These Unionized Reality TV Workers Have Been Seeking a Contract For More Than a Decade
The unionization of production company Kirkstall Road Enterprises in 2012 was one of the earliest victories for the Hollywood writers’ union when it came to organizing the Wild West of reality television. It was the heady era of Jersey Shore, Duck Dynasty and Here Comes Honey Boo Boo and, though it was a modestly sized group of workers, the successful drive at The First 48 producer was a notch in the Writers Guild of America East’s belt as it sought to make inroads in nonfiction.
Twelve-plus years later, however, these workers still don’t have a first union contract — and neither do their colleagues at fellow ITV America subsidiary Leftfield Pictures (Pawn Stars, Alone), which unionized just a few years later, in 2015. Now, as it’s making some fresh headway in nonfiction after years of starts and stops, the WGA East is applying renewed pressure.
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On Thursday the union delivered a petition to ITV management signed by roughly 500 members, including Nosferatu filmmaker Robert Eggers, American Psycho writer-director Mary Harron and Saturday Night Live writer Bryan Tucker, that calls for ITV America to negotiate these stalled contracts “in an expeditious manner.” Added the petition, “Long delays, proposals that are out of line with industry standards and refusals to respond to important proposals do not reflect well on the company’s stated principles.”
The move follows an unfair labor practice charge filed by the WGA East against Leftfield on Feb. 13, alleging failure to bargain in good faith. The National Labor Relations Board has yet to rule on the case.
In a statement, ITV America said that the company “has been bargaining in good faith and will continue to do so, having already reached agreement with the Guild on a vast number of items.” The company added, “While the WGA often litigates these issues in the press, we believe the proper place for conversations about the process and how to resolve open issues is at the bargaining table.”
The WGA largely turned its attention to reality television in the wake of the 2007 writers’ strike, which underscored how companies could turn to cheap and fast-to-produce nonfiction content when writers of scripted shows withheld their labor. On the West Coast, the WGA West represents workers at America’s Funniest Home Videos and recently unionized Ridiculousness. Its New York-based sister union has gone further, organizing shops like Lion TV, Sharp Entertainment and NBC News Service, formerly Peacock, and Vice before a recent escalation in efforts.
The ITV campaign heated up again at the beginning of 2023, when postproduction workers who had been working remotely since the pandemic were told to report to the office. ITV America had moved parts of its operation during the pandemic from Manhattan to Stamford, Connecticut, which raised some concerns about commutes, tax and employment law changes from Kirkstall workers.
In May 2024, Kirkstall’s union and its management began negotiations for the first time since an unsuccessful initial attempt at bargaining years ago. According to the union, there has been progress on minor issues in these talks, which are set to continue on Thursday, since. However, the labor group claims the company has not wanted to budge on its existing policies for sick time and vacation time, nor wanted to enhance its health insurance offerings or significantly raise wages. “To think about a union contract that doesn’t actually improve things for people, whether it’s paid time off or retirement or healthcare or wages or anything else, is just not workable to us,” says Phil Andrews, the union’s deputy director for nonfiction and organizing.
At Leftfield, meanwhile, the WGA East maintains that the group has been asking for bargaining dates for several months, to no avail — the company allegedly has not committed to setting times for the discussions.
With their first contract, the Kirkstall workers are targeting an increase in wages, annual raises, enhanced safety measures, adjustments to the company’s health insurance offerings and additional contributions to their retirement plans. Leftfield workers are likewise looking to negotiate minimum wage rates, raises and changes to their health insurance plans, while also seeking contract language around staffers getting rehired season to season.
“Our rates haven’t kept up with the cost of living,” says one worker in postproduction. “I love my job, I’m so glad to be here and I want to move up with the company. And it’s hard when they’re not necessarily investing in us the way that we are in them.”
In its statement, ITV America said that the union’s accounting of the situation contained “numerous false statements”; THR has asked for specifics, which have not yet been provided. The company added, “During a time of significant industry challenges, impacting networks, producers and individuals in different ways, we will continue engaging with the WGA and prioritizing our employees.”
Nelson Lichtenstein, a research professor at the University of California Santa Barbara who specializes in labor history, says this scenario is a little unusual. Delays in reaching a first contract are fairly routine, but “usually what happens is that after several months or a year, all the [workers] who are involved to begin with are completely discouraged and have moved on,” he says. “Or after one year, the company can call for another election to decertify the union.” The notable distinction in this case, to him, is that the union has not been decertified and the workers are returning to their attempts after significant time has passed.
When asked why it’s taken so long, Andrews — who was not employed by the WGA East when these unions first formed — says that, for a while, the union drive did lose support. “Anyone in labor will tell you if the workers are not motivated and behind the effort 100 percent, then there’s nothing you can do,” he says. But recent wins for the WGA East in the space has changed that, he adds. Within the past four years, six production companies have unionized, including two prestige names in documentary, Alex Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions and Liz Garbus and Dan Cogan’s Story Syndicate. Half of those have negotiated first contracts.
One field crew worker at Kirkstall agrees that this recent spate of activity has been a factor in the renewed energy around the ITV contracts. “There’s real momentum happening right now with nonfiction organizing and ITV should take the lead on it,” this person says. “We really believe they could be an example out there.”
Still, after more than a decade, union supporters stress they aren’t taking any chances. Adds the field crew worker, “Our hope is that by seeing us speaking out about this, they decide to start moving faster with negotiations and not add any further delays into this process in order to avoid us getting into other escalation tactics.”
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