Contact:
Mag. My Hue McGowran
Phone: +43-1-81140-308
E-Mail: mcgowran@newsfox.com
| Pressbox | 
|
London (pte032/23.05.2005/13:50) - A 24-hour strike involving up to 11,000 BBC journalists began this morning at the BBC http://www.bbc.co.uk in London. It ends at midnight tonight.
The strike, which also involves technicians and producers in TV and radio, is a result of widespread consternation at director general Mark Thompson's plan to cut one in five jobs and also strike budgets by 15 per cent in order to invest £355 million in new programming.
Today's strike will be followed by a 48-hour one next week.
The new programming and budget cuts are believed to severely affect quality, lead to overwork and a decline in support services.
Today the main hourly bulletins will be cut to 15 minutes each, and there will be few live broadcasts.
Broadcast union Bectu national official Luke Crawley said yesterday: "This is a very sad day for the BBC. It's a shame that it's come to this, but there's no question that Mark Thompson's cuts will cause huge damage in the short and medium term. We realise there will be disruption for viewers but believe it is for the greater good."
Thompson tried to placate BBC staff by sending them an email on Friday. He insisted that he would talk to unions 'at the earliest possible moment' and said that talks with management wouldn't begin 'in an intransigent spirit'.
(end)
|
|
