A one-day strike which had been planned for a weekly newspaper today in protest at plans to make a reporter redundant has been cancelled.

Members of the National Union of Journalists chapel at the Rotherham Advertiser had been due to begin a 24-hour strike this morning in protest at plans to axe its Father of Chapel, Phil Turner, who has been with the paper for 30 years.

The strike was called off yesterday afternoon but it is unclear as yet whether Phil will be remaining at the Advertiser with the union and the paper’s publishers giving conflicting reports on the situation.

In a statement yesterday, the union claimed the redundancy threat had been lifted, but the company has refused to confirm this and accused the union of breaking an agreement not to comment publicly on the case.

The proposal to make Phil redundant had received widespread criticism from members of the NUJ and other unions, who held a protest rally in Rotherham at the weekend to show their support for the reporter, which was attended by around 250 people.

Phil also received backing from local politicians, including the town’s MP Sarah Champion and Linda McAvan, the MEP for Yorkshire and the Humber, who wrote to management at the weekly.

The Facebook page set up in support of Phil Turner.

Said Phil: “I am truly grateful for all the support and solidarity that has been shown to both me and the chapel.

“It has been a difficult time but this fortified me and helped us come to a proper conclusion. I am sure that all this support was crucial in bringing about this outcome.”

The chapel claimed that Phil was targeted for compulsory redundancy because of his union role – but the company has described this as “nonsense.”

The Advertiser was previously owned by the Garnett Dickinson Group but was sold in March to Regional Media Ltd, led by Nick Alexander, a former chief executive of the group.

According to the NUJ, the redundancy process was started because the company wanted to make one post redundant among 12 of the 15 editorial staff and Phil was selected for this.

It also said discussions between the NUJ and management have also resulted in management agreeing to sign a new house agreement with the union.

Chris Morley, Northern & Midlands NUJ organiser, said: “I’m glad that the company has had the good sense to think again about this whole issue and put its relations with the NUJ once again on a firm and positive footing. I welcome the pragmatic approach displayed by the company in this regard.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who contributed to the huge groundswell of solidarity for Phil and the NUJ during this dispute. It really did make a difference.

“There were calls in some quarters to boycott the Advertiser because of its actions against Phil. I wish to make it absolutely clear that this was never advocated by Phil, the chapel or the NUJ and we urge local people to now get behind the paper to help it and its journalists to a successful future.”

The union’s campaign to save Phil’s job also resulted in a Facebook page being set up, which was “liked” by more than 1,000 people.

A company spokesman said: “It would be inappropriate for us to comment at this stage, as was agreed with the union, and we would suggest this agreement is abided by.

“We will comment further when it becomes apparent what is actually happening.”