Berkeley– Reply briefs were filed today in PDGG vs. Pacifica. The documents include declarations from plaintiff Heather Gray, one of 2 board members representing Pacifica’s 180 affiliated stations (WRFG in Atlanta, Georgia,) and national employee Weiling Thai, the pension and benefits administrator. The final set of filings can be found here. The hearing for a preliminary injunction will be at 9:00am in Department 15 of the Alameda Superior Court on May 6.
Berkeley-The board majority’s request for a restraining order to empty the national office of community members who have been occupying Pacifica’s headquarters since March 17th, when Executive Director Summer Reese cut off a flimsy padlock and returned to work, was not granted today.
Berkeley-SAG/AFTRA has filed a complaint at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Pacifica Radio, for unilateral contract modifications and bargaining in bad faith with the union local at WPFW-FM in Washington DC. Acting/interim/disputed chair Margy Wilkinson approved the seeming contract violations at an April staff meeting when presented by WPFW’s general manager Michele Price. The complaint report can be seen here.Continue reading Rudderless Pacifica Back in Front of Labor Relations Board→
Berkeley–The “reason” for the abrupt breaching of executive director Summer Reese’s contract appears to be a bit of a moving target as the date for the preliminary injunction hearing on May 6th inches closer and closer. KPFK producer Ian Masters has jumped into the fray. While earlier reports said Reese was fired because she didn’t have a social security number, Master’s breathlessly announced his discovery of a political donation to the Libertarian National Committee by Reese. The $250 donation from 14 years ago (date 6-27-2000) is from an individual providing a Washington DC address.
Berkeley-Appointed/disputed/interim executive director Bernard Duncan failed to appear without notice at two scheduled meetings on Thursday, the first with national office administrative staff and the second, the weekly senior management call. Duncan reported illness and may have left the Berkeley area on Thursday after missing both scheduled meetings. Duncan appeared on KPFA briefly during the April 15th fundraising drive. That full interview can be heard here (Duncan’s interview is midway through the hour-long program).
Berkeley-Confusion reigned at the national Pacifica Radio network when board member Hank Lamb from Houston (one of the 12 directors being sued for breaching the executive director’s contract) sent a muddled email to network employees.
Lamb’s April 10th email assured staff the “legal” executive director was *not* Bernard Duncan, but was instead alleged chair of the board, Margy Wilkinson. Lamb’s email stated, “Until a court says otherwise, if they ever do, you are an employee of the Foundation and there is a direct heirarchy [sic] to be followed. You follow the bylaws and job description and wants and needs of the iED, Margy Wilkinson. She is the legal IED”. Continue reading Rogue Board Swapping Out Executive Directors Again?→
Berkeley-The hearing at Department 15 of Alameda Superior Court booted the referendum on the breaching of the executive director’s contract into May. A procedural requirement to individually serve 12 defendants in 5 different cities (including one with no established place of residence) was virtually impossible in the abbreviated time frame between the filing on April 3rd and the hearing on the morning of April 9th.Continue reading A Longer Occupation and January Back Door Plans→
Berkeley-Pacifica’s payroll administrator received a letter from Oakland law firm Siegel and Yee on March 28th instructing them to provide online access to Pacifica’s payroll accounts to three individuals: Raul Salvador, the former probationary CFO terminated by the board of directors on January 2, 2014, disputed board chair Margy Wilkinson, and Bernard Duncan, who was publicly reported hired as an interim ED on April 3rd, one week after the date of the letter. Continue reading Impersonating The Corporate Counsel→
Berkeley-A community meeting hosted by the Berkeley station’s Community Advisory Board was held at the South Berkeley Center Center at 2939 Ellis Street in Berkeley on Sunday April 6th and attended by about a hundred people. The vast majority expressed great concern about the abrupt attempted firing of the executive director and the prospect of the network breaking up via the sale of one or more radio licenses. People asked for clarity about KPFA and Pacifica’s finances as they talked about the upcoming audit.Continue reading Community Concern Rises & Who’s On First? Pacifica Board Meeting→
Berkeley- Nine members of the current Pacifica Foundation board of directors (Pacifica Directors for Good Governance) have filed suit to try to bring to an end the self-destructive spiral of the nation’s first listener-sponsored radio network. The complaint alleges irreperable harms resulting from the board’s reckless termination of Reese and succeeding actions, and requests intervention to protect the nonprofit from uninsurability and operational gridlock. The suit requests preliminary and permanent injunctions enjoining the board from continually violating the nonprofit’s bylaws, breaching the director’s contract and taking further actions absent documentation of properly noticed meetings and the issuance of approved minutes.Continue reading Lawsuit Filed To Uphold Reese Contract, Rogue Board Paralyzed→
