Recognition ballot for crew on The Bill

BECTU officials are saying 'Ello 'Ello 'Ello to the crew of the ITV show before a vote begins on union recognition.

Campaigning for union recognition at The Bill opened this week, June 13, and until the end of the month BECTU will be making the case for recognition on the long-running police drama.

Ballot papers will then go out to more than 400 staff, contract and freelance workers at the end of June, and the result should be known on Friday 15th July. The ballot, made possible by recent legislation on union representation in workplaces, is the culmination of a long struggle for recognition going back several years.

Production company Freemantle, which makes The Bill, agreed to the recognition ballot, and the timetable, after protracted talks with BECTU.

Drop in sessions, formally called "access" meetings, have been arranged on-site for everyone due to participate in the ballot, where union officials will campaigning on the slogan "Vote Yes for a Voice".

Anyone working on the show who wants to talk through the benefits of union recognition with BECTU representatives is welcome at the sessions, the last of which are timed for June 20 and June 29.

Alternatively, the union team looking after the ballot can be contacted via e-mail at: [email protected]