The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
STV journalists strike
Pickets were held outside STV offices in Scotland amid a 24-hour strike by journalists. National Union of Journalists (NUJ) members at the broadcaster walked out in a row over pay and they plan another 24-hour stoppage next month if the dispute is not resolved.
No STV news bulletins are running, with the station’s flagship news programme STV News At Six being replaced by an episode of outdoors show Sean’s Scotland, fronted by weatherman Sean Batty.
The NUJ is seeking a 6% pay rise for members to “keep pace with inflation” during the cost-of-living crisis, and it claimed their salaries are less than equivalent roles at the BBC or ITV.
The union said STV, which is independent from ITV, offered the 6% increase for the bottom 3% of earners and claimed it cannot afford to pay more.
However STV said a proposal involving all staff receiving a bonus was rejected by the union, and the broadcaster described its offer as “fair”.
The issue was raised at First Minister’s Questions in Holyrood yesterday, with Labour’s Neil Bibby urging Humza Yousaf to encourage “meaningful negotiations, a fair deal for the journalists and an end to this dispute”.
Mr Yousaf said: “While it’s not for the Scottish Government to intervene directly in this dispute, I would absolutely urge STV to get round the table with their employees and the union to try and ensure a satisfactory outcome can be reached.”
He said this would enable “a fair pay settlement for STV employees”.
Nick McGowan-Lowe, NUJ national organiser, said: “The first minister’s intervention is welcome and it shows the importance of this dispute and the importance of STV coming back to the table with a sensible offer.
“There have been pickets at Aberdeen, Dundee and Glasgow, and in Edinburgh our members met MSPs outside Holyrood. We’ve had a really solid support.”
A spokesperson for STV said: “We’ve continued to engage with the NUJ with the aim of finding resolution and we remain open to further dialogue, but their claim for an above-inflation increase of 6% is unrealistic and unaffordable.”