SAG-AFTRA Strike Averted At NPR

A threatened SAG-AFTRA strike against National Public Radio was averted oiver the weekend.

“We have a tentative agreement,” the union said on its website. The two sides edged to the brink of a strike when the union’s contract expired Friday night. NPR employees covered by the contract had asked for authorization to strike, but the new deal now precludes that.

According to deadline.com, the deal, which was reached near the end on a 24-hour contract extension on top of a two-week extension, provides for salary increases and “effectively repelled efforts to erode union protections and institute a two-tiered salary system,” the union said in a statement.

NPR wanted the right to pay lower wages to new-hires, but the union said this could stifle the hiring of women and minorities. “Management’s attempt to create a second-class of minimums for new employees may discourage diverse candidates from entering the NPR workforce,” said SAG-AFTRA president Gabrielle Carteris. “Equal pay for equal work.”

The new agreement must now be ratified by the covered employees.

NPR (also known as National Public Radio) is a non-profit media media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States.