• by Paul Gough , November 21, 2003

What a difference a couple of days can make in the spot radio ad rep business.

Less than a week after 130-150 Katz Radio Group employees followed three of their supervisors out the door to join competitor Interep, 130 have returned to their previous jobs.

It's the latest development in a story that has sent shock waves through the spot radio business since Friday, when Interep said three Katz executives had joined the company. But it's not destined to be the last, as both companies are now checking with their lawyers.

Katz said that by Wednesday afternoon, some 130 employees had returned to work at Katz Radio and another rep firm, Christal Radio. The company was still sorting out the details, a spokeswoman said. It wasn't clear whether the returning employees represented most or all of those who had left.

"We are in the process of welcoming back all the sellers who had worked within Katz Radio and Christal Radio in New York and throughout the regional offices as of last Friday," said Stu Olds, chief executive officer of the Katz Media Group, in a prepared statement. The company had no further comments.

For its part, Interep declined to comment, except to release a statement.

"Interep is aware that Katz Radio Group today took actions to interfere with the recent expansion of our staff and leadership team. Although Interep strongly questions the legitimacy of Katz's behavior, we are still gathering the facts," the statement read. "When we have all the information, we will take any and all necessary, lawful actions to stop any wrongful interference with our business that may have occurred."

On Friday, Interep announced that Steve Shaw, Tucker Flood, and Mark Gray had been hired to fill senior positions at the New York-based rep firm. Each has more than 16 years of experience in radio. The status of Shaw, Flood, and Gray was still undetermined as of Thursday.