http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/09/07/18446263.php?show_comments=1#18447585
Report To SFLC On Lemlem's De-recognition Of Unpaid Staff Organization by reprint Friday Sep 14th, 2007 4:11 PM Greg Guma who has lauded the good work of Lemlem Rijio obviously feels that she has made the right decision in de-recognizing the Unpaid Staff Organization. He had been informed previously about the failure of UPSO to meet and the role of management to thwart the democratic rights of the staff. His effort now to whitewash these moves by Rijio puts him in complicity with them.
http://www.kpfalaborcommunity.net/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=51 SFLC Executive Board Discusses Resolution On KPFA Unpaid Staff Organization
SFLC Executive Committee Meeting Minutes September 4, 2007 Page 2 of 5
New Business KPFA: Unpaid Staff Organization
Mark Loy introduced Anthony Fest, a journalist at KPFA. Fest explained that KPFA has about 200 unpaid workers and 60 FTE equivalent workers, who are organized with CWA-NABET. He said the unpaid worker shave been a part of the Unpaid Staff Organization. However, a board member recently sent out a memo to dissolve the organization, saying it did recognize I any long because it had not met for several months. Fest said KPFA has an interim management that seems intent on moving KPFA to the right and getting rid of democratic institutions. He said the timing of this memo was suspect because it came right when the Unpaid Staff Organization was in the middle of an election for new representatives. He said this "de-recognition" was done without warning or prior communication. Fest said the newly elected board for the Unpaid Staff Organization has high ambitions for what it can do for unpaid staff. For example, they want to look into buying into the healthcare plan of paid members to get a good rate through the larger pool. They also want to establish a real grievance process.
Fest noted the election for the current board of KFPA is coming up in October and explained three quarters of the board are elected by listeners and one quarter by the saff (both paid and unpaid). He said this "de-recognition" will make it harder for unpaid staff to vote in this election and he believes management would rather have fewer staff voting.
Larry Mazzola Sr. asked if there was tension between the paid and unpaid staff and Fest replied there was not. FX asked what the budget was and Fest answered it was $4 million. Crowley asked why they didn’t withhold their labor and Fest said that there wasn’t the unity for that. Tim Paulson noted since this memo has gone out the KPFA Board has voted 13:0 to ask for the withdrawal of this memo. He asked what Fest would like the SFLC to do and Fest replied he would like people to send a letter of support for the Unpaid Staff Organization and he had a sample letter there.
Allan Fisher moved for the SFLC to endorse the Unpaid Staff Organization of KPFA and send a letter to management in support of recognizing the organization. The motion was seconded.
Mike Hardeman asked what the Alameda CLC did and what CWA-NABET thinks of this issue. F.X. Crowley expressed some concern about endorsing an organization for unpaid workers when generally what the SFLC does is support paid, union workers. Mike Casey said that although they are unpaid, what they are fighting for is a voice at work for collective action and to address problems on the job and this is consistent with SFLC policy.
Mike Theriault made an alternative motion to distribute the letter to the SFLC meeting and leave it up to the delegates to decide whether to send the letter. Alan Benjamin said he thinks it would be important to add the SFLC’s weight, but only after clearance from NABET. He suggested an amendment to Theriault’s motion to add sending a letter form the SFLC if cleared with NABET. Theriault accepted the amendment.
Alan Fisher withdrew his original motion.
It was m/s/c to send a letter in support of recognition of the Unpaid Staff Organization to the KPFA board if cleared by NABET and to report on this issue to the delegates at the next SFLC meeting and distribute the sample letter.
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