2016.01.25 | CWA Canada Local 30130 | Halifax Typographical Union
Talks break down as Herald refuses to bend
Talks between the Halifax Typographical Union and The Chronicle Herald on Day 3 of a strike by 61 newsroom employees have broken down.
The company, responding to a second concessionary offer, insisted it wants senior editors moved to a non-union production centre, the HTU said in a news release.
“After one year at their current rate of pay, the production centre editors would earn $20,000 to $30,000 less annually. Almost all the editors have been with the company for more than 25 years.
“The newsroom unionized in 1999 over two issues: to get rid of a 10-year wage freeze and to eliminate glaring wage disparities like those the Herald wants to bring back,” said the release.
David Wilson, the CWA Canada staff representative assisting Local 30130 with its negotiations, said the Herald is being intransigent.
“The employer simply isn't prepared to conclude a collective agreement. If they were, they would have been far more conciliatory,” he said.
“It appears no further talks will take place until the employer starts feeling the pain from lost advertising and subscriber revenue.”
From the beginning of negotiations late in 2015, and despite major concessions offered by the HTU, the Herald has refused to budge from its take-it-or-leave-it union-busting proposal. It wants to get rid of a third of newsroom staff, abandon quality journalism in favour of advertorial content, and revert to the barest minimum of labour standards that exist in the province.
Within hours of the strike being called at one minute after midnight on Saturday, the company sent layoff notices to 18 staff via courier. Without regard to seniority, they were issued to four photographers, including HTU President Ingrid Bulmer, 12 editors and two page technicians.
By Sunday, the CBC reported that the company had backed off on the advice of its lawyer, saying the layoff notices would be suspended until a collective agreement could be reached.
For more information, contact:
David Wilson, CWA Canada staff rep, 613-850-5423
Ingrid Bulmer, HTU president, 902-210-3465
Frank Campbell, HTU vice-president, 902-497-0057