Almost 460 workers at the Irish Examiner and Evening Echo newspapers are set to take a pay claim to the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) today.
Five unions representing staff at Irish Examiner publisher Examiner Publications (Cork) and its sister company, Echo Publications (Cork), which produces the Evening Echo, are seeking pay rises of up to 8 per cent over the next three years.
Negotiations began at local level between the group and the various unions over the last 12 months, but union sources say they became deadlocked after the company said it could not afford to pay the increases.
A spokesman for the group confirmed yesterday that it is due to go into conciliation talks with the five unions at the LRC. The unions are the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), the Technical, Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU), SIPTU, Amicus-MSF, and the Graphical Media and Print Union (GPMU).
The NUJ and TEEU are each taking individual claims, while SIPTU, Amicus-MSF and the GMPU, are taking a combined claim on behalf of their members. The five unions represent the bulk of the 460 staff employed by the companies.
The workers include journalists, craftsmen, sales and other staff. All were originally employed by Examiner Publications, but a number of them last year transferred to Echo Publications, set up by the group specifically to publish its Evening Echo title.
The parties involved were unwilling to comment ahead of entering into the conciliation process last night. It is understood that the NUJ, which represents journalists on the titles, is seeking 8 per cent a-year for the next three years.
It is also seeking to have the award structured to favour low-paid workers whose pay is determined by an agreement with the union made in 1995. The other unions are understood to be seeking similar increases.
A group spokesman said it was willing to go through with the conciliation process.
According to the latest available figures, Examiner Publications' wage bill in 2001 came to a total of €17.27 million. During the same year, it made a €5 million profit on the back of a €50 million turnover.Thomas Crosbie Holdings Ltd is the ultimate parent of the Examiner group.
