Journalists at 'Times’ strike

Press, 25 August 1980, Page 6

Journalists at 'Times’ strike

NZPA London The 60,711 th issue of “The Times” of London failed to appear on Saturday after its editorial staff in the National Union of Journalists struck in a pay dispute, the first such action since the newspaper was founded in. 1785. z-Fellow-N.U.J. members at the sister “Sunday Times” worked normally yesterday. A decision on support for the strike was deferred to next Wednesday. They said that “The Times” was “losing lots of money.” Times Newspapers, Ltd, lost an estimated $7O million in a 347-day shut-down in 1978-79 over the introduction of computer typesetting. That dispute with printing unions is still unresolved, and Times Newspapers’ managing director (Mr Dougal Nisbet-Smith) called the journalists’ strike a “savage blow.” The national executive of the N.U.J. yesterday backed “The Times” strike and said ;

it planned meetings with other,unions with members at “The Times” to co-ordi-nate the organisation of the dispute. A “We didn’t want to strike in the first place, but management has pushed our members over the brink,” said Bob Norris, the N.tyJ.’s assistant general secretary. The newspaper’s board was due to meet “to decide what the future will be,” a management spokesman said.

The dispute over pay began some time ago when the management offered the journalists an 18 per cent increase which they turned down. The matter went th an independent arbitrator, Professor John Crossley* professor of. .Industrial tions at Leeds University who awarded the journalist? an increase amounting to 21 per cent. The management refused to accept the decision on the ground! that it could not afford it and went : back to its 18 per cent offer.