A previous blog highlighted my trip to Westminster to give evidence to the Scottish Affairs Committee. Well the final report has been produced and by and large the MPs have captured the concerns about the current poor state of affairs in our industry.
It gets off to a good start with the title "Crisis in the Scottish Press Industry", although I have been searching for a word a bit stronger than crisis. This near as dammit verbatim inquiry should be bed-time reading for everyone working in Scottish newspapers and a must for media/journalist students looking to join the sinking ship.
Taking evidence from the union (NUJ and STUC) side, practising media academics and the employers in the form of managing directors (Blott. Hollinshead, Johnston), an editor (John McLellan) and the influential Jim Raeburn, director of the Scottish Daily Newspaper Society the report makes interesting reading.
No honestly.
Well I thought so anyway.
Even if you just look at the conclusions...
To be fair the MPs (well most of them) appear to have grasped the serious situation and the select committee report warns of the risks to the future of the Scottish Press industry. It says that restructuring and stress in the workplace risks diminishing the quality and independence of the press and calls on managements of all Scottish newspaper groups should take cognisance of the NUJ stress audits and respond with an action plan.
Highlighting the strategy of restructuring by merging titles as "often at great cost to staff" the committee chair Mohammed Sarwar MP said:"...the evidence my committee has heard during this inquiry has raised significant questions and we urge the Scottish and UK governments to do everything in their power to safeguard the future of the industry."
While much of the report covers important issues of competition and falling revenues there are also a number of little gems hidden within. For example an English Tory MP who had been drafted onto the committee for lack of Scottish Conservative honourable members, fed the management team a nice little Thatcherite starter for ten. He suggested they might want to whinge about spending money and time jumping through employment law hoops, hindering them in their search for bigger profits. He sympathised with them for having to pay redundancy deals and stick to notice periods and other such obstacles and barriers to running an efficient business. Unfortunately Tim Blott couldn't resist agreeing totally with the eejit, while to his great credit Michael Johnston disagreed and argued the merits of working with the unions.
This little segment provides us with an insight of what is in store if the Tories get back into power.
Check it out, it is worth a quick read just to imagine the discomfort of certain individuals under scrutiny. It is a pity they never took Donald Martin with them, just to raise our entertainment value.
Friday 7 August 2009
Scottish affairs...
Apologies for the delay in posting this blog but our site has been under cyberattack for sometime with lots of viruses being sent by some eejit trying to stop our messages of wisdom to the mediaworld.
Since the last posting our team at Union Chambers have been a bit busy. The weather has picked up over the last month but we spent some considerable time trying to keep warm and looking positively on the noise pollution caused by excessive horn honking in support of NUJ pickets along Central Quay.
The dispute was settled with some success although a number of chapel members confused officials with their choice of certain terminology with comments including "capitulation" being bandied about. This was used in connection with negotiations which delivered production staff improved conditions of a four-day week averaging 35 hours. Yes, people are not happy at the seven day operation and the changes are disruptive, particularly having to work the odd Saturday is a pain, however things would have been much worse if we hadn't taken action.
We also saved a stack of jobs, with some popular individuals returning to work after being selected for compulsory redundancy. We now need to monitor the new structure and ensure conditions are acceptable, that starts with holding them to the return to work agreement which is already fraying around the edges, specifically in relation to freelance cover.
Since the last posting our team at Union Chambers have been a bit busy. The weather has picked up over the last month but we spent some considerable time trying to keep warm and looking positively on the noise pollution caused by excessive horn honking in support of NUJ pickets along Central Quay.
The dispute was settled with some success although a number of chapel members confused officials with their choice of certain terminology with comments including "capitulation" being bandied about. This was used in connection with negotiations which delivered production staff improved conditions of a four-day week averaging 35 hours. Yes, people are not happy at the seven day operation and the changes are disruptive, particularly having to work the odd Saturday is a pain, however things would have been much worse if we hadn't taken action.
