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Local TV workers urge council support after layoffs they say followed unionization
Summary
Employees of Eyewitness News addressed the Evansville Common Council seeking elected-official support after about seven staff were laid off last week; speakers said layoffs followed the station’s unionization and asked officials to sign a support letter or call for reinstatement.
Former Eyewitness News employees and union organizers asked the Evansville Common Council on Monday to support their effort to have seven laid-off staff reinstated, saying the layoffs followed the station’s recent unionization and constituted retaliation.
John Fisher, who said he worked for the station for seven years, told the council he and coworkers successfully voted to unionize in September and were certified in January. Fisher said layoffs the previous week appeared retaliatory and asked council members to join a letter asking station management and Nexstar Media Group to return to the bargaining table and reinstate employees.
Clover Blake, a camera operator who said she has worked at the station for more than five years, described the workplace conditions and asked council members to consider supporting the staff by signing the letter and urging reinstatement. Blake said seven people were let go—six union members and one nonunion employee—and asked for public support.
Speakers said a press conference had been held earlier and encouraged elected officials to back a boycott of interviews with the station until bargaining resumes and jobs are reinstated.
Council did not take formal action at the meeting; members thanked the speakers and said they had heard the request.
