The National Labor Relations Board on Sept. 15 ordered CNN to rehire about 100 workers and compensate 200 more in its New York and Washington bureaus, bringing an 11-year labor dispute closer to resolution.

The conflict stems from CNN’s move to replace a unionized subcontractor that provided audio and video technicians with in-house nonunion staffers in its New York and Washington offices in 2003.

The board said it agreed with an earlier ruling that CNN had improperly replaced the subcontractor, revealing an anti-union bias. More specifically, it found that the company had failed “to bargain with the union over the decision to terminate the subcontracts,” made “coercive statements” and implemented “a hiring plan designed to limit the number of discharged [employees of the subcontractor] … in order to avoid a successorship bargaining obligation.”

The board gave CNN 14 days to rehire the roughly 100 workers who lost their jobs after the company cut ties to the subcontractor and to compensate 200 more employees who continued to work for CNN without a union contract.

A CNN spokesperson said that the company disagrees with the board’s decision and is weighing its options.

Politico, Sept. 15
Associated Press, Sept. 15