The current economic climate and its resulting impact on advertising is affecting area broadcasters, with many having to take pay cuts, reports the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), the union that represents many area broadcasters. According to a just-released AFTRA newsletter to its members, some above-scale members at stations such as WTTG-TV, WUSA-TV and WRC-TV who have personal service contracts are being asked to take pay reductions as their PSCs come up and they are negotiating new contracts. At WJLA-TV/NewsChannel 8, which laid off seven AFTRA members and sought pay reductions from its employees in order to forego further layoffs, AFTRA agreed to a 3.9 percent across the board pay cut - with some higher-paid employees agreeing to take further reductions. And at WTOP and WFED radio, AFTRA members agreed to a five-percent reduction in base pay for those making more than $50,000.
Meanwhile at non-commercial NPR, in addition to layoffs announced in December 2008, “after long and hard bargaining … and much scrutiny and consideration by the bargaining unit, AFTRA members gave up their 2009 pay increase, agreed to two furlough days, and are foregoing the company contribution into the 403(b) plan, amongst other things.”
According to Wikipedia, AFTRA is a performers' union that represents a wide variety of talent, including actors in radio and television, as well as radio and television announcers and newspersons, singers and recording artists (both royalty artists and background singers), promo and voice-over announcers and other performers in commercials, stunt persons and specialty acts. In 2005, the union had approximately 80,000 members nationwide.