BBC staff may strike over Christmas

BBC journalists could strike over Christmas and the new year in their bitter dispute over pensions, it was revealed today as programmes continued to be disrupted amid a 48-hour walkout.

Sources said that leaders of the National Union of Journalists will consider calling industrial action over the festive break unless there is a breakthrough in the deadlocked row.

“That would force managers and editors to work over the bank holidays,” said one source.

NUJ general secretary Jeremy Dear said the second day of the strike was being “solidly supported” and he predicted disruption to radio and TV news programmes.

Speaking from an NUJ picket line in Glasgow, he said: “News programmes have virtually been written off in Scotland and we expect huge disruption across the BBC again today.”

Mr Dear said journalists now had little trust in the BBC management and revealed he had received calls for a petition of no confidence in BBC director-general Mark Thompson.

“They have got so many things wrong, from executive pay to the freezing of the licence fee as well as the cuts to journalists’ pensions.”

Radio 5 Live was forced to cancel programmes today, but despite the strike BBC Breakfast was on air on BBC One and the News Channel, and Radio 4’s flagship Today programme, which was cancelled yesterday, went ahead this morning.

Picket lines were mounted across the country again today, including Bush House, Broadcasting House and TV Centre in London, and the NUJ claimed that camera operators, engineers and video editors belonging to the broadcasting union Bectu refused to cross pickets in Newcastle and Southampton.

The NUJ is planning another 48-hour strike on November 15 and 16.

In a message to staff yesterday, Mr Thompson said: “Around one in six staff who were due to be on duty today have decided not to work, five in six are working normally. So far the BBC’s news output has been significantly less affected than we originally expected and no BBC services have been blacked out or gone off air.

“However, a few programmes have been lost and our ability to deliver the normal scale and quality of news and journalism to our audiences here and around the world has been impaired.

“It is always a matter of regret when there is any disruption to our services to the public and that is why I have apologised to our viewers, listeners and online users this morning.

“I recognise of course the right of NUJ members to conduct legal strike action. But I would like to take this opportunity to thank the vast majority of staff who have chosen to come to work today and in particular to thank everyone who is working hard to ensure that, despite the strike, the BBC is still able to provide the public with local, national and international news on TV, radio and the web.”

Lucy Adams, BBC director of business operations, admitted the dispute did not seem likely to be settled soon, adding: “It’s quite difficult to see at the moment quite how we’re going to resolve this. Four out of five unions and the vast majority of our non-unionised staff have accepted the deal and believe this is fair.”

She refused to criticise major presenters whose absence seriously disrupted the BBC’s output yesterday, including Fiona Bruce and Huw Edwards, saying: “Individuals have a right to strike and they have a right to follow their conscience and not cross a picket line.”