WYPR Receives Unionization Notice

The Baltimore City Paper is reporting that editorial employees of WYPR, Baltimore, have filed paperwork with the National Labor Relations Board to unionize. They seek representation by SAAG-AFTRA.

A petition was delivered to station management Friday. A statement from SAG-AFTRA said an "overwhelming majority" of the WYPR staff asked station management to voluntarily recognize SAG-AFTRA as their representative.

In response, WYPR's Vice President for Programming Andy Bienstock said in a statement: "It has come to our attention that a significant number of our employees are not interested in joining a union. In respect of their preferences, we want to make sure that we proceed in a manner that takes into account what is best for all employees and the station. The law provides for a secret ballot election, and we believe this is the best way for our employees to exercise their rights.”