Lawmakers consider non-compete ban
Pennsylvania lawmakers are, once again, trying to push a bill to make non-compete contracts illegal. Senate Bill 442 would allow any broadcast journalist to jump to a competitor in the same market, after their current contract expires. Previous efforts in the state legislature have stalled.
Personally, I support this bill, because I don't think a station should have any say in where a former employee works.
Personally, I support this bill, because I don't think a station should have any say in where a former employee works.
posted by Howard Beale at 9:19 AM
34 Comments:
What? You mean there's dollars-and-cents broadcasting legislation pending and Perry Sook hasn't set up a web site and started a lobbying effort?
I can see the web page now: "GREEDY ANCHORS WANT TO MAKE MORE MONEY THAN YOU! Write your legislators!"
Hope it passes, but either way my experience has been that a contract isn't worth the paper it's written on. Talent is expected to adhere to the provisions of the contract but management can erase it with the stroke of a pen. Then go ahead, hire a lawyer.
It's my understanding that a companion bill in the state House is now being considered...it recently moved from the Commerce Committee to the entire state House floor for a vote...whether or not it will happen is anyone's guess (considering there isn't much time left in the current legislative session for bills to be acted upon).
I believe a companion bill in the state House has made it to the floor....
don't lower any of my taxes or anything like that. just come up with stupid ideas that waste my time.
i agree with howard though. let 'em work where they want.
Perry Sook would be agains such legislation, if I remember my history correctly, and I'm sure I do.
I see the point in stations placing these clauses in their contracts. It's the only way to get some longevity with their people, which is pretty rare these days.
"Perry Sook hasn't set up a web site and started a lobbying effort?"
Nexstar HAS set up a website to help with the fight....
preservelocaltv.com/welcome.shtml
It talks about how owning more than one station in a market is ANOTHER voice for news to get out. Funny, I always thought that was once less voice. Anyway, scroll down to the bottom of that page and check who owns the copyright. The page does make for some funny reading.
No employer should have any input into an employee's life after the paychecks stop. If they want a non-compete period, they should pay the ex-employee IN FULL for the duration of the time period. If not, the ex-employee should be free to work whereever they have an opportunity and where they want to. I'm not aware of this ridiculous practice in other fields of employment. It should cease here NOW.
9:17...you have my vote!
It's a right to work state. you pay a $10 occupational tax. You should be able to work where you want and if across the street offers you better then go for it. Maybe some of the media outlets around here will begin to treattheir employees better and reward the ones who work.
A well-known, well-respected, and very wealthy local attorney recently told me, "...no one should sign a Nexstar contract."
If you happen to have one, run it past a lawyer, they won't charge for the initial consult, it'll be free. See what they say.
I'll bet your first month salary you'll hear that they are the worst(from an employee standpoint)personal service contracts anyone has ever seen.
And now, Nexstar is signing talent to 5 year contracts, which are no such thing. They can blow you away with ease each every anniversary of the contract. These pieces of garbage are a series of 1 year contracts. Amazing...
"A well-known, well-respected, and very wealthy local attorney recently told me, "...no one should sign a Nexstar contract."
If you happen to have one, run it past a lawyer, they won't charge for the initial consult, it'll be free. See what they say.
8:25 PM
Actually, run it by more than one: there are tricks and twists and traps built into the fine print that stop just short of repealing the Emancipation Proclamation. One attorney might not catch them all.
At the same time, it's all meaningless. If you WERE to catch all the loopholes and try to negotiate new contract language you'll be told to take it or leave it. Always remember the "give and take" of bargaining with Nexstar: YOU give, PERRY SOOK takes.
WNEP's contracts are just as full of BS as Nexstars.
"WNEP's contracts are just as full of BS as Nexstars.
12:51 PM
Yeah, but I've seen them both and I can tell you the NYT's was written by lawyers, while Nexstar's was written by bail bondsmen.
All TV contracts are!
Jesus, people. Your hatred of Nexstar is ridiculous! ALL TV COMPANIES HAVE BS CONTRACTS. You are just so small town that you've never worked anywhere else to realize it.
The anniversary clauses are not a Nexstar item alone, the last station I worked at, and the current station, both non-Nexstar, have them for their on-air people. They can get rid of you for no reason with-in 30 days of your contract anniversary.
"The anniversary clauses are not a Nexstar item alone, the last station I worked at, and the current station, both non-Nexstar, have them for their on-air people. They can get rid of you for no reason with-in 30 days of your contract anniversary.
5:58 PM
Some big-market O-and-Os have contracts with NINETY-DAY cycles during the first year. That's the "stick." The "carrot" is that in the second year it's six-month cycles, and after that 12-month.
Tends to keep talent on their toes.
If you sign a contract...stick with it! Sick of hearing people cry about it. Your a big person now....live with it. It's part of the business.
Clauses like no-compete are all over the business...no use limiting your bashing to Nexstar. If you people would ever step out of Scranton and sign your names to something, you'll learn that in a hurry.
Clauses like that do keep talent on their toes. Comfortable leads to lazy.
It's just an ugly side to the business. But it wouldn't surprise me to see this bill passed.
It's amazing the amount of people who bash Nexstar and Perry Sook. From what I understand, most of the people who work at 28/22 have not worked anywhere else (maybe one small mid 100's market). You choose to work in Scranton. Last I looked, you can try to better yourself. I love the forum's, but sick of the bashing.
