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In a seemingly untimely convergence of juxtaposing events Robin Burgess, the chief executive of the Cumbria-based CN Group, has picked up an OBE for his services to the newspaper industry and the wider community… just as staff at the firm’s North West Evening Mail title ballot for industrial action over proposed job cuts.
Burgess was awarded the Birthday Honour from Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace and said that he was “very proud and delighted” to receive the accolade.  Robin Burgess OBE However, some of the shine of Burgess’ honour has undoubtedly been dulled by the Group’s recent moves to cut back staff numbers in the face of the crisis that is currently engulfing local newspaper publishers. This has been met with resistance from within the firm, most recently at the North West Evening Mail, which is looking to pare back four editorial jobs. Journalists at the Barrow-in-Furness arm of CN were due to ballot for possible strike action on Friday 2 January as, according to a statement from the NUJ, the cuts look set to add to the workload of staff that already work long hours. Chris Morley from the NUJ explained: “The chapel are determined to fight any compulsory redundancies. They are not prepared to see colleagues picked off and their workload fall on the shoulders of those who remain. “Health and safety is already under threat from long hours and journalists on the North West Evening Mail fear that the planned reorganisation will make things worse.” The NUJ also noted: “The current proposed redundancies may be the first of several such announcements, as the company has already vowed to worsen the terms on which staff might leave in 2009.”
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