Canadian Media Guild

The Canadian Media Guild (CMG) is a trade union representing employees at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (outside Quebec and Moncton), the Canadian Press, Thomson Reuters, Agence France-Presse, S-VOX, the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network, CW (Canwest) Television, CJRC Radio in Gatineau, Que., and TVOntario.

It is a local of The Newspaper Guild/Communications Workers of America and is the largest media local union in North America. It was formerly known as The Canadian Wire Service Guild and was created in 1950 by employees of The Canadian Press. It expanded to CBC newswriters, who carried it after a decertification campaign at The Canadian Press succeeded. CP employees rejoined and won a contract in 1976. The Guild, as it has always been known, increased in size from about 700 to more than 3,000 in 1993 when CUPE and ACTRA mermbers at the CBC voted to join. It adopted its current name in 1994. Four years later another 400 CUPE memebrs joined the Guild and, in 2003, CBC technicians, formerly represented by Communications Energy and Paperworkers, became part of CMG in a consolidation vote.

It is part of Ottawa-based CWA/SCA Canada, which is the Canadian arm of the 500,000-member Communications Workers of America, and also includes newspapers such as the Victoria Times Colonist, Montreal Gazette and Ottawa Citizen.

In recent history, on August 15, 2005, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation locked out its 5500 members in the Canadian Media Guild. The key point of contention was the broadcaster's insistence on more term contract employees in the future while guaranteeing no change in employment status for existing employees.

The dispute lasted eight weeks and ended with both sides compromising on this point.