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NUJ survey shows growing hardship


pandemic. It is a shocking picture, with two-thirds of members having suffered financially because of the lockdown, with freelances being hit especially hard, many unsupported by the government’s financial aid packages. It has provided valuable


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information for our discussions with ministers and inquiries by the Digital, Culture & Media and Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy commitees. It showed members were braced


for further economic shockwaves with 84 per cent fearing the crisis would lead to redundancies and most freelances not expecting work to pick up until next year, with 16 per cent predicting they would drop out


he NUJ’s Covid-19 survey produced a valuable snapshot of how members have been affected by the


of the industry altogether following the pandemic. At the time the survey was taken, 45 per cent said their employer had furloughed editorial staff; with more than a half not having had their pay topped up by their employer and a fiſth said their employers made up the full 20 per cent difference. Tis looks worrying should the government decide to decrease its contribution in the Job Retention Scheme.


Of those working, 42 per cent had their pay cut and one quarter were covering work of colleagues on furlough. Freelances on the PAYE system are eligible to be furloughed, but only 5.5 per cent said their employer was doing so. Of those at home, 79 per cent said they had the necessary equipment to work remotely, although more


than half experienced some internet problems. Tere are plenty examples of broadcasters working from their sheds and interviewing by Zoom or Skype, but for others this has been a frustrating experience. Many office-based members throughout the lockdown raised concerns about health and safety at work, including lack of social distancing and extra cleaning – posing questions about how media companies will ensure any return to office-based working will meet the threshold of being “Covid-secure”. Michelle Stanistreet said: “Tis crisis has underlined the critical role that quality journalism plays in our communities – its survival cannot be leſt to the vagaries of the market and that’s why we need the News Recovery Plan to reboot the industry.” Te survey of more than 1,200 members was carried out by SurveyMonkey from 24 April-10 May 2020


What you can do


Discuss the survey results at your next meeting – how can members be supported?. htps://www.nuj.org.uk/news/two-thirds- of-media-workers-have-suffered-financially- because/


Get behind the #ForgotenFreelances campaign:


htps://www.nuj.org.uk/news/


forgotenfreelances-a-third-say-they-do- not-expect-their-income/


COVID-19 SURVEY


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