September 20, 2013
By Stephanie West
New York, NY – Since the nearly 300 Brooklyn technicians voted to become the first union workers at Cablevision-Optimum in January 2012, the company has refused to offer the workers a just contract, choosing to spend far more on executive compensation and union-busting attorneys than it would take to settle a fair contract.
Despite more than a year of bargaining, management still refuses to sign off on even the most basic elements of a typical collective bargaining agreement. The company’s total intransigence on basic union and worker protections has blocked any meaningful discussion of wages and health benefits, leaving Brooklyn workers behind other technicians.
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has authorized the issuing a complaint in two separate cases – one in the Bronx and one in Brooklyn. Cablevision and its CEO James Dolan have been charged with intimidating and spying on workers, illegally firing 22 workers and bargaining in bad faith. While Cablevision initially expressed that they looked forward to their day in court, they instead attempted to undermine the NLRB. They appealed as far as to the U.S. Supreme Court who denied their attempts to evade responsibility.
A new complaint authorized by the NLRB alleges that Cablevision continued to interfere with, restrain and coerce employees as recently as August 1.
NLRB will hold a trial on Cablevision Union-Busting beginning Monday September 16, 2013. The hearings will take place at the Division of Judges, 120 West 45th Street, 14th Floor in Manhattan.
