BBC Birmingham Starts 24 Hour Strike

http://images.icnetwork.co.uk/upl/birmmail/aug2011/9/2/bbc-nuj-members-on-strike-outside-bbc-headquarters-at-the-mailbox-in-birmingham-523791322.jpg

I'm surprised this hasn't already been mentioned, perhaps it has an I missed it, but I thought it deserved a wider audience.

As most of you are aware there are plans for BBC Birmingham to merge with BBC Bristol resulting in a large number of job losses, as well as some frankly idiotic practices like still paying the lease on the mailbox which they signed into for 15 years... But anyway. A number of my collages and clients work as BBC Birmingham and I'll be honest I didn't even know they were striking today, for 24 hours, until I got an out of office reply from someone.

Further reading: http://www.bectu.org.uk/news/1426
BBC staff in Birmingham will strike for 24 hours this week (18/19 January) in protest at management plans to move almost all network production for radio and TV away from the city.

Strike action by BECTU members will start at 15.30 on Wednesday 18 January and will run through to 15.30 on Thursday 19 January. A public rally will take place in Victoria Square at 2pm on Thursday 19 January.

Government e-Petition: http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/18774

BBC Staff Petition: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dHBZcjBhMXotcE04VGNsU1RKdlZRRnc6MA

With the move of the factual stuff to Bristol does it mean that all the offices will be left empty?

Aren't there a load of former Radio 2 studios left empty as well?

The strike won't make any difference anyway.

Well Mark Thompson deliberately avoided going into see and reassure staff before Christmas.

Its not affecting local stuff is it, only network, so MT & Wm should be ok surely? By the way it was mentioned on the Midlands thread though.

Might have an effect on local stuff if WM and Midlands Today staff refuse to cross the picket line.

There appears to be some confusion.

WM and Midlands Today staff are unaffected by the proposed changes. Sympathy strikes would be illegal.

The photo atop the page, taken in August, is deceptive. Journalists are not striking today. BECTU members are.

A lot of the Midlands Today team carry out network functions as well and are in BECTU.

I totally back these strikes. As the Second City of England, BBC Birmingham should be making much more for the network not less! The City's Media sector really has been kicked over the last 20 years.

I thought the plan was to make more programming outside London, not kill Birmingham's contribution as per ITV. I hope that one day this great City is allowed it's Mojo back...

The plan is to appear more representative of the UK as a whole. But it's much more about looking like they're being more representative than actually being representative.

As I've said previously a show being made in Greater Manchester is no more representative to the people of Plymouth or Norwich than one based in London.

The BBC has created this triangle of regionalness covering Manchester, Cardiff and Glasgow, but beyond that they're not interesting of representing any other regions on screen, they just don't have the money.

They've already taken a lot from Bristol and Birmingham as they're not in this plan of looking representative of certain cities.

And of course how was The Weakest Link from Scotland more representative of that part of the UK, than it was when it was being made in London?

There is no real reason why just because Brum is the second city, there should be network TV made there anymore than in the South West or the North East.

If BBC Birmingham staff are being given the opportunity to relocate, they should probably take it, Bristol's a much nicer place to live on the whole. Of course I know it's not always that easy for people to make the decision.

Well MT seemed normal today. Dunno about WM as I haven't listened today.

The Mailbox always seems to be full to bursting whenever I've been there, the network productions take up a fair bit of the open plan office but there's plenty else there

They would have been network radio studio(s) rather than 'Radio 2' studio(s) and I wouldn't have thought there were 'loads' - 2 at the most. There's still some network radio coming from Birmingham except for The Archers and The Asian Network

Was there ever any reason given for moving overnight Radio 2 stuff away from Birmingham to London, was it just a case of it being cheaper to get talent to London from their respective homes?