With First Contract Secure, PGA Freelancers See Good Days Ahead

The view from inside PGA Tour Entertainment’s production facilities. The IBEW successfully negotiated a first contract that will cover about 400 freelance technicians working for the company. Photo by PGA Tour Entertainment.

http://www.ibew.org/media-center/Articles/24Daily/2402/240702_FirstContractSecure

February 7, 2024

The IBEW officially began its partnership with PGA Tour Entertainment just before Christmas, when employees and freelance technicians working for the company overwhelmingly approved a first contract.

The vote came one year after members of the new bargaining unit accepted IBEW representation and is believed to be the first collective bargaining agreement between a broadcast union and a major pro sports league or tour.

"There are unions that represent players within leagues but a broadcasting agreement between the IBEW and a professional sports tour is unprecedented," Broadcasting Director Robert Prunn said.

The deal will increase wages, putting the members in line with the salary scale used by the broadcast networks televising golf, including CBS. The IBEW has had a professional relationship with CBS dating to 1939, when it was a radio company.

It also formalizes working conditions, including breaks on the job and overtime pay, that had not been recognized by PGA Tour Entertainment as it grew from a small operation to one that is heavily involved in televising golf all over the world. The three-year agreement covers about 400 technicians and a handful of full-time employees.

FULL story at link above.