Up to 100 RTÉ staff write letters opposing salary cuts

UP to 100 staff have written to RTÉ opposing the introduction of pay cuts of up to 12.5% as part of an effort to recoup a predicted €68m in losses this year.

News of the letters came as the national broadcaster prepared to today release its annual general report, which will include the salaries of RTÉ’s top presenters.

However, the wages of the likes of Pat Kenny and Gerry Ryan as detailed in today’s document will be for 2007, and therefore will not take into account the 10% pay cut that each has taken.

Last month, RTÉ’s director general Cathal Goan said the salaries contained in the report will create “an amount of hysteria”.

The figures for 2006 showed former Late Late Show presenter Pat Kenny earned €849,139, 2FM presenter Gerry Ryan earned €558,990 and Radio 1 presenter Marian Finucane earned €455,190.

As well as being the first annual report since the firmly-refuted speculation began that the station could go bankrupt, it is also the first since RTÉ put a series of wage cuts to staff members. In advance of releasing the report, Mr Goan rubbished rumours the broadcaster could go bankrupt. He told an Oireachtas Committee that, while there was ‘no denying’ RTÉ was in difficulty, there was not the sort of crisis being claimed in some quarters.

While staff have balloted to accept the pay cuts put forward by RTÉ, according to Industrial Relations News !, up to 100 staff have written to management, either individually or as part of a group, to object to the salary reductions.

Unionised workers at the state broadcaster have voted by 56.7% to 43.3% to accept the proposals, which include pay cuts ranging from 4.5% to 12.5%.

They also include an early retirement scheme and the non-replacement of certain staff. Staff earning more than €40,000 will have their increments frozen for the next 12 months and RTÉ also wants to save €500,000 through a review of overtime.

In selling the measures to the unions, the company told them that, if the package was accepted, it would not look at job cuts at this stage.

Staff have two ‘privilege’ days a year, one at Christmas and one at Easter. The company and unions agreed one day will be suspended for 2009 and one for 2010.

However, according to IRN, two main categories of complaints have been raised by objecting staff.

Firstly, they said the managers’ association had not yet agreed their cuts, though it is understood that group now has acceded to its contribution.

Furthermore, a number of staff have told management that since they have not given their individual signed consent to a pay cut, then RTÉ is not legally entitled to implement it.