Bank Holiday ballot

A consultative ballot is being conducted on Bank Holiday scheduling in Resources.

Ballot papers are being distributed to UPA2 categories in London Television Studios and Post Production following problems with scheduling and Bank Holidays and the associated weekends over the past year.

1 August 2002 is the deadline for the return of ballot forms which ask if members are prepared to carry out various forms of industrial action to resolve the situation.

The root of the problem has been the scheduling of RD (Release from Duty) days which has not been in line with Resources Terms and Conditions section 9(e). RDs days occur when PHLs are scheduled on Public Holidays.

Many members in UPA2 areas of Resources have complained that when RDs have been scheduled:

• No attempt seems to have been made to schedule the corresponding OD and PD on the Saturday and Sunday of the Bank Holiday weekend, or
• the RD has replaced one of the normally allocated ODs or PDs.

OD (Off Duty) days are also known as ODX, and PD (Protected Days) ODP, in Post Production.

As an example of the problem in Studios over the May 2002 Bank Holiday 47% of operational staff were scheduled an RD, and of these 59% did not have an OD/PD on the Bank Holiday weekend.

Clearly "every effort" is not being made by Resources management to schedule Bank Holidays and their related weekends on a reasonable basis. ESPG Representatives have drawn attention to these problems before Bank Holidays - with little significant effect.

The objective of the Branch is to ensure that the Bank Holiday clause of local conditions are implemented in an acceptable manner.

The ballot being carried out is of a consultative nature, and a subsequent formal industrial action ballot would have to be successful before any action could be implemented.