NABET-NBC STRIKE TALKS CALLED OFF

A federal mediator on Thursday called off talks between union and NBC officials, saying they had reached no agreements that “might possibly” end a nearly 4-week-old strike by 2,800 NBC workers.

No officials of the National Assn. of Broadcast Employees and Technicians were available for comment at Thursday afternoon. NBC said it was “disappointed” and said the union hadn’t really wanted to negotiate seriously.

The collapse of the talks occurred on the fourth day of meetings called this week by federal mediator Timothy Germany. On Wednesday, he met separately with each side in an attempt to help them make progress.

However, after the two sides met jointly for four hours on Thursday but still were stalemated, Germany ended the talks, saying they had “produced no agreements which might possibly end the strike which began June 29.”

The end of the talks means that the walkout by NABET technicians, camera operators, and news writers and producers will continue at the network, its eight radio stations and its five TV stations, including KNBC-TV Channel 4 in Burbank.

The union says about 100 of the strikers are employees of NBC’s three radio networks. On Monday, agreements were announced to sell the networks for $50 million to Westwood One, a Los Angeles firm.

Under the deal, which still requires approval by the boards of both companies, the NBC Radio Network will retain the NBC name. During pre-strike negotiations, NABET wanted any property sold by NBC to remain covered under the union’s contract. But NBC has balked at that.

Germany could still call the union and NBC negotiators back for more meetings, but none are scheduled, he said.

NABET called its members out on strike after NBC put into effect a two-year contract the union had rejected. Major issues in the walkout include NBC’s proposals to allow the hiring of temporary employees at a rate of up to 4% of the union’s membership the first year of the contract and up to 6% in the second year.

NBC currently has 700 management and other staffers filling in for the strikers. In a prepared statement Thursday, it called its contract offer “fair and balanced” and asserted that NABET “did not come to these talks prepared to have any meaningful discussion.”

And, it said, “at no time did the two groups even come close to an agreement. . . .” However, NBC said, it “remains ready and will” to resume talks should the federal mediator feel that would prove productive.