A wildcat strike by television technicians last night cast doubt over coverage of the 1984 Olympic Games which begin in Los Angeles at the end of this month.
The technicians blacked out television screens shortly after the nightly half-hour newscast began. Management refaliated by going off the air immediately following the election campaign half-hour which must be broadcast nightly by order of the Supreme Court. Regular programing was resumed today.
The strikers say they acted on a secret report that the State-owned Broadcast Authority was back-tracking on an earlier agreement for special overtime pay to technicians involved in the Olympic coverage. The time difference between California and Israel will require them to work all night to receive the satellite transmissions and prepare the material for daytime showing.
The Broadcast Authority directors, meeting today, rejected a proposal to close down television altogether. But they delayed the departure of an advance team of technicians who were supposed to leave for Los Angeles this Sunday to prepare for Israeli coverage of the games.
Elsewhere on the labor front, Histadrut and private sector employers were deadlocked in their negotiations for wage increases to compensate for the widening gap between inflation and cost-of-living allowances. The latter presently amount to 80 percent of the monthly increase in the price index. The deadlock, if not resolved, may result in a new wave of strikes at private factories next week.
Meanwhile, high school teachers stopped filling out matriculation certificates. They are demanding improved conditions for their summer labors for which they are well paid.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
