ITV staff ballot on pay offer

Members of the National Union of Journalists, BECTU and Unite at ITV are being balloted on a pay offer for 2011.

According to a report from the NUJ, union members across ITV – including staff in regional newsrooms – are considering and offer of a 3 per cent consolidated increase for staff covered by union agreements. Staff outside of these agreements would also receive a three per cent increase subject to an annual salary cap of £60,000, the union claims.

The unions say they had originally sought an increase in line with inflation, claiming that October's Retail Prices Index stood at 4.5 per cent in October and the Consumer Prices Index at 3.2 per cent.

Under the current offer, staff will be offered £120 in shares and £180 in cash, subject to eligibility rules, says the NUJ.

Ballot papers have now been sent out by the three unions to enable members to have their say and voting will close at 12pm on 6 January.

"After a day of intense negotiation we were clear this is the final offer from management, the offer is a significant improvement compared to the company's first offer but still falls short of the union's original pay claim," Martin Fisher, NUJ chair of joint ITV unions said in a report.

"It is important members vote on this offer. The negotiating team felt it was the best we can achieve through negotiation and we have made it clear to management that members did not get a pay increase last year."

In its own report, BECTU said that if members reject the company's offer then it is "likely" that the joint unions will be in dispute in the new year with the potential for industrial action. It is not known what the company's first offer was for next year.

BECTU reported earlier this year that staff at ITV faced a freeze on basic pay this year.

ITV has not yet responded to a request for comment.

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