NEC: “No further action” over boycott call July 9, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, Israel boycott, NUJ.add a comment
Last week the union’s NEC met. One of the issues on the agenda is the so-called Israel boycott, which has been debated widely here and elsewhere.
For those of you who have been on the planet Ork for the past few months, the motion Composite B didn’t exactly call for a boycott, but to urge the TUC to call for a boycott. The motion was passed by a narrow margin. However, there has still been a lot of controversy over this particular ADM decision and a campaign was launched by union members at the BBC and elsewhere urging a ballot on this issue.
Well, last week the NEC agreed not to take the boycott call any further. Since the motion was passed in April, the union has received a letter from the TUC which rejected the idea of a boycott. It said:
General Council is likely to take the position that this is not a priority for the PGFTU, still less the Histadrut, and would undermine our ability to act as go-betweens”, and that “Congress, which has consistently supported the same approach, would also be to oppose the call”.
The NEC says that as a result of this letter, the union will take “no further action” on the call for a boycott. It also recognises the opposition to the motion from branches, chapels and individual members.
The NEC’s motion rejects accusations of antisemitism and resolves to continue the union’s work with the Israeli journalists’ union. It calls for members to unite behind the union’s campaigns on industrial issues.
The future of the union: discuss June 12, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, convergence, Freedom of Information, NUJ.1 comment so far
I thought it would be interesting to find out what others think about union policy. Please let me know your views by answering three questions:
1. What do you think is the big issue for the union this year?
2. What one union campaign would you like to see this year?
3. If you could suggest one motion for ADM that would improve things in your workplace what would it be?
BBC petition update May 31, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, Israel boycott.4 comments
Last week we brought you news of the BBC members’ petition, which seeks to overturn the Israel boycott. Now the petition has been amended. It now calls on the union to ballot members to find out whether they support the decision taken at ADM. You can read the full version here.
There has been some discussion of whether this is the right way of going about policy change on this site and on the Stopnujboycott blog. Some see this as part of a wider debate on reforming policy making in the union. Do you see the need for a change?
Convergence news and ‘that motion’ May 11, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, convergence, integration, Israel boycott, NUJ.1 comment so far
Here’s a couple of updates from the NUJ website, which you might have missed.
There’s a short piece on last Saturday’s convergence event and the launch of the NUJ Commission on Multimedia. If you attetended this event, please leave a comment with your views and observations on the discussion.
The ADM-elected members of the Commission are Paula Dear, Helene Mulholland, Jemima Kiss, Gary Herman, with NEC-elected Donnacha DeLong and John Barsby.
Also, NUJ general secretary, Jeremy Dear has written a piece for Tribune on ‘that motion’. He reveals he’s had some death threats and points out that those who complain about the Israel motion being passed only have theirselves to blame.
He points out that the union’s largest branch (presumably the freelance branch) wrote to members pointing out the motion and inviting them to discuss at a meeting. No-one did, yet many of the complaints came from this branch. You can read more here.
Alan Johnston April 21, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, global issues, journalism.add a comment
Alan Johnston, the BBC’s reporter in Gaza, has now been missing for more than a month. The past week has seen the campaign for his release stepped up, with an vigil organised by the NUJ. This will be held on Wednesday, outside the Palestinian General Delegation in Hammersmith.
VIGIL FOR ALAN JOHNSTON – 25 APRIL @ 12.30PM
5 Galena Road, Hammersmith, London W6 0LT
Last week our members in Ireland held a vigil outside the Palestine Delegation in Dublin.
The BBC is continuing to campaign for Alan’s freedom. As of Thursday 12th March, 42,000 BBC online users had signed a petition demanding his release.
ADM round up April 19, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, journalism.add a comment
Well, the press might be focusing on only one issue from the ADM, but there was other work done at ADM.
The highlight for me was the discussion on the code of conduct on day three. There were a number of motions proposing to change the draft code. You can read these on the ADM final agenda.
ADM meeting on covergence/integration issues April 18, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, convergence, integration, journalism, multimedia.add a comment
One of the hot issues in the NUJ right now is the issue of convergence. Basically, convergence is the current trend of the press becoming more multimedia. Let’s take the Guardian for example. It has being published in both paper and electronic form for years. Now you can go online and download podcasts or videocasts from it. Even trade magazines have got in on the act, with the publishing company VNU leading the way on its titles.
Convergence, or integration, as some like to call it, poses major challenges to journalists. Many of the publications who use it require a single journalist to cover an event or story in print, online and via a podcast. This can be very time consuming for the journalist, who can spend hours, just editing and uploading a podcast. Very often these extra hours is not reflected in their pay.
ADM in the news April 16, 2007
Posted by rosieniven in ADM, Israel boycott, politicisation, press coverage, Uncategorized.1 comment so far
The union has been causing quite a stir in the press. Most of the coverage has centred round one particular motion on boycotting Israel, which was narrowly passed by the union. Here’s the Guardian’s coverage of the debate. They also have a blog covering the ADM.
Some people in the union believe that the union should concentrate on bread and butter workplace issues rather than wider politics. Journalist Craig McGinty shares this view. The NUJ’s own ADM blog contains a post by someone about this emerging debate.
But others argue that members benefit from the union taking a stance on important issues. There is also a precedent already set, with the union opposing aparthied in South Africa during the 1980s. Some argue that these boycotts helped to bring democracy to South Africa in the early 1990s. Muslim Public Affairs UK notes that boycotts are effective tools and that a number of unions already boycott Israel.
Please feel free to add any relevant links you find in the comment section.
