By Hamish Mackay
In Scotland, where almost 200 editorial staff face the axe, the
strike was backed more strongly than elsewhere in the UK. Only 35 per
cent of staff turned up for work compared with 62 per cent nationally.
North of the border, out of 140 newsroom staff, only six crossed the picket lines.
Flagship
radio news programmes Good Morning Scotland (GMS) and Newsdrive were
cancelled and television’s Reporting Scotland was cut back to five
minutes. Newsnight Scotland was cancelled, and its editor, Craig
Williams, joined the picket line in Glasgow.
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Of the 1,098 staff expected at work, only 394 showed up.
Pete
Murray, deputy leader of the NUJ at BBC Scotland in Glasgow, said: “I
think the BBC will be shocked by the scale of support we got.”
Output problems continued on Tuesday, with GMS cut back to only a 30-minute live programme.
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The
NUJ fielded pickets in Aberdeen, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness,
Stornoway, Shetland and Orkney. Dundee members joined their colleagues
in Aberdeen.
Those who refused to cross picket lines included
Reevel Alderson, Bob Wylie, Eleanor Bradford, Hayley Miller, John
Morrison, James Cook, Colin Blane, Derek Bateman, Simon Willis, Ken
MacDonald, all correspondents, all reporters, all programme editors,
all programme producers and all broadcast and senior broadcast
journalists.
Paul Holleran, NUJ Scottish organiser, said: “There has been a response that has far exceeded our expectations.”
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