Anton McCabe, National Union of Journalists NEC member, personal capacity
Over 330 National Union of Journalists (NUJ) members in over 100 National World newspapers and websites across Britain and Northern Ireland struck on 18 September.
The company imposed a 4.5% pay rise. That is despite £22 million in cash reserves, and paying out £1.4 million to shareholders.
In the run-up to the strike, union organisation has built in many workplaces. Young journalists, fresh to the union, have done much of that work. National World is notorious for overworking journalists. Thus many older hands have left.
For NUJ members in the Derry Journal it was the first strike in the paper’s 250 years. All six journalists struck. All were on the picket line.
The office is in an out-of-the-way part of Derry, but a constant trickle of supporters came. One brought an excellent lemon drizzle cake!
National World journalists are on work-to-rule from 19 September, and strike again on 22 and 25 September. Management arrogance points to a long dispute, so support from the wider workers’ movement will be needed.
