The iron curtain has fallen on The Globe and Mail, and we can only speculate what’s going on in the now fenced headquarters. The Globe staff overwhelmingly rejected a contract renewal agreement by the company, though regrettably not claiming that they were fenced in (or another fence related pun).
Mr. Gorbachev, take down this fence (or we’ll write about it)
Eric Atkins
Although any potential strikes have been put on hold, both sides are holding their ground. The unionized staff hit The Globe with a devastating blow, by refusing to publish author names on recent articles. Those who withheld their author bylines essentially prevented themselves from growing their portfolio at a time when they are on the verge of being unemployed, though their BA in Barrista Studies surely taught them how to handle situations like this.
Staff are threatening to launch a rival publication, with the name “Globe Nation” floating around. The website globenation.com currently redirects to the website of Unifor, the union which represents the Globe staff. Globe Nation will hopefully be able to pay significantly higher salaries than the Globe, armed with the advantage of no recognition or facilities.
In fairness, the staff are being shafted in a way. Management is requiring editors to “write articles paid for by advertisers, reduce salaries to sales employees and lower job security.” That is on top of the debacle during the Ontario election, where the editorial team felt a Liberal minority government was the right thing to endorse, but management pushed for a Progressive Conservative endorsement instead.
So, even though you may be locked out of your own place of employment, nearly unemployed, and without any bargaining rights, there’s always one thing you should remember: at least you aren’t being as ridiculous as the BC Teachers’ Federation.