At its teleconference meeting on December 29, 2001, the interim Pacifica National Board (iPNB) voted to form a “WBAI Committee” which they tasked to “investigate and recommend corrective action to the board on the range of items that define the present crisis at” WBAI. That committee reported back to the interim Pacifica National Board (iPNB) on January 12, 2002, and suggested a series of resolutions that are apparently supposed to solve everything at WBAI.

Here are the 8 resolutions passed as a block by the iPNB on the evening of January 12, 2002. The wording of the resolutions on this page is their wording as passed by the iPNB. For the full report with details, and an appendix CLICK HERE.

PROPOSED RESOLUTION TO RESTORE WBAI TO
THE MISSION OF THE PACIFICA FOUNDATION

The Interim Pacifica National Board (I-PNB) resolves that in order to correct serious, systemic violations of longstanding Pacifica policy and restore WBAI to the historic mission of the Foundation, the Executive Director shall work

with the I-PNB Committee on WBAI to implement changes at the station according to the following principles:

1. Due to a succession of actions that violated longstanding Pacifica policy, undermined the mission of the Foundation, and in the case of the refusal to broadcast “Democracy Now!” since Jan. 5, 2002, flagrantly defied the explicit I-PNB directive of Dec. 29, 2001, Robert Daughtry shall be immediately removed by the Executive Director as Acting General Manager of WBAI. The Executive Director, in consultation with the I-PNB, can determine whether there are other positions at Pacifica that might be open to him.

2. All WBAI management employees and staff members (paid and unpaid) who were fired, banned, suspended or otherwise removed beginning Dec. 22, 2000 shall be immediately returned to the positions they held on that day. (See detailed report attached hereto.) To effectuate the return of these individuals, the WBAI Committee will review program and staffing developments over the last year and work with the new station management to implement appropriate adjustments. Any persons now occupying positions formerly held by such fired, suspended, or otherwise removed producers shall maintain the positions they held on that day. If such a person previously held no position, the Committee shall explore the possibility of transferring that person to another suitable position for which they are qualified.

3. All banning orders are hereby lifted against any management employee, staff member, Interim National Board member, Local Advisory Board (LAB) member, listener or volunteer.

4. The WBAI Local Advisory Board will proceed, in conjunction with WBAI staff representatives and in consultation with the Executive Director, to design and implement a performance review procedure for WBAI General Manager Valerie Van Isler, as had been planned before her termination was carried out in violation of Pacifica National Board policy. It is also recommended

that a human resource specialist accompany the return of personnel to the station to devise and facilitate a process of healing and coming together amongst the staff. The Committee will also study various creative administrative management schemes for the station such as management teams.

5. For an interim period to be determined by the WBAI Committee, the station management shall be required to seek pre-approval by a special committee for all hirings, firings and other disciplinary actions, as well as approval of all union negotiations and contracts consistent with Foundation policy. (This supercedes the moratorium on such actions included in the I-PNB's resolution of Dec. 29, 2001.)

6. The Foundation will return to its original policy of a non-binding principle of voluntary recognition of unpaid staff under the protection of the National Labor Relations Act. In keeping with the longstanding practice at WBAI, the Foundation recognizes paid and unpaid staff as employees and their right to seek union recognition under a common collective bargaining unit and to contract for their rights. Sufficient time will be permitted for staff to investigate the services that unions are willing to provide for the entire WBAI staff and to seek representation. The Foundation thereafter agrees to begin good-faith negotiations to contract for the terms and conditions of work at WBAI. Until a new union is selected by the paid and unpaid workers, the Foundation agrees to abide by the terms of the last United Electrical Workers' Local 404 contract for paid and unpaid staff, which expired October 3 1, 2001.

7. The WBAI LAB shall be immediately permitted to hold its meetings, public and executive, at the station. In the spirit of healing and openness, the station management will cooperate fully with the LAB in providing regular reports to and from the listeners and in giving regular fiscal and administrative data to the LAB.

8. The Executive Director shall work in cooperation with the WBAI Committee to implement the policies listed above, as well as to resolve employee grievances and to take other corrective action to reverse WBAI management actions that have caused serious deterioration of program quality and workers' rights at the station. All Committee decisions must be consistent with Foundation policies as well as the law, and the Committee shall seek legal advice as necessary.

Since the “WBAI Committee” was supposed to investigate things it is indeed interesting that they never contacted me about the Union issues they addressed, since I was Chief Steward at WBAI for 11½ years. The reason for this, of course, is that the “WBAI Committee” was dominated by the Valerie Van Isler faction at WBAI. I sent the following E-mail out to the mailing lists I'm on.

Subject: Amazing ignorance of iPNB and WBAI LAB members
Date: Sun, 13 Jan 2002 03:46:14 -0500
From: "R. Paul Martin" <rpm@glib.com>
To: NewPacifica <newpacifica@egroups.com>, "Free Pacifica!" <freepacifica@recordist.com>

I was really amazed at the ignorance displayed by the iPNB members and the WBAI LAB members at the iPNB meeting on Saturday.

Are none of them really aware that AFTRA took over as WBAI's Union on November 1,2001? AFTRA came in with the stipulation that it would not have anything at all to do with Unpaid Staff. It cannot be forced to have anything to do with Unpaid Staff because of the 1999, NLRB decision that Valerie Van Isler obtained.

The sudden firing of some people who are recognized by law as being “employees” and therefore in the CBU and who are represented by AFTRA is rather tricky as well. AFTRA will have to defend all of them, and it will have a very strong legal case. I think AFTRA will probably file an Unfair Labor Practice complaint with the NLRB and then bring the grievances of the newly fired to arbitration.

Arbitrators are very predisposed to Management's side of labor issues, but I wonder if one will be found who will see a change in Management like this as a valid reason for terminating employees?

How Unpaid Staff are going to get organized has been a question for quite a while now. Are we going to be organized from above by Management and its cronies in a “non-binding voluntary recognition of Unpaid Staff?” It sounds like, with this language, Management will be able to pick and choose whom it will consider protected and under what circumstances.

And none of the New York iPNB and WBAI LAB people knew any of this? I have to wonder if this was a willful ignorance. Funny that their CF pals didn't tell them any of the complications.

And they've reimposed the ogre Valerie Van Isler on WBAI. Looks like the new struggle begins.
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