NUJ responds to union-busting at Dow Jones
The NUJ will explore all options to uphold the collective rights of journalists at Dow Jones after the company abruptly ended recognition talks yesterday.
Having engaged constructively with the company for weeks, NUJ members at Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal were told that management had instead decided to recognise News Union, which receives 96 per cent of its funding from News Corp. and shares the same offices in London Bridge.
News Union does not have a Certificate of Independence, which is issued to trade unions as legal proof that they are not liable to interference or control from an employer.
The NUJ Dow Jones chapel had engaged in voluntary talks with the company since February and were poised to apply to the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), which would issue a binding decision on union recognition with the NUJ.
Laura Davison, NUJ general secretary, said:
"This is a blatantly cynical attempt to circumvent our members' right to collective representation by the trade union of their choice. Our members were inspired by other organising efforts to establish their NUJ chapel and seek their own legitimate voice in their workplace and have been working hard to achieve this for many months. They represent a clear majority within the proposed bargaining unit covering the Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. They were within a few days of submitting an application to the CAC for statutory recognition after engaging in voluntary talks in good faith. The news of this stitched-up, behind-the-scenes deal was emailed out to the workforce in a clearly planned move - just moments after NUJ organisers were told at a scheduled meeting.
There is huge anger among our members at these orchestrated actions to try and lock them out of their collective rights in the worst traditions of union-busting; particularly at this moment in time, under a new UK government and on the cusp of new employment rights being introduced.
This agreement can have no legitimate standing in the eyes of our members. We will be exploring all options to uphold their collective rights and bring wider support to their campaign."
The NUJ Dow Jones chapel organising committee said:
"Dow Jones employees representing a strong majority of eligible NUJ members in London have been speaking in good faith with the company in an effort to reach agreement about independent union recognition we believe would be good for the company and its employees. We are disappointed the company chose instead to bypass these discussions in favour of a company-organised and company-funded News Corp. union that until now Dow Jones had not recognised. We are seeking advice about our options under these circumstances."