We also saved a stack of jobs, with some popular individuals returning to work after being selected for compulsory redundancy. We now need to monitor the new structure and ensure conditions are acceptable, that starts with holding them to the return to work agreement which is already fraying around the edges, specifically in relation to freelance cover.
Thursday 2 April 2009
Every week seems to get busier. Let me re-phrase that. Every day seems to get busier. As the industry wide crisis (or panic as it is known in our office) grows, meetings, days and weeks run into each other.
We have rushed headlong into April amid pay freezes, redundancies, rumours of closures and takeovers. As we all know of course, times flies when you are enjoying yourself. You would need to be a masochist to be enjoying this particular mess and it is official - things are getting worse and will amost certainly deteriorate in the coming months.
I travelled by train to London on Tuesday with Stephen Boyd from the STUC. We were giving evidence (or a variety of opinion and fact) to the Scottish Affairs Committee on the Crisis Facing the Scottish Newspaper Industry. Other speakers included Neil Blain and Martin Boyle two expert/academics whose opinions appeared to be far more succinct and theoretical than mine and Stephen as we tried to deal with the economic and industrial element of the crisis. Additional opinions will be sought from Mark Hollinshead, John McLelland and Donald Martin -watch it live on the internet, the address is available somewhere on our site.
We have rushed headlong into April amid pay freezes, redundancies, rumours of closures and takeovers. As we all know of course, times flies when you are enjoying yourself. You would need to be a masochist to be enjoying this particular mess and it is official - things are getting worse and will amost certainly deteriorate in the coming months.
I travelled by train to London on Tuesday with Stephen Boyd from the STUC. We were giving evidence (or a variety of opinion and fact) to the Scottish Affairs Committee on the Crisis Facing the Scottish Newspaper Industry. Other speakers included Neil Blain and Martin Boyle two expert/academics whose opinions appeared to be far more succinct and theoretical than mine and Stephen as we tried to deal with the economic and industrial element of the crisis. Additional opinions will be sought from Mark Hollinshead, John McLelland and Donald Martin -watch it live on the internet, the address is available somewhere on our site.
Wednesday 11 March 2009
surgery required
Still in a state of euphoria from the night before (Liverpool 4 Real Madrid 0) I was fully prepared to be brought back down to earth on Wednesday morning. After all, I had helped organise an all-day surgery for NUJ members working at Newsquest's Madhouse.
Basing ourselves in the delightful Montmartre (a suite in the Holiday Inn, West Nile Street unfortunately) Jim McNally and I were delighted to see a couple of members waiting patiently for us at 9.05am. That was the start and it never stopped or even slowed down until 6.15pm. I never had the chance until after 5pm to even mention the game from the night before.
It was an education even for two old hands like me and Jim. A salutory education even, as individuals and groups of journalists and photographers joined the ongoing discussions on their nice new contracts. I never recognised any content providers or noticed any multi-media wallahs in the room all through the proceedings.
One thing we could agree on was the whole situation was exciting, very exciting. What was most exciting was the range of possible legal action that was available to the union to pursue on behalf of the excited members.
Basing ourselves in the delightful Montmartre (a suite in the Holiday Inn, West Nile Street unfortunately) Jim McNally and I were delighted to see a couple of members waiting patiently for us at 9.05am. That was the start and it never stopped or even slowed down until 6.15pm. I never had the chance until after 5pm to even mention the game from the night before.
It was an education even for two old hands like me and Jim. A salutory education even, as individuals and groups of journalists and photographers joined the ongoing discussions on their nice new contracts. I never recognised any content providers or noticed any multi-media wallahs in the room all through the proceedings.
One thing we could agree on was the whole situation was exciting, very exciting. What was most exciting was the range of possible legal action that was available to the union to pursue on behalf of the excited members.
Wednesday 28 January 2009
capital day
Travelling by early train through to the capital (Edinburgh) is always a bit of a media event. Journalists from most of the big media players join at Queen Street station and exit at Waverley, making their way up to the parliament building (by the lowest incline of course). Normally I will be going to Barclay House or to a meeting with one or two of our many political friends and it gives me a chance to spill the beans about the latest development at one or another of our main employers. No prizes for guessing which is current favourite for the chat.
