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As UN TV Staffing Contract Talks Stall, Vendor's Finances Shaky, Scabs In the Wings

Byline: Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press at the UN: News Analysis

UNITED NATIONS, June 29 -- With the threat of a strike or lock-out, complete with replacement workers, increasingly looming over UN Television, new information has emerged about the shaky financial condition of the company chosen by the UN to provide the service.  National Mobile Television, once described as one of the largest remote production vendors in the United States, announced layoffs in April 2008, closing offices and preparing to put itself up for sale. Its subsidiary Venue Services Group, which directly hires those who work in UN Television, the following month closed its office in East Rutherford, New Jersey and moved in with The Systems Group in Hoboken.

     VSG's Dave Shaw claimed that "this is not a sale of the company in any way, but a strategic alliance." But the declining credit rating and shifting corporate structure of its UN TV vendor should have triggered an inquiry by the UN. Instead, the UN staffer in charge of overseeing the contract has been allowed by Andrew Nye to go to Beijing to work for NBC on the upcoming Olympics.

   Well-placed sources tell Inner City Press that VSG's Dave Shaw was planning to bring 10 "scabs" into the UN to give them a tour of the facility -- and that this was approved by the UN. The UN TV-ers, members of IBEW Local 1212, responded by voluntarily coming to work on Sunday morning. After so many of them entered the building, UN Security started refusing more of them entry.  After hearing of such a strong showing, VSG called off their "scab tour." When and if this so called tour will happen is not clear. There are threats the UN will deactivate the UN TV-ers' passes as of Sunday 29 June at midnight, ostensibly out of concern about sabotage of technical equipment. That would interfere with any UN TV on Monday, when VSG is slated to make an offer. Watch this site.


UN's Ban addresses press at a UN TV stakeout: may go dark on July 1

  For now, VSG brags that it

"is providing the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, with a total turn-key solution for facility operations and technical support as part of a multi-year contract. The agreement outsources the United Nations broadcast and technical staffing requirements, and provides technical expertise to operate and engineer its multiple facilities. This includes the General Assembly, Secretary General and Security Council conference rooms, radio and television facilities and all other meeting rooms supporting the international peacekeeping body as well as newsworthy events that occur."

Note: like a strike?

"The United Nations television, radio and conference room operations are responsible for audio mixing, multi-language feeds and audio/visual needs required for every conference room. This includes the General Assembly Hall; live and taped radio feeds of news events sent to the meeting rooms; live and taped television studio and news clips anywhere within the UN building and grounds; post production work for United Nations Department of Public Information and other internal groups; and acting as liaison to outside news organizations."

   And all this may stop on July 1. Watch this site.

* * *

These reports are usually also available through Google News and on Lexis-Nexis.

Click here for a Reuters AlertNet piece by this correspondent about Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army. Click here for an earlier Reuters AlertNet piece about the Somali National Reconciliation Congress, and the UN's $200,000 contribution from an undefined trust fund.  Video Analysis here

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