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BBC and unions set for Wednesday showdown
06 June 2005 10:49

BBC director general Mark Thompson and union negotiators will sit down for more crisis talks on Wednesday in a bid to resolve the ongoing dispute over job cuts.

The meeting follows an invitation from Thompson last week, who asked unions to meet him so he could "clarify" the BBC's job cuts offer, rejected by union members last week.

He wrote to the leaders of the NUJ, Bectu and Amicus asking for the sit down in a bid to convince them that the offer - which includes such concessions as a year-long freeze on compulsory redundancies - represents the best way forward.

"We have a shared interest in resolving the dispute promptly and working together to build a strong and independent BBC," he wrote. "I believe that this offer represents a significant movement by the BBC to meet the concerns you have raised with us about the change programme."

The offer, tabled at Acas the week before last, also included a commitment not to sell BBC Resources before June 2007 and to review in two years whether plans to reinvest in content "can mitigate the net job
losses".

NUJ general secretary Jeremy Dear said last week that he hoped Wednesday's meeting "will result in some real negotiations about the scale and impact of any cuts".

"We are certain that savings can easily be made without compulsory redundancies and we look forward to achieving such an outcome."

However, Thompson is unlikely to budge. In the letter to the unions he writes that the offer is the BBC's final compromise, adding that any guarantee of no compulsory redundancies is not workable.

"Unfortunately, we simply do not have any further movement to make on the offer we tabled at Acas and to suggest otherwise would be disingenuous.

"Although we want to minimise compulsory redundancies as far as possible, the BBC cannot give a blanket commitment to no compulsory redundancies given the sale and scope of the divisional change plans. No organisation could."

He goes on to warn that unless the unions give "full co-operation" to the Acas offer it will be withdrawn.

"You will understand that without your co-operation, the assurances contained within the Acas offer would have to be withdrawn as the freeze on compulsory redundancies until 1 July 2006 is only achievable if we can canvass for voluntary redundancies immediately.

"Further delay would put our savings plans at risk and impede the reinvestment of savings into new programmes and services, which is in the interests of licence payers and BBC staff alike."

Source:broadcastnow.co.uk