Ballot Underway On BBC Deal

Continuing efforts to find other ways of shedding BBC jobs than redundancy have now seen all BBC and BBC Worldwide members receiving consultative ballot forms linked to these critical talks with the BBC.
BECTU - the leading trade union behind the negotiations - has urged members to take part in what it has described as "these important consultative exercises" and to return their ballot forms by return post to Electoral Reform Services.
Since the agreement in principle affecting BBC staff was arrived at in January "there have been intensive efforts to find alternatives to redundancy wherever members have been threatened by compulsory job closures," explained BECTU President Tony Lennon.
The numbers of BBC staff willing to consider voluntary severance has increased since the agreement was produced.
This movement has been assisted by certain of the provisions in the agreement including the proposed preferred supplier arrangements and the willingness of BBC Vision to accept more volunteers than previously.
"That said, BBC Vision remains the single biggest problem area with the expectation that management will continue to seek a number of compulsory redundancies." explained BECTU Supervisory Official, Helen Ryan.
The BBC agreement which members are being invited to vote on spans changes to the existing redundancy agreement, the restoration of reward for unpredictable working and confirmation of the deal on the 2007/8 pay award.
The BBC also agreed as part of the talks with BECTU, the NUJ and Unite, to stagger the proposed increase in staff pension contributions.
Pension contributions were due to rise by 1.5% in August 2008, however the proposal now is that the increase be phased in over a two-year period.
The ballot for members in BBC Worldwide deals with proposals for the extension of the existing pension augmentation rules and equivalent plans for an increase in staff pension contributions.
(BMcC)