Unpaid internships under the microscope at last
It seems as though the issue of unpaid internships has reached a breaking point this summer. The watershed Black Swan ruling last month appears to have led to a flood of lawsuits by former interns alleging breach of labour laws. U.S. publishers Gawker and Condé Nast have been hit with intern lawsuits over the past few weeks. And here […]
Striking Saint John 7 hit one-year anniversary
Today is a big day for the Saint John 7. One year ago — on June 25, 2012 — the seven radio employees began their strike against the Halifax-based Maritime Broadcasting System after trying for almost a year to negotiate a fair wage. Lise Lareau, National Vice-President of the Canadian Media Guild, wrote a post […]
CMG Freelance Branch investigates call for submissions
Regular freelance contributors to CBC Radio’s DNTO program received an email a couple of weeks ago from DNTO on behalf of a new summer radio program called, ‘How To Do It’. It was a call for submissions which included these paragraphs: “We’re looking for 3-5 minute anecdotes that you’re willing to share on the radio. […]
Freelancers object to Transcontinental’s Best Corporate Citizen ranking
What are the qualities of a good corporate citizen? Is a good employer concerned with its impact on the environment? Does a good employer offer benefits and programs to its employees beyond those it is legally required to provide? Is a good corporate citizen concerned with the fair treatment of its contractors? These are the […]
James Moore responds to CMG’s letter about TC Media funding
The Canadian Media Guild has received a reply to a letter they sent to the Minister of Canadian Heritage last month regarding financial assistance given to TC Media through the Canada Periodical Fund. The CMG expressed concerns about the TC Media funding in light of the new contract the publisher tried to impose on freelancers earlier […]
Is the Canada Periodical Fund helping TC Media squeeze freelancers?
By Katherine Lapointe The Canadian Media Guild has sent a letter to Canadian Heritage Minister James Moore asking him to review the funding TC Media receives from Heritage Canada’s Periodical Fund in the wake of the new contract it tried to impose on freelancers this year. TC Media has received between $7.5 and $8.5 […]
A bright spot in the TC Media affair?
There may be some room for optimism in the ongoing dispute over the new Transcontinental Media contributors agreement. The CMG has heard from freelancers in Québec and elsewhere that TC Media is making amendments to the contract. Freelancers for some TC Media titles have been told that they can continue to provide content for the magazines […]
I Am Not Anonymous
By Amber Nasrulla I’d like to sit down with the person or people at TC Media who penned the new freelance contract. As Story Board reported last week, they’ve refused to negotiate improvements or meet with anyone from the Canadian Media Guild (CMG) saying they prefer to meet with freelancers individually. If I met them […]
TC Media refuses meeting request
Last week, a group of associations and unions representing Canadian media professionals sent a letter to TC Media requesting a meeting to discuss the terms in their new contributors agreement. The group — which includes the Canadian Media Guild, CWA/SCA Canada, the Canadian Writers Group, the Canadian Freelance Union, the Professional Writers Association of Canada, the […]
This ain’t your parents’ advertorial
By Karen Wirsig So Global TV is now airing “news” reports sponsored by advertisers. The piece about what a pain it is to do your taxes might be brought to you by Q&Z Tax services. The one about all the crime in the east end could be courtesy of the local police association. Advertisers are […]