Along with STUC officer Stephen Boyd and officials from Equity and Musicians Union, I met with Culture Minister Linda Fabiani and her team this week. She asked me a few times (tongue in cheek) couldn't I do something about my members and their reluctance to report on some of the recent good or interesting news. However most of our discussion surrounded the future of broadcasting in Scotland and it was gratifying to see how much progress this issue has made on the Scottish political agenda.
Trying to engage with the last regime was difficult at the best of times, but mention broadcasting and they ran a mile, in one case to vote on female circumcision - honestly.
However following the Broadcast Commission there is lots of interest being shown by politicos in Westminster and Holyrood on what is happening at BBC Scotland and STV among others.
They should be aware that there could be trouble at mill and I mean at Pacific Quay not Pebble Mill. Jobs are being threatened at BBC Scotland and the threat includes compulsory redundancies, not something the joint unions are too keen on. Talks in London, aimed at mediation, broke down today and it looks as though a ballot is on the cards.
It is crazy as both sides know that there is money available to create new jobs, which had been earmarked for BBC Local, and it could easily be accessed with some swift movement by the BBC Trust Scottish contingent. We also need similar swift movement from BBC hierarchy in delivering more network programmes and commissions to Scotland, they appear to be stretching it to 2016 and that is just not on.
Political support for the Scottish media is essential and I welcome the setting up of another initiative by Secretary of State Jim Murphy MP on broadcasting. Hopefully he will invite ALL interested parties who are keen to help move things in a positive direction and have a word in the shell-like of BBC management at the same time.
Along with STUC officer Stephen Boyd and officials from Equity and Musicians Union, I met with Culture Minister Linda Fabiani and her team this week. She asked me a few times (tongue in cheek) couldn't I do something about my members and their reluctance to report on some of the recent good or interesting news. However most of our discussion surrounded the future of broadcasting in Scotland and it was gratifying to see how much progress this issue has made on the Scottish political agenda.
Trying to engage with the last regime was difficult at the best of times, but mention broadcasting and they ran a mile, in one case to vote on female circumcision - honestly.
However following the Broadcast Commission there is lots of interest being shown by politicos in Westminster and Holyrood on what is happening at BBC Scotland and STV among others.
They should be aware that there could be trouble at mill and I mean at Pacific Quay not Pebble Mill. Jobs are being threatened at BBC Scotland and the threat includes compulsory redundancies, not something the joint unions are too keen on. Talks in London, aimed at mediation, broke down today and it looks as though a ballot is on the cards.
It is crazy as both sides know that there is money available to create new jobs, which had been earmarked for BBC Local, and it could easily be accessed with some swift movement by the BBC Trust Scottish contingent. We also need similar swift movement from BBC hierarchy in delivering more network programmes and commissions to Scotland, they appear to be stretching it to 2016 and that is just not on.
Political support for the Scottish media is essential and I welcome the setting up of another initiative by Secretary of State Jim Murphy MP on broadcasting. Hopefully he will invite ALL interested parties who are keen to help move things in a positive direction and have a word in the shell-like of BBC management at the same time.
Tuesday 27 January 2009
Interesting People
One of the perks of the job as Scottish Organiser is varied travel and meeting interesting people. In my case I get to meet various people and have very interesting travel experiences.
A number of those experiences involved air travel, so I tend to go by rail and car these days. Unfortunately the incidents don’t seem to have diminished.
Many of the people I meet these days are employers, some of them more interesting than others. Some bring much entertainment to my life - as well as value added stress.
On Friday I got up at 5am and drove to BBC Scotland to have a chat with Gary Robertson on Good Morning Scotland. He wanted me to tell the Scottish commuters and breakfasters about the madness of dealing with Newsquest.
One of those commuters was our lawyer Amanda Jones who was entertained (again) at the latest wacky news from Renfield Street, providing her with even more food for thought towards her overall legal opinion.
