🗞️ Portland KGW-TV: NLRB Approves Union Election for 20 TV Producers and Digital Content Staff

The National Labor Relations Board Region 19 Director Ronald K. Hooks issued a Decision and Direction of Election on January 29, 2026, approving IBEW Local 48's petition to expand its bargaining unit at Portland NBC affiliate KGW-TV. The union seeks to add 20 newsroom employees—10 producers, 7 digital content producers, and 3 content coordinators—to its existing unit of directors and broadcast engineers through an Armour-Globe self-determination election.

KGW-TV challenged the petition on three grounds: arguing the employees lacked sufficient community of interest with the existing unit, claiming certain employees were statutory supervisors or managers, and citing an imminent reorganization of digital staff. The Regional Director rejected each argument, finding the voting group constitutes an "identifiable, distinct segment" that shares a community of interest with current unit members based on high functional integration, regular workplace contact, and similar terms and conditions of employment.

The decision applied the Armour-Globe doctrine, established in Globe Machine & Stamping Co. (1937) and Armour & Co. (1942), which permits incumbent unions to add unrepresented employees to existing units through self-determination elections when two conditions are met: the petitioned-for employees constitute an identifiable, distinct segment, and they share a community of interest with the existing unit.

On the supervisory status question, the Director found that producers neither "assign" work nor "responsibly direct" employees as defined in Section 2(11) of the National Labor Relations Act. While producers make editorial decisions about newscasts, they don't select anchors, reporters, or directors for their programs—those assignments are made at higher management levels. The decision noted that when producers do assign specific reporters or editors to stories, these choices are based on routine factors like subject matter familiarity or geographic location rather than independent judgment.

Applying the Oakwood Healthcare standard, the Director determined that producers' authority to make production decisions doesn't equate to supervisory authority over personnel. The evidence showed producers are evaluated on the overall quality of broadcasts but aren't held accountable for the specific performance of other employees—a key distinction in supervisory status determinations.

The Regional Director also rejected KGW-TV's claim that digital content producers are managerial employees excluded from union representation. The employer argued these employees' autonomous editorial decisions about what content to publish constitute policy-making authority. However, the Director distinguished between editorial policy-making—which would be managerial—and newsworthiness judgments, which are professional decisions. The decision cited The Republican Co. (2014), noting that only employees who "formulate, determine, and effectuate" organizational editorial policies qualify as managers, not those making routine content decisions.

KGW-TV's argument about an imminent reorganization merging digital content producers and content coordinators was dismissed as insufficient grounds for delaying the election. The Director noted that workplace changes are constant and that Board precedent requires dismissing petitions only when operations are definitively ceasing or when the workforce is not substantial and representative—neither of which applied here.

The election is scheduled for February 19, 2026, at KGW-TV's Portland facility. If a majority votes yes, the newsroom employees will join IBEW Local 48's existing bargaining unit. The case represents an application of longstanding NLRB principles to evolving newsroom organizational structures in the broadcast television industry.

Key Points

• NLRB approves self-determination election for 20 KGW-TV newsroom employees to join IBEW Local 48's existing unit
• Producers found to lack supervisory authority despite making editorial decisions about broadcast content
• Digital content producers determined to be employees, not managers, as they make newsworthiness judgments rather than policy decisions
• High functional integration between directors and producers in creating broadcasts weighed heavily in community of interest analysis
• Planned reorganization of digital positions ruled insufficient grounds to dismiss petition
• Election scheduled for February 19, 2026, with approximately 20 eligible voters
• Decision applies Armour-Globe doctrine requiring identifiable, distinct segment with shared community of interest
• Employer bore burden of proving supervisory or managerial status and failed to meet it
• All newsroom employees share similar hourly pay structures, scheduling flexibility requirements, and ethical journalism policies

Primary Source Author: Ronald K. Hooks, Regional Director

Primary Source: Decision and Direction of Election, National Labor Relations Board Region 19, Case 19-RC-376874

Primary Source Link: https://apps.nlrb.gov/link/document.aspx/09031d458417dd8c

Supplemental Links

• NLRB: National Labor Relations Act
• Armour-Globe Self-Determination Elections Explained
• NLRB v. Raytheon Co., 918 F.2d 249 (1st Cir. 1990)
• Oakwood Healthcare, Inc., 348 NLRB 686 (2006)
• Warner-Lambert Co., 298 NLRB 993 (1990)
• Television Producers and Supervisory Status Analysis
• IBEW Local 48
• Community of Interest Standards