Comments on: Editorial job losses at Express Newspapers reduced from 70 following union talks http://blogs.journalism.co.uk/2009/09/24/editorial-job-losses-at-express-newspapers-reduced-from-70-following-union-talks/ Online journalism news Thu, 24 May 2012 14:01:29 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: NUJ chapel demands ‘end to the insecurity and uncertainty’ at Express newspaper titles | Journalism.co.uk Editors' Blog http://blogs.journalism.co.uk/2009/09/24/editorial-job-losses-at-express-newspapers-reduced-from-70-following-union-talks/comment-page-1/#comment-20881 NUJ chapel demands ‘end to the insecurity and uncertainty’ at Express newspaper titles | Journalism.co.uk Editors' Blog Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:49:41 +0000 http://blogs.journalism.co.uk/editors/?p=14255#comment-20881 [...] The latest update was that the company has reduced the overall number of cuts at the newspapers from 90 to 75. This meant the number of journalism jobs cut would be reduced from 70 to between 52 and 57. [...] [...] The latest update was that the company has reduced the overall number of cuts at the newspapers from 90 to 75. This meant the number of journalism jobs cut would be reduced from 70 to between 52 and 57. [...]

]]> By: Anon http://blogs.journalism.co.uk/2009/09/24/editorial-job-losses-at-express-newspapers-reduced-from-70-following-union-talks/comment-page-1/#comment-18086 Anon Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:11:16 +0000 http://blogs.journalism.co.uk/editors/?p=14255#comment-18086 “The reduction in job cuts was only announced after the NUJ had warned the company that they were not following the right procedure,” said Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ deputy general secretary. Why has the NUJ done this? Wouldn't it have been better to let the company blunder on, make procedural errors, and thus give infinitely more leverage in any settlements to the workers affected. “While we welcome the reduced numbers we still don’t know how the papers can be produced with the few people who will be left. We want to see some proper plans and we want guarantees that there will be no compulsory redundancies.” Uh, oh. Why has the NUJ spokesperson said something that essentially will make the company think they now have the NUJ's blessing - and made public too - to cut numbers? Is that really the case? Maybe time to rethink the union's role. Now the company has the NUJ's 'blessing', any redundancies may magically become compulsory. “The reduction in job cuts was only announced after the NUJ had warned the company that they were not following the right procedure,” said Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ deputy general secretary.

Why has the NUJ done this? Wouldn’t it have been better to let the company blunder on, make procedural errors, and thus give infinitely more leverage in any settlements to the workers affected.

“While we welcome the reduced numbers we still don’t know how the papers can be produced with the few people who will be left. We want to see some proper plans and we want guarantees that there will be no compulsory redundancies.”

Uh, oh. Why has the NUJ spokesperson said something that essentially will make the company think they now have the NUJ’s blessing – and made public too – to cut numbers? Is that really the case? Maybe time to rethink the union’s role. Now the company has the NUJ’s ‘blessing’, any redundancies may magically become compulsory.

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