NUJ ballots on 14.5% offer
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NUJ members on provincial papers were voting as we went to press on a 14.5% pay offer from the Newspaper Society.
The pay deal which is graded to give rises as low as £5.17 to some trainees and up • to £18 plus for senior journalists in some offices looked almost certain to be accepted, despite a recommendation to reject from the negotiators. i The majority of journalists would receive half the £20. claim-which is still the biggest pay increase they have ever seen. The original offer was 5%, raised later to But the strikers-after six weeks-also faced a second challenge.
Union negotiators had refused-correctly-to put any offer to the membership while the Newspaper Society was refușing to guarantee reinstatement of journalists ' and printers sacked in the dispute:
Bill Keys, general secretary of SOGAT and chairman of the TUC Printing Industries Committee summoned both sides to a meeting and drew up an agreement which guaranteed management the right to sack.
A clause was accepted by the NUJ negotiators that the Newspaper Society strongly urged its members to reinstate sacked workers —a phrase which will come as cold comfort to the 28 Nottingham Post strikers sacked and several trainees sacked up and down the country.
Moves are to be made at an FoC's meeting in London on Wednesday to have this Sharter to sack thrown out and calls are being prepared to continue the strike-even if the wage deal was accepted-until the victimisations were removed.