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Toronto Star, union reach new agreement on outsourcing
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January 19, 2010 - Posted by Regan Ray
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The Toronto Star
has reached an agreement with the Southern Ontario Newsmedia Guild
regarding the union's proposed alternatives to outsourcing. The Star will not
be outsourcing its pagination and copy editing work, but ad building
and other work in the pre-publishing division will still be contracted
out.
In a memo to employees (the full text of the memo is pasted below), Star publisher
John Cruickshank told employees that "this alternative to contracting
out will still result in a number of layoffs in the newsroom, with
details on specific numbers to be communicated as soon as possible." In November...
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La Presse reaches deal with three unions
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November 20, 2009 - Posted by Regan Ray
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Montreal newspaper La Presse has reached an agreement in principle with three unions including the union that handles editorial and newsroom staff...
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Battle for presidency of FPJQ
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November 9, 2009 - Posted by Regan Ray
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The Fédération professionnelle des journalistes
du Québec (FPJQ) is holding its annual conference starting
Nov. 14 in Sherbrooke, Que. Along
with seminars and professional development workshops, the conference
also gives members a chance to vote on its board of directors. Current
FPJQ president François Bourque isn't running again. On his blog...
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[UPDATED] Toronto Star offering voluntary severance packages, layoffs likely
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November 3, 2009 - Posted by Regan Ray
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[Note: This post has been updated] The Toronto Star is
"seriously considering contracting out segments of work" and is
therefore asking employees to consider voluntary severance packages in
advance of likely layoffs, Star publisher John Cruickshank told staff today in a memo. In a note to employees (the full text of this memo is pasted at the bottom of this post.), Cruickshank told staff...
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Canadian Freelance Union bylaws approved by members
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October 14, 2009 - Posted by Regan Ray
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The Canadian Freelance Union (CFU) is now fully legal, its president
has announced. The CFU's charter members voted on a series of bylaws
and they were overwhelmingly approved (94 per cent in favour). Here are some details distributed by CFU president Michael OReilly...
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Writers unite in boycott of Transcontinental
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September 30, 2009 - Posted by Deborah Jones
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It's about time that independent writers got our act together, and if it takes a boycott of Canadian Living, More, Elle Canada, Homemakers, and Vancouver Magazine to protest Transcontinental's odious new contract, so be it.
More than a dozen organizations of Canadian writers "are calling on the thousands of writers they represent to not write for any publications owned by Transcontinental Media, effective immediately," said a press release.
Can a boycott hold up against the pressure of
thousands of writers eagerly lined up hoping for a shot of the action -- and
willing to risk their own skins to undermine efforts by professional
writers to improve everyone's lot? I wouldn't bet on it -- writers are just as naive, uninformed and unprincipled as the general population. There is no "strike" fund for freelance writers. But I still support the boycott, and I ask that you do as well.
What's really needed, imo, are changes to Canada's anti-trust laws to give them teeth -- but that might be even harder to push through than a boycott. Even the most ardent capitalists agree that free markets are no longer "free" when monopolies take over -- and Canadian media is arguably controlled by a collection of mini-monopolies that stifle the free enterprise of competitors, as well as of entrepreneurial writers.
Click "more" to read the full press release. Here is a link to the astonishing number of publications owned by Transcontinental.
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Freelance union gets commitment from CEP
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July 17, 2009 - Posted by Regan Ray
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The Canadian Freelance Union (CFU) has received a three-year commitment
from the national Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of
Canada (CEP), CFU interim president Michael OReilly has announced. The CFU Bulletin stated...
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Toronto Star outsources, 27 jobs cut
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July 8, 2009 - Posted by Regan Ray
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The Toronto Star's
classified advertising work is being outsourced to a Buffalo-based
company and 27 unionized jobs will be cut, according to the
Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada that represents
the employees. Maureen Dawson, who chairs the Star unit of the Southern Ontario Newsmedia Guild (SONG), said in a news release...
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