“Love Is Blind” contestants are considered employees, says labor board

“Love Is Blind” is in hot water with a federal government agency, which could have a major effect for the reality television world.

Netflix’s hit reality dating show is based on the premise that its participants can build lasting relationships and marriages by getting to know another person “sight unseen” – just by talking to them. That hasn’t always worked out, which is where the messy entertainment comes in. This time, however, it isn’t the show’s drama that is at the center of attention. The National Labor Relations Board is putting “Love Is Blind” and its production companies, Kinetic Content and Delirium TV on notice for allegedly engaging in unfair labor practices and violating labor laws, it said in a statement Wednesday.

The complaint is arguing that the reality show’s contestants are employees, which could lead to pathways to cast unionization efforts and treatment in line with labor practices. However, the production companies have emphasized that the show’s participants are not employees.

This is the labor board’s first complaint dealing with reality television, pushing forward efforts led by other former reality television stars who talked of unionization efforts during the industry-wide strikes that halted Hollywood last year.

It also follows numerous complaints from contestants who have accused the show and its producers of isolating them for hours “with no access to a phone, food, water or any other type of contact with the outside world,” in addition to claims of strict confidentiality and noncompete clauses. The show’s boss Chris Coelen and his production company Kinetic Content have steadfastly denied these allegations.

However, those same lawsuits have opened doors for the labor board to investigate “Love Is Blind’s” practices. Former contestants submitted their grievances to the agency, which found that “Love Is Blind” intentionally labels its cast members as “participants” instead of employees so that they do not engage in “collective action to improve their wages and working conditions.” The agency said the show also uses this language to deprive the cast of protections from the National Labor Relations Act.

Another practice the board found unlawful is a participant agreement the cast members sign before appearing on the show. The contract includes a noncompete clause that bars cast members from giving interviews or media appearances on their own for one year after their last episode airs. Another term in contestants’ contractual obligations enforces a $50,000 fine if the contestant leaves the show without “legitimate” approval from production. However, Coelen said in an interview with Variety last year that the penalty had never been implemented.

Additionally, the board said the show threatens “employees with legal action in retaliation for their protected concerted activity.” One case of this is the show’s legal dispute with contestant Renee Poche, who sued the show for allowing her to be engaged to someone “who was unemployed with a negative balance in his bank account.” However, the show accused her of violating her nondisclosure agreement for discussing the matter and sought $4 million in damages, which the board found to be “unlawful.”

The New York Times reported that an attorney representing the production companies declined to comment. While Netflix was not named in the complaint, a representative for the streaming platform did not respond to a request for comment.

However, the lawyer representing Poche said in a statement on Wednesday, “Cast members are stripped of fundamental rights, gagged from speaking out, denied legal recourse, paid virtually nothing, subjected to the ever-present threat of ruinous liquidated damages and prevented from working elsewhere,” he said. “These practices must stop.”