View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

  1. News
December 16, 2010

Southern Daily Echo staff to ballot on further strike action

By Oliver Luft

Journalists on Newsquest‘s Southern Daily Echo in Southampton are to vote on further strike action over a company pay freeze which has been in place for almost two-and-a-half years.

The Echo’s National Union of Journalists chapel informed local management of its intention to again ballot its 40 members at the paper for strike action.

Around 75 per cent of the Echo’s editorial staff are understood members of the union.

The new strike vote comes after it emerged yesterday that Newsquest is rewarding journalists who crossed picket lines at the Southern Daily Echo with a bonus of two days pay.

Around a dozen non-union members of the Echo’s editorial staff received letters from editor-in-chief Ian Murray on Monday informing them they would receive an additional day’s pay for working during each of two recent 48-hour strikes my members of the NUJ working on the paper.

Murray told Press Gazette yesterday the payment was made in recognition of those members of staff who took on extra duties and covered extra hours during the strikes last month and earlier this month.

Members of the Daily Echo union chapel accused bosses of attempting to create divisions between staff and provoking further industrial action with the payment.

Content from our partners
MHP Group's 30 To Watch awards for young journalists open for entries
How PA Media is helping newspapers make the digital transition
Publishing on the open web is broken, how generative AI could help fix it

The ballot for further strike action comes on the heels of journalists at Newsquest centres in Blackburn, Bradford, Bolton and York all voting in favour of industrial action as a revolt over pay and conditions at the regional media group spreads.

Newsquest journalists at The Herald, Sunday Herald and Evening Times in Glasgow are also understood to be balloting for industrial action in a fight against compulsory redundancies locally.

Topics in this article :

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network