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The journalists of BBC Arabic launched a six-day strike against the corporation´s management, saying the heads have been treating them like slaves.
The journalists opposed the corporation´s plan to change their rota, meaning they have to work an extra 26 days per year. But the protesters stressed that the extra work time is only the tip of the iceberg, as the corporation´s wrong policies affected the staff´s job performance.
“The reason for the strike is not just the rota, the reason is mismanagement and favoritism. The current management is dealing with us like we are slaves; that is the word that sums everything up,” a striker asked to be unidentified said.
The strike, began on July 29, has disturbed the channel´s programming, forcing the managers to run repeats and documentaries. The BBC Arabic staff planned to apply a work-to-rule, a type of strike that sees staff do the minimum mandated in their contract, but nothing more.
Michelle Stanistreet, General Secretary of the British National Union of Journalists, said: “The current proposals for the Arabic service will result in increasing the number of anti-social and unsafe shift times. This will drastically disrupt people´s lives and lead to dramatically increased levels of work-related stress and sickness."
Stanistreet urged the corporation´s management to reconsider their proposals, since the new proposals would leave the employees at risk of “exploitation and favoritism.”
BBC expressed its disappointment with the strike decision. “The BBC considers this strike action to be unjustified. BBC Arabic staff are being treated no differently to other parts of the BBC, and these changes to shift patterns are in line with current practice across other areas of the organization.
“We know the high esteem that audiences have for BBC Arabic across the Middle East and will take measures to ensure that all BBC Arabic programming and online services continue uninterrupted,” it continued. “The BBC is committed to finding a constructive way forward in dialogue with staff and is open to further meaningful discussions,” BBC said in a statement."
But, the staff insisted that the Corp. has not shown any willingness for negotiation, and NUJ´s effort to bring in the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) to resolve the dispute was rejected.
End.
Last Updated: 2 August 2011
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