BBC to meet with unions for talks at ACAS on Thursday

BBC management will meet with union members at the offices of government conciliator ACAS on Thursday, following yesterday’s 24-hour strike by staff across the country in protest at Director-General Mark Thompson’s plans to cut nearly 4,000 jobs.
The joint union negotiating team from Bectu, the NUJ and Amicus are expected to meet with senior BBC managers on Thursday morning.
There are still plans to hold two further days of strikes, on May 31 and June 1, although unions have planned no further announcements regarding the possible strike action while talks are continuing.
BECTU Assistant General Secretary Gerry Morrissey said: “We welcome the invitation to talks at ACAS. Clearly the BBC would not have agreed to go unless they were prepared to negotiate.
“We’re expecting some kind of compromise from the BBC, but can’t predict at this stage whether it will be enough to settle the dispute.”
Earlier, BBC deputy director general Mark Byford told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that they wanted to talk to the unions about the changes. However, it was reported that Mr Thompson told the Westminister Media Forum that the BBC had a plan and budget for the next few years and that they couldn’t “unwish” that.
Amicus, Bectu and the NUJ hailed yesterday's one-day strike as the most successful for many years,
Figures provided by union stewards across the UK indicate that more than 13,000 staff supported the 24-hour stoppage.
Although few screens went blank as a result of the strike, many programmes and services continued on air only by use of pre-recorded and library material, and the unions estimated that up to 95% of production had been affected.
Union estimates from local representatives said that in almost all areas a high proportion of staff had stayed away from work.
For example, in Glasgow, said the unions, only 40 staff had worked out of 1,400 in total, reflecting a similarly high turnout in Belfast while in Birmingham only 70 of the 730-strong workforce crossed the picket line.
In London, Bush House union representatives reported that only 200 of World Service's 2,000 staff had gone in, and at some other buildings in the capital up to 80% of staff had stayed away.
Support for the strike in some smaller centres, like Hull, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Bangor, was so high that stewards described members as being "all out" for practical purposes.
Management claims that staff had joined only because of intimidation from existing members were laughed off by the unions, who pointed to the good-natured and disciplined atmosphere on all picket lines.
Officials said that the outcome of the strike vindicated their view that BBC staff generally were "sceptical, angry, and in many cases frightened" by Mark Thompson's plans.
(GB)