NLRB Charges Broadcaster Wrongly Fired Workers

Los Angeles, Calif.—The National Labor Relations Board has charged the Miami-based SpanisBroadcasting System with illegally firing seven workers in retaliation for union activity—but that doesn’t mean they’re about to get their jobs back. “I am very excited, but we still have a long way to go,” said Felix Castillo, who was DJ Mr. Boro at La Raza 97.9 (KLAX-FM) and Mega 96.3 (KXOL-FM). The two became the first Spanish-language stations in Los Angeles to unionize when their staff joined SAG-AFTRA in August 2016. SBS management said it would fight the charges, calling them “outlandish” and “malicious.” The seven workers were fired in March, the union says, after SBS refused to negotiate on wages and changed employees’ health-care plans without notice. “The National Labor Relations Board’s findings underscore what we have been saying all along,” SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris said in a statement. “For nearly a year, SBS has failed to negotiate a fair contract with the union, and refuses to engage in good-faith bargaining over economics, including wages. SBS’s blatant disregard for workers’ rights cannot and will not be tolerated.” Read more