Strike action comes amid disagreement over pay offer and is the first in 20 years for the broadcaster
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) faced a major disruption after hundreds of journalists and staff walked off their jobs for 24 hours to call out the broadcaster's pay offer.
ABC was forced to replace its flagship TV and radio programs with re-runs of BBC content, leading to a major drop in viewership across Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth.
The disruption comes as the national broadcaster faced strike action for the first time in 20 years, following disagreements between ABC and its employees over its pay offer.
Pay offer dispute
ABC's latest offer included a 3.5% pay rise in the first year, followed by a 3.25% increase in the subsequent two years.
It also comes with a $1,000 bonus for all ongoing and fixed-term staff covered by the enterprise bargaining agreement, according to ABC.
But the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA), which represents ABC employees, rejected the offer, claiming it would result in below-inflation pay outcomes.
The MEAA initially asked for a pay rise of 5.5%. In rejecting ABC's offer, it said there were limited improvements to job security, but no increase in pay or key conditions.
It added that the one-off bonus would not be added to base salaries, would not attract superannuation, and would exclude casual staff.
"Experienced journalists and media workers are being asked to do more with less – with fewer opportunities for pay progression, less certainty about their future, and growing workloads," said MEAA chief executive Erin Madeley.
Tensions over managing director's comments
Negotiations between ABC and the union lasted for nine months, and ABC Managing Director Hugh Marks said on Wednesday morning that it was "very unfortunate" that it led to industrial action.
"On behalf of the ABC, I feel terrible," Marks told 702 ABC Sydney in an interview. "And I'm sorry to some of the staff that I know are in a really difficult position today."
But tensions erupted during the 24-hour strike on Thursday after Marks later claimed that the union treated the strike action as a "bit of a game."
The managing director told ABC Radio Sydney that he believes that staff would continue engaging in smaller forms of protected industrial action after the strike.
"There are little things like email, you know, changes in Teams usage, and to the extent, Nick, sometimes it feels like a bit of a game to me. And I don't think this is a game. I think this is really serious," Marks said in the interview.
"And I think both sides need to say, you know what, the audience comes first and we need to stop playing games and focus on that and get to an outcome."
MEAA deputy chief executive Adam Portelli responded to Marks' claims in the same programme shortly after, saying the managing director's comments were "insulting."
"Frankly, it's really insulting to the ABC staff and disrespectful to the role they provide to the Australian community," Portelli said as quoted by Yahoo! News.
"I assure you that ABC staff do not think this is a game … I would have thought the fact that they've taken industrial action for the first time in 20 years would make that clear to ABC management."
ABC members have returned to work after the 24-hour strike, but Portelli noted that future action can still happen.
"Our members would rather not take action, they would rather get back to work and do what they love doing, which is delivering for their audiences," he said in the interview.
"But ultimately if the offer on the table doesn't provide those sustainable jobs they need, we certainly wouldn't be closing the door to further action."
ABC has already lodged the matter with the Fair Work Commission in a bid to resolve the dispute. The first hearing is set for March 30.
