Informed 05


NUJ gets red-carpet treatment


Freelance organiser Pamela Morton reported a constructive and helpful meeting at Freuds, organiser of celebrity premieres and award ceremonies, to discuss the system of press accreditation for red-carpet events.


Te union took the opportunity to discuss how the system, due to be reviewed in October, could be improved to benefit photographer members. Te behaviour of certain celebrity


photographers came under fire in a Private Member’s Bill which would have made “upskirting”, taking a photo up a woman’s dress or skirt without her knowledge or consent, a specific offence. Te bill was blocked by Tory MP, Sir Christopher Chope, but the government


Helpful talks on press accreditation


said it would bring forward its own bill and Teresa May said she would ensure that the most serious offenders would be added to the sex offenders register.


Celebrating Connolly with a view to freelance rights Te 150th anniversary of the birth of James Connolly, trade unionist, journalist and executed leader of the 1916 Easter Rising, was celebrated by a joint NUJ/Services Industrial Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) seminar, Fighting for Freelances, in the magnificent seting of Dublin’s Mansion House. Te seminar marked the first


Fair terms not their terms: payments plea


Te British government’s small business commissioner has called for a round- table meeting of publishers to discuss the union’s call for action to stop payment by publication and derisory kill fees. Paul Uppal responded


to a representation from the union by Pamela Morton, freelance organiser, and Tim Dawson, past president, to discuss the NUJ’s Fair Terms not Teir Terms


campaign against late payments and poor freelance rates and contracts. Pamela Morton said: “Te small business commissioner was very atentive; he had a clear grasp of the issues and seemed determined to take our demands to the publishers.”


A meeting of members at Headland House, the union’s London HQ, in April agreed to launch a strategy to insist on the basic entitlements


that sole traders in virtually every other sector take for granted: payment of fees as agreed, remuneration within 30 days of invoice and respect for authors’ rights. Te meeting heard from members who had suffered hardship while waiting to be paid for commissioned work. If you have had a


bad experience with late payment or other issues, email us at freelanceoffice@nuj. org.uk


anniversary of the legislation restoring trade union rights to workers. Supported by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, the unions had led a 20-year campaign for the law and the event discussed the best ways to use the newly-restored right to be represented by a trade union. Connolly was a freelance journalist so it was fiting that the theme of the day was organising and recruiting workers in the media, arts and culture sectors. Broadcaster, Bernie Ni Fhlatharta, and distinguished author, playwright and columnist, Colin Murphy, outlined the plight of freelance journalists. Members added their testimonies about the difficulties of working in the gig economy and Maynooth University law lecturer, Michael Doherty, gave an overview of the significance of the legislation. Séamus Dooley, Irish Secretary, said the unions were commited to joint co-operation in the area of organising and recruiting freelance workers across the sectors.


Colin Murphy: speaking for freelances


Derek Spiers


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