In a move that could shake up the largely unregulated reality TV industry, the National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint this week telling the producers of Netflix’s “Love Is Blind” that its contestants must be classified as employees and be given workplace protections.
The NLRB’s complaint, which came about after some of the hit dating show’s cast members filed charges of unfair labor practices last year, says the show’s production companies, which include Kinetic Content and Delirium TV, have committed multiple labor violations, including some related to confidentiality and noncompete provisions.
The producers “intentionally misclassified its Love Is Blind cast members … as non-employee ‘participants,’” thereby depriving them of various protections, the NLRB determined Wednesday.
One of the contestants who filed charges with the NLRB was Renee Poche, who appeared on Season 5 of the show and got slapped with a $4 million lawsuit from producers who said she violated their agreement by speaking out about her troubling experience on the show.
Renee Poche is one of the “Love Is Blind” cast members who filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board.
Marcus Ingram via Getty Images for ESPN
“My experience on ‘Love is Blind’ was traumatic,” Poche said in a statement when she countersued. “I felt like a prisoner and had no support when I let Delirium know that I didn’t feel safe.”
Poche, who says she was paid only $8,000 for her time on the show, said producers ignored concerns she raised about her suitor on the show, Carter Wall, with whom she says producers forced her “to spend long stretches of time alone” even as his “erratic and alarming behavior and emotional instability became glaringly obvious to Poche and the production staff.” She also accused Wall of stealing from her and physically threatening a camera operator on the show.
Poche celebrated the NLRB complaint, which determined the producers’ $4 million payment demand was unlawful, in an interview with Deadline on Thursday.
“It’s finally like someone’s really listening that can make a huge impact,” she said, adding, “I am also excited that it’s not just for me personally in my specific case, but the industry as a whole. It’s amazing, really, for all of us.”
The NLRB complaint is not a ruling but rather the first step in litigating the allegations after finding merit to claims of unfair labor practices.
