Herald Journalists On Strike Sunday

Industrial unrest at the NZ Herald continues today, with more than 100 striking journalists refusing to return to work today. (Sunday)

The journalists say that they will stay on strike for another 48 hours.

The last strike, for 36 hours from 4.30pm on Friday, ended officially at 12.30am today, but the first shift was not rostered to be at work until 9am. The journalists decided to continue the strike until 9am on Tuesday.

They are defending their right to decide whether to join a collective agreement or not. They say that the choice is a personal one, but the company is demanding that more than 30 journalists be automatically excluded from the agreement.

The positions of four current union members have been targeted directly, and many more could be affected.

“We will not abandon any of our members,” delegate James Gardiner said today.

“We regard the company’s position as unfair, unprincipled and contrary to the intent of the current employment law. The company’s use of a full-page advertisement in Saturday’s NZ Herald to outline its position without giving staff a right of reply is an abuse of its power as a newspaper publisher and an insult to its readers who should reasonable be able to expect a full and balanced coverage of any issue, regardless of the parties involved.”

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