agreed-upon salary increases and arrears and have kept the union fully informed every step of the way.” We honor our agreement as always. “
Like many union contracts, the agreement between WGA East and West and CBS News outlines a grievance and arbitration process if there is a dispute over the implementation of the agreement. WGA East says that if the compensation issue they raised is not resolved quickly, they plan to file a claim with an outside arbitrator.
“During our negotiations, we made it clear to management that CBS News union members are angry and frustrated that they have felt undervalued and overworked for too long,” said WGA East Executive Director Lowell Peterson. “However, our negotiation committee and members focused on reaching a reasonable agreement, which we achieved with great effort and support from the members.” The only thing the company had to do right was implement a salary increase in the contract, and it failed.” He added, “Members tell us this is the last straw that broke the camel’s back.”
The last WGA East and West CBS News deal was reached in April 2022 after months of negotiations, and the members ratified the deal in May, with over 89% voting in favor of the contract. The union said its rate increases, as well as new language on severance pay and paternity leave for long-term and full-time workers, were seen as important achievements in the agreement. “In a difficult environment, we were able to make real gains,” Peterson said as he ratified the deal.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