You are just so small town that you've never worked anywhere else to realize it.
How 'bout you pop your resume up here so we can see your vast experience.
Clauses like that do keep talent on their toes. Comfortable leads to lazy.
Sorry, but no. No, they do nothing but add a weighty layer of anxiety and stress that makes people perform at a level below their potential. Ruling via fear and intimidation only works in the very short term. Why do you suppose 50 has been a revolving door for the last 5-6 years? Knowing that your multi-year contract is no such thing is a destructive force. FWIW, pre-Nexstar, WBRE's contracts were really quite equitable, because they were negotiable.
Again more crying! I would assume this is coming from the person who slams Nexstar. It's not about vast experience, it's about the facts. Most who now work at 28/22 never worked anywhere else. The grass is not also greener. Anycase, where would one go..WNEP. The most overrated news operation in America!!!! I just wish these forums would stay somewhat upbeat.
"Ruling via fear and intimidation only works in the very short term. Why do you suppose 50 has been a revolving door for the last 5-6 years? Knowing that your multi-year contract is no such thing is a destructive force. FWIW, pre-Nexstar, WBRE's contracts were really quite equitable, because they were negotiable.
So THAT'S why so many of WBRE's on-air folks suck: "I can't do this live shot--I can't take the pressure--I have an inequitable contract."
I've got an idea for you. Why don't you do your job really well anyway, get noticed, and get a big-time agent to negotiate you a big-bucks, big-market contract.
In the meantime why not just shut up and try to get better at your job.
9:22 AM:
So, any job that has stress and/or anxiety is going to make people perform below their abilities ?
I guess jobs like live-TV, ER docs, paramedics, cops, air-traffic controllers, etc...are all performing poorly.
In the meantime why not just shut up and try to get better at your job.
More useless and hollow noise from at least one individual who has never worked three minutes in broadcasting, and likely never will. Are "wannabes" welcome here? Per Howard, yes, of course. In the practical sense, though, I really wish you'd go the hell away. I'll give you one thing, you are thick - you keep getting smacked around, and you keep coming back for more.
I'm with 9:38. If we all suck that bad, and maybe we do, why do you watch as much as you do? And you must, or else you couldn't offer all the opinions you do. Let's say we do really suck, then what kind of a moron are you for watching all the time.
"I really wish you'd go the hell away. I'll give you one thing, you are thick - you keep getting smacked around, and you keep coming back for more.
9:38 AM
You certainly sound stressed. Is that why you're so eager to defend mediocrity?
You certainly sound stressed. Is that why you're so eager to defend mediocrity?
How many ways do you have to hear that you're not even good enough to work among us wallowing in our mediocrity?
"How many ways do you have to hear that you're not even good enough to work among us wallowing in our mediocrity?"
6:18 PM
Ha dya go 'bout gettin' wuna dem hiclass biggtime TeeVee jobz lahk the wun u got? Ah figgered ahd ansur wunna yur TeeVee ads--u no, "Iffin yu kin rite an reed an cifer, u kin git a eggscitin' kuhreer at this-yeer TeeVee stashion. Puh-LEEZE! Weer despurate. Summa dese pozishuns bin advurtized fer munths, an we jes canNUT fine no wun ta takum. Hay. Howbout GM? Wanna be the gen-rul manajur? We gotta gits ona dem."
God, I love being smacked down by you 23-year-old L-C-C-C-C-C-C-C grads who think you're white hot.
It's a battle of wits. Admit it, sonny: you're unarmed. Please stop wasting everyone's time with the conceit that everyone in the world admires and envys you because you're working in Scranton-slash-Wilkes-hyphen-Barre. No one is anywhere near as impressed with you as you are.
"Let's say we do really suck, then what kind of a moron are you for watching all the time."
8:41 PM
I don't have much choice. I choose to live in this area, so my local news options are limited to dumb, dumber, and radio-style call-in.
YOU on the other hand, have several options: stay mediocre, get better, or sell pharmaceuticals.
See? I'm at YOUR mercy.
More useless and hollow noise from at least one individual who has never worked three minutes in broadcasting, and likely never will. Are "wannabes" welcome here?
9:38 AM
Why would anyone who got out of the sixth grade without copying off the next kid's paper want a $9-an-hour job reporting in THIS market? Judging from the posts, you all hate it here, and you all hate each other. I don't "wannabe" one of you.
I guess I'm one of those "wanna-bes". I've always dreamed of a job in TV news. May I ask a couple of questions?
First--if I become a reporter at Channel 50, do I automatically get a job waiting tables at The Rich Old White Guy Club across the street, or do I have to fill out a formal application?
Second--between TV and tips, how much do you guys make each year?
It's a battle of wits. Admit it, sonny: you're unarmed.
No, fool, I'd say you just proved my point with your unfunny, uninspired, and rather stupid response. And if our positions are so unenviable, so undesirable, just why in hell do you keep coming back here over and over and over again? Why do you get some thrill from eavesdropping on our conversations? Among the many defintions of mental illness I've heard through the years is "Doing the same exact thing repeatedly, and expecting different results each time." You're a wannabe, we know it, that won't change. Sonny? Hardly.
"{J}ust why in hell do you keep coming back here over and over and over again?
'Cause I "wannabe" just like you big-time media professionals: I stop and gawk at all fender-benders and train wrecks.
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