Journalists at two South Coast regional dailies have set up blogs explaining the reasons why they will start a two-day strike tomorrow.
Members of the National Union of Journalists at the Southern Daily Echo and Brighton’s The Argus are both holding 48-hour strikes on Tuesday and Wednesday, which follow previous strikes by the titles in November.
Around 40 Echo journalists will walk out because of Newsquest’s ongoing pay freeze, which means they have not had a rise since 2008, and their blog says the company has put ‘mammoth profits’ ahead of staff and readers.
And the action at The Argus is taking place over job losses which are set to arise from the centralisation of its subbing operation in Southampton.
The Echo blog says: “The journalists at the Southern Daily Echo are proud to work on a newspaper that represents Southampton and Hampshire, and do their utmost to deliver a paper local people want to read.
“However, that is growing increasingly difficult as Newsquest continues to put mammoth profits ahead of readers and staff alike.”
A leaflet produced for the strike says graduate trainees starting at the Echo earn just £16,500, while a senior reporter with five years’ experience earns less than £22,000 a year, despite normally working 10 hours unpaid overtime a week.
At The Argus, NUJ members are unhappy about plans to centralise its sub-editors in Southampton, which is expected to result in the loss of six jobs – claiming it will damage the paper.
Their blog says: “The company has indicated to chapel reps that it is not prepared to enter into pay negotiations and regards the loss of sub-editors’ jobs to Southampton as ‘irreversible’.
Journalists at the Echo previously went on strike for two days on 9-10 November over the pay dispute, while Argus NUJ members walked out on 18-19th November.
Unrest at Newsquest titles over the continuing pay freeze could lead to a nationwide 48-hour strike taking place on 6-7 January.
Newsquest chief executive Paul Davidson was not available for comment at the time of publication.
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the sort of distant working proposed for the Argus is destroying hundreds of other so-called local papers. No good comes of it except for the number crunchers. look at the major newspaper companies. They are all at it. The plight of the once hugely successful Argus is a warning to us all.
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I notice that Newsquest bosses can’t even be bothered to respond anymore.
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I wish Newsquest strikers well but as someone who was among thousands of journos who were on strike for about seven weeks through Christmas and New Year in the 1970s national action by NUJ members I warn that sadly it will gain little or nothing. Newsquest will pocket the witheld pay from strikers, batten down the hatches and withstand the strike. Money saved by them will pay for even jollier drink-ups at Christmas by the very well paid Newsquest executives. It’s very unlikely they will offer better pay to employees because of the strikes. Newsquest staff should seeks jobs elsewhere – though other press companies are simillarly stonehearted. Umpteen other professions pay better than provincial journalism. The better happier days for journos are over in sweat shop local papers and radio. My advice to youngsters entering the job is to weigh it all up after a few months or a year and then possibly consider other professions. I say that with great reluctance and sadness.
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Curious isn’t it that we expect people to respond to requests for quotes. But when someone is having a go at our industry our bosses aren’t available. Probably busy at lunch somewhere or playing with people’s lives.
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The one certain thing is that the high-earning execs who mess about with the lives of people will have a nice Christmas. Wouldn’t be so bad if so many weren’t so blatantly incompetent and over-promoted. That’s what sticks in the gullet of ordinary people doing a much better job who get treated like cattle. There a growing suspicion that companies are using the economic situation to shed even more jobs to satisfy shareholders. What a mess.
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