By Guild Staff
Full-time and part-time Materials Managers at KTLA have voted unanimously to be represented by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) and its post-production local, the Motion Picture Editors Guild. The vote was conducted today by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) at KTLA’s historic Sunset Boulevard studios.
The majority of KTLA’s other technicians and craftspeople have been represented by IATSE since 1956, and the union’s current agreement covers roughly two hundred skilled behind- the-scenes workers at the station. This newly organized group had not previously been union-represented.
The organized group consists of about a dozen Materials Managers. These employees play a critical role in KTLA’s news operation — assisting in editing segments, performing quality assurance functions, and managing the station’s extensive media archive by storing and retrieving essential visual elements. Despite their vital contributions, they have long worked without the protections and benefits of a union contract.
“We are proud to welcome these hardworking professionals into the Editors Guild family,” said Alan Heim, ACE, Editors Guild President. “KTLA’s Materials Managers stood up for each other and for their right to a voice at work. These folks know the value of their work, and they deserve a seat at the table. We are thrilled we were able to help get them that win.”
The vote comes after Nexstar, KTLA’s parent company, refused to voluntarily recognize the union, despite a strong majority of the group having signed authorization cards. In the lead-
up to the election, the company launched an aggressive anti-union campaign, including threats to deny employees work opportunities elsewhere within Nexstar if they were to vote to unionize.
The IATSE will now move to begin the process of bargaining to incorporate the newly organized unit into the decades-old union contract covering their colleagues at the station.
Motion Picture Editors Guild, IATSE Local 700, represents approximately 8,000 professionals in post-production and other job categories of the film, TV and streaming industries.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) is a labor union representing over 170,000 technicians, artisans and craftspersons in the entertainment industry, including live events, motion picture and television production, broadcast, and trade shows in the United States and Canada.
