![[Freelance]](../gif/fl3H.png)
Let’s put the union to rights
A unique chance to remould the NUJ
FED up with paying your union membership subs while not feeling truly represented? Well, stop grumbling and do something about it.
A skilled pair of hands reshapes a lump of clay. The NUJ is inviting you to do this with the union setup.
The NUJ is actively soaking up as much opinion as it can and taking note of progressive ideas from its members with a view to making fundamental changes to the way the union is structured and financed. It has thrown open the doors for suggestions and recommendations, and all members are invited to contribute.
Three core pillars of the NUJ structure are up for debate: membership subscriptions; how the union categorises "journalism" within industrial sectors; and the conduct of the union's biennial Delegate Meetings. It might sound dull but these are the very things that disgruntled members grumble about the most: "What is the NUJ doing for me?", "Do I have a say?" and "Is it worth the money?"
Membership and subscription rates
The NUJ depends almost entirely on membership contributions for its income. It also depends on healthy membership numbers for its collective strength. Inflationary pressures make subscription increases inevitable; but this risks putting people off, leading to a declining membership. Not just that, is the existing arrangement of subscription grade bandings fair anyway? Or even relevant to modern working practices?
Obviously you feel you ought to be paying less for your NUJ membership while better-off journalists should pull their weight by paying more. But this gut feeling needs to be tempered by facts, basic arithmetic and the challenge of turning wishful thinking into practical measures. You might believe any journalist earning £40,000 a year is "rich", but they might reasonably plead otherwise.
So should we ditch the current "bands" system and apply a simple percentage-of-income rate across the board? If so, do we then force members to submit copies of their tax returns every year to prove what that is?
Hopefully you get the idea: settling on a system that seems fair and acceptable to everyone is not as easy as you wish. There is also the increasing precarity of freelance journalism to consider - and how to deal with members for whom journalism occupies more than 50 per cent of their working hours but represents less than 50 per cent of their income.
A backgrounder to the complexities and the harsh reality of NUJ financing are detailed in a report that was produced shortly after last year's Delegate Meeting. You can read it here. If you have strong feelings for or against any of the ideas listed in the report, or if you have conceived an entirely new concept for dealing with membership and subs, the NUJ's Finance Committee's chair Christ Frost wants to hear from you.
We will be discussing these matters during the 11 March meeting of London Freelance Branch so that the Branch can then formulate and submit its considered view. But this doesn't mean you can't send your own individual ideas directly, for example if you cannot attend (or fail to influence) the Branch meeting. Send your opinion and suggestions to the Campaigns team and Chris Frost by 31 March.
If you miss our Branch meeting discussion on Monday, you are encouraged to attend the NUJ's union-wide finance conference to be held via Zoom on Saturday 23 March, 2-5pm. This is open to all NUJ members. The Zoom link ought to have been emailed to you directly from head office (it was sent out on 27 February); if you cannot locate it, you can simply register to attend here and you will be sent the Zoom link nearer the date.
UPDATE: NUJ head office is now asking all those who want to attend to register their attendance using the link above. This will help keep things organised and safe; it is, after all, a member-only event.
Industrial Councils
The various sectors within the journalism trade are represented in the union through what we call "Industrial Councils" – essentially discussion and policy action groups made up of NUJ members working in those sectors – which report regularly to the union's National Executive Council. This ensures all members are fairly represented regardless of their role or workplace.
Currently, there are Industrial Councils for freelance, broadcasting, magazine and books, newspapers and agencies, new media, and public relations and communications sectors. But does this division still reflect a true picture of journalism today? You might feel that it's obsolete to silo new media on its own, for example, or that burgeoning sectors such as social media, video and podcasting lack adequate recognition.
As with the finances consultation, the union wants to hear your views on the matter. LFB will be discussing the future of Industrial Councils at the Branch meeting on 11 March but you can still submit your views independently direct to the Campaigns team and Gerry Curran by 31 March.
Delegate Meeting
NUJ's ultimate policy-making body is the biennial Delegate Meeting, a convention every two years of delegates elected by their Branches to debate motions, refine the Union's structure and priorities, and generally direct what the union should be doing for its members. It is akin to what other unions might call a "congress" or a political party a "conference".
Reflecting on the 2023 Delegate Meeting, Gerry Curran, NUJ joint vice-president, observed: "There was a general feeling in the hall that the huge levels of energy present last year could be focussed in another way. Instead of us continually debating and hearing speeches on similar motions, how can we facilitate more engagement and meaningful discussion? We'd love to hear imaginative and positive ways to get more out of the gathering."
A perfect example of this was the way in which multiple Branches across the union proposed alternative solutions to the challenges of modernising membership and subscriptions (as outlined above). Efforts to amend and consolidate these into a smaller number of mutually incompatible motions were not enough to prevent a lot of time being spent on this one issue, arguably without even achieving the satisfactory consensus that everyone had hoped for.
Previous DM delegates are likely to have their own views on how this kind of process, as well as the whole DM experience, could be improved. You may have your own ideas too.
Good, because the NUJ wants to hear them. LFB will be discussing ways of improving Delegate Meetings at its Branch meeting on 11 March and you can still submit your views independently direct to the Campaigns team and Gerry Curran by 31 March.
For more information on this consultation process, come along to the LFB meeting on Monday 11 March - either in person at NUJ head office or via Zoom. The Zoom invitation will be emailed to LFB members shortly before the meeting. Alternatively, email the Branch secretary.