Two-year deal at ITN settles dispute

A two-year agreement at ITN, which has been backed by members, has headed off a dispute with the company.

Six months of meetings and talks chaired by ACAS into the early hours of 6 June have resulted in an agreement on pay and conditions [135k pdf] which will see stability for all parties until 2010.

ITN has achieved some of the £300,000 savings it argued were necessary to support its future business.

However, BECTU, working with the NUJ, has ensured that ITN’s management team have addressed the issues of greatest concern to union members by negotiating an agreed settlement.

Union members registered their overwhelming support for the new agreement at a well-attended meeting on 10 June.

The pay award for 2008 has been confirmed at 4.3% and will be followed in January 2009 by a settlement based on the RPI figure for November this year, as published in December.

The agreement also sets out new arrangements for transport home, with specific reference to staff who need taxis due to late finishes or early starts; current arrangements for work on non-rostered days and existing rules on meal allowances remain in place.

The joint unions have conceded some changes to weekend working - a guaranteed 26 fixed (Saturday/Sunday) weekends throughout the year will be cut to 20 fixed weekends - in order to secure what is, in most other respects, a positive agreement.

David Beevers, BECTU Supervisory Official commented: “I am pleased that together the joint unions have managed to persuade ITN’s management to substantially modify their proposals for change. As a result, key aspects of members’ conditions of employment have been protected.

“Huge thanks are due to BECTU’s Paul Carter, chair of the joint shops at ITN, and to Dan Wright the NUJ’s father of chapel. They have worked with the full time officials with great dedication to secure the best outcome for members.

“As always, BECTU and NUJ members have attended meetings and supported this process with careful thought and enthusiam. We have a good agreement in the circumstances; we must all use this to recruit new members into the joint shops to ensure that we are just as strong in preparation for the next set of negotiations.”