By James MacPherson
Journal Reporter

For the first time in Alaska, a television station has voted to join a union.

KTVA Channel 11 employees Aug. 29 voted 24-15 for union representation by the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians-Communications Workers of America.

"This is a first," said Kevin Wilson, president of NABET-CWA Local 51 in San Francisco. "It was a good vote despite a large union-busting campaign."

Wilson said his union represents 10,000 members from ABC and NBC networks, and 70 independent stations nationwide.

Contract negotiations are under way.

"Our company will bargain in good faith," said Laurie Bruce, vice president and general manager of GOCOM, the television station's managing partner.

"The process is just getting started, Bruce said Sept. 14. "There have been no changes to date."

The 39 voting employees were from the newsroom, along with engineers and secretaries, Wilson said.

Sales and administration personnel did not vote for union representation.

The voting employees represent about half of the station's staff, Bruce said.

Earlier this year, KTVA and KTBY Channel 4 combined operations and their sales staffs by entering into a shared services agreement and a joint sales agreement.

GOCOM is based in Charlotte, N.C. and operates 13 television stations, mostly in the South. KTVA's owner is Denver-based MediaNews Group, which also owns 49 daily newspapers -- including the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner -- and three radio stations.