25 April 2014

Next Branch Meeting

Monday, 28 April, 8pm
The Duke of Wellington*, 70 Upper Gloucester Road, Brighton BN1 3LQ


AGENDA
  1. New members
  2. Report from Delegates Meeting
  3. Report from Argus dispute
  4. Report from GMC Publications, Lewes
  5. Treasurer's report
  6. Trade union day at Ecostream protest, 3 May
  7. Future meetings
  8. Other business
*Sorry, but there is no disabled access to this room. If anyone has ideas for alternative venues for the future please let us know.

17 April 2014

Book now for Jane Bussmann - 13 May

Comedy writer and journalist Jane Bussmann will be performing her A Journey to the Dark Heart of Nameless Unspeakable Evil  show (see below) at a one-off performance for the branch onTuesday, 13 May.

The Blue Man on Queens Road, Brighton, has been booked and the event starts at 8.45pm. It's FREE to members - book here - and can't be missed by anyone who has ever suffered the indignity of interviewing 'celebrities' or wished for a more worthy journalistic career.

Unfortunately we were unable to arrange a venue with disabled access on this occasion - mainly due to everything being booked up for the Brighton Fringe. This is very much part of our planning for future meetings.

Anyone wanting an earlier start to the evening might want to try James McDonnell's FREE fringe performance, on at 7.30pm at The Blue Man - book here. Or try out the North African cuisine at this independent cafe bar www.bluemanbrighton.com.

Next meeting: 28 April (no speaker)

The next Branch meeting will be on 28 April (no speaker) - venue TBA, then in May:




13 May 2014
Venue: The Blue Man, Queens Road, Brighton

Comedy writer and journalist Jane Bussmann’s hilarious show documents her valiant attempts to switch from writing inane celebrity stories about Ashton Kutcher and Britney Spears, through feature writing for broadsheets, to Africa, where she uncovers the gripping stories of two men - one a symbol of war, another who fights for peace.

In the resulting book, A Journey To The Dark Heart Of Nameless Unspeakable Evil, she savages Hollywood, Joseph Kony, aid charities “and other abominations.”

Jane has also written for over fifty TV shows including South Park and Brass Eye – she was ‘named and shamed’ in the News of the World as one of the writers behind the celebrated Brass Eye Special: Paedophilia.

Fresh from standing-room only performances from Los Angeles to Kampala, NUJ Brighton & Sussex is delighted to host Jane in a one-off UK performance – marking the Brighton launch of her US book release (just don’t tell her publicist).

A Journey to the Dark Heart of Nameless Unspeakable Evil was originally released in the UK as The Worst Date Ever. Jane has worked as a columnist for the Guardian, the Mail on Sunday, Red and The Face and has interviewed Hollywood celebrities for Glamour, Marie Claire and the Sunday Times.

Report from Eastbourne DM

A full delegation from Brighton & Mid-Sussex branch attended the NUJ's Delegate Meeting in Eastbourne last weekend. There will be a full report-back and time for questions and discussion at the next branch meeting on Monday, April 28 (time and venue to be confirmed soon).

Fate of the branch's motions:

Motion 62 (Recruitment), instructing the NEC to make it easier for people to join the union online by streamlining the application process.

The NEC amendment, which effectively removed the instruction, was passed and the substantive motion agreed. A defeat for the branch, but we succeeded in opening up a dialogue with those responsible for the NUJ website and we hope that the required improvements follow.

Motion 101 (Ethics), calling for the NUJ to take a clear position on media regulation, post-Leveson, balloting the membership on the question of an independent regulator, underpinned by statute, and to promote its own representation on any bodies that are formed.

This was ruled out of order on a technicality only a few hours before it was due to be debated. Conference Standing Orders Committee (SOC), which makes such recommendations, apologised for not advising the branch at an earlier stage, when it would have been simple for the motion to be amended and put in order. We were offered the opportunity to effectively speak to the motion in the form of a question about the union's Annual Report, which we took, and we also challenged the decision in front of conference, but the attempt to reinstate the motion failed.

The branch was involved in two other motions:

Composite W (Government Policies), bringing together motions from a whole number of branches, including ourselves, on low pay, calling on the TUC to call a one-day general strike and other coordinated action. This was won. An amendment from the NEC cutting weakening the general strike call was defeated.

We were also among a number of branches proposing a late-notice motion on Egypt that aimed to involve the union in the campaign against repression, including the repression of journalists. This fell off the agenda because of lack of time.

Other debates and decisions worth highlighting:

The problems at Newsquest Group surrounding job losses and the transfer of subs to remote production hubs, affecting our members at the Argus, were discussed. We'll have a report from the chapel at the next branch meeting.

A broader definition of who can join the union, extending it more clearly to those in digital media and 'community journalists' was agreed. This is something the branch has been quite keen on, and we voted for it.

Subscriptions were increased, by 11% for Grade 1, 5% for Grade 2 and 7% for Grade 3. Branch delegates voted in favour.

A move towards earnings-related subs, while attracting support in principle, was defeated because of problems with its proposed implementation. Branch delegates voted against.

A further motion from the NEC giving it the power to increase subs between DMs was defeated. Again, branch delegates voted against.

DM voted, narrowly, to abolish the elected position of Deputy General Secretary and replace it with a non-elected Assistant General Secretary. Branch delegates voted against.

There was lots and lots of other stuff. Please come to the meeting on April 28 to hear more.

Phil Mellows


01 April 2014

NUJ freelance training courses coming up in May

These courses are open to both members and non-members.

16 May at Headland House in London
Getting Started as a Freelance - ideal for those just turning freelance or thinking about it. Covers finance/tax/NICs, how to find work (including shifts), getting paid, copyright and more.
http://www.nuj.org.uk/events/getting-started-as-a-freelance-may-2014/


23 May at Headland House in London
Pitch & Deal - this course is about the business side of pitching - selling your ideas, how to up your fees and negotiating rights (it doesn't cover generating ideas and matching them to suitable publications). There is some role play.
http://www.nuj.org.uk/events/pitch-and-deal-may-2014/

For more info, contact Louise Bolotin
http://plaintext.co.uk
http://louisebolotin.com