Graham Morrison is an interesting man and he had some things worthy of note to speak about later that morning. He is MD at Clyde & Forth and makes every effort to engage with the union, he nearly always pre-consults before coming to negotiate. I believe there will be some pain at their papers from darkest Ayrshire across to the kingdom of Fife but it will be done with maximum consultation and minimum job losses. Something I seek from every meeting these days.
Two new chapel committees were voted in later that day around the NUJ boardroom table. S&UN-Trinity and Johnston Press group chapels have new officer structures to help build the union strength. They will be needed as they discussed the latest thoughts and strategies of their “talented and imaginative” employers. Indeed it was noted that Tim Bowdler once of JP, was being recognised for his unique services to the newspaper industry. One observant FoC said he was certainly not unique, there are others who have caused similar levels of damage in recent years.
Travel was looming and as I boarded the train to London, my hope was to get some sleep before meeting my fellow officials at Kings Cross, prior to the Saturday jobs summit.
I was woken up by a loud announcement as the train guard informed us that an incident on the tracks meant everyone would have to get off at Preston. After some confusion as to where the buses were situated we set off to Wigan in the rain. It took nearly an hour from start to finish and of course all trains north and southbound were delayed. Temporary solution was to sample the delights of a local hostelry frequented by Wigan’s chosen few.
Back at the station platform delays south, like the travellers, were excessive. Estimated time of arrival in Euston was early hours depending on lots of things. I would have been up at 8am to speak at the NUJ jobs summit, however there was a train on platform 5 heading to Glasgow. After making my way back and forth twice between both platforms I realised it was a no-brainer and headed back north.
A number of those experiences involved air travel, so I tend to go by rail and car these days. Unfortunately the incidents don’t seem to have diminished.
Many of the people I meet these days are employers, some of them more interesting than others. Some bring much entertainment to my life - as well as value added stress.
On Friday I got up at 5am and drove to BBC Scotland to have a chat with Gary Robertson on Good Morning Scotland. He wanted me to tell the Scottish commuters and breakfasters about the madness of dealing with Newsquest.
One of those commuters was our lawyer Amanda Jones who was entertained (again) at the latest wacky news from Renfield Street, providing her with even more food for thought towards her overall legal opinion.
Graham Morrison is an interesting man and he had some things worthy of note to speak about later that morning. He is MD at Clyde & Forth and makes every effort to engage with the union, he nearly always pre-consults before coming to negotiate. I believe there will be some pain at their papers from darkest Ayrshire across to the kingdom of Fife but it will be done with maximum consultation and minimum job losses. Something I seek from every meeting these days.
Two new chapel committees were voted in later that day around the NUJ boardroom table. S&UN-Trinity and Johnston Press group chapels have new officer structures to help build the union strength. They will be needed as they discussed the latest thoughts and strategies of their “talented and imaginative” employers. Indeed it was noted that Tim Bowdler once of JP, was being recognised for his unique services to the newspaper industry. One observant FoC said he was certainly not unique, there are others who have caused similar levels of damage in recent years.
Travel was looming and as I boarded the train to London, my hope was to get some sleep before meeting my fellow officials at Kings Cross, prior to the Saturday jobs summit.
I was woken up by a loud announcement as the train guard informed us that an incident on the tracks meant everyone would have to get off at Preston. After some confusion as to where the buses were situated we set off to Wigan in the rain. It took nearly an hour from start to finish and of course all trains north and southbound were delayed. Temporary solution was to sample the delights of a local hostelry frequented by Wigan’s chosen few.
Back at the station platform delays south, like the travellers, were excessive. Estimated time of arrival in Euston was early hours depending on lots of things. I would have been up at 8am to speak at the NUJ jobs summit, however there was a train on platform 5 heading to Glasgow. After making my way back and forth twice between both platforms I realised it was a no-brainer and headed back north.
Thursday 22 January 2009
Welcome to the Paul Holleran blog site
I intend writing a diary type piece as often as is possible to keep members posted as to the varied and entertaining working life we live as NUJ officials.
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