Red Bee ballot enters final week

The industrial action ballot of members at Red Bee Media is entering its final week; the vote will close on 13 August.

At that point BECTU will know whether it has a mandate to pursue an industrial campaign to secure an improvement on the company’s 2.5% pay offer for 2008 and 2009.

BECTU has urged its members to deliver a strong mandate for action and has described the company’s pay offer as “not credible”.

BECTU has also alerted members to the dangers associated with management’s proposal to redefine the bargaining unit.

Last month, members overwhelming rejected management’s proposals in a consultative poll which reported on 15 July.

BECTU considers that a 2.5% award in the current climate - inflation stands at 4.6% - from a company which continues to perform strongly, although this year’s results have yet to be finalised, is an insult to the staff’s commitment.

Furthermore, management’s wish to take Creative staff out of the group to be represented by BECTU is seen as an attack on staff and their prospects. Creative staff work in roles linked to business development and marketing and are a significant group within the branch.

BECTU’s dispute with Red Bee could also take on an additional dimension once officials have consulted with ex-Channel 4 playout staff who transferred to Red Bee’s employment on 1 August.

The transfer agreement provides for the Red Bee pay review to be applied to the salaries of transferred staff from January to June 2009. A meeting with members is due to be held next week.