Back from the brink or still on the margins?

Abstract

This article examines whether, having regained many earlier lost union recognition agreements, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) has recaptured its former industrial influence within the provincial newspaper industry, after a decade of derecognition by employers and following the introduction of new statutory union recognition mechanism. The processes by which the NUJ regained union recognition agreements after maintaining its membership base are considered. Thereafter, an assessment is made of how influential the NUJ has been in advancing and protecting its members’ interests through the institutions and processes of collective bargaining in the post-recognition period.