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CBC/Radio-Canada reaches a negotiated settlement with the Canadian Media Guild

OTTAWA, Oct. 3 /CNW/ - Tonight at midnight, CBC/Radio-Canada and the Canadian Media Guild (CMG) reached a memorandum of settlement after 16 months of negotiations. The memorandum represents the framework of an agreement that will be formalized over the coming days and submitted to the CMG membership for ratification. "It took hard work and compromise on the part of both parties, but we now have an agreement that serves the interests of public broadcasting and the needs of our members," said Arnold Amber, President CBC Branch Executive Council of the Canadian Media Guild. "Our members are looking forward to getting back to what they do best, top quality distinctive Canadian programming." "Canadians want their national public broadcaster back," said Robert Rabinovitch, President and CEO, CBC/Radio-Canada. "The last seven weeks have been difficult for all involved but we now have an agreement that equips us to serve Canadians as a public broadcaster should." The Honourable Joe Fontana, Minister of Labour and Housing, welcomed the news of an agreement: "I would first and foremost like to congratulate the parties for their hard work over the past week. With the assistance of our mediators, the parties have demonstrated their creativity and willingness to arrive at a new collective agreement. This is great news for the Canadian people, who have been voicing their concern over the length of this dispute." The agreement, reached with the assistance of Elizabeth MacPherson and Arnie Powers of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, addresses the needs and aspirations of employees raised by the CMG while still recognizing the business realities of today's broadcasting environment and the evolving interests of audiences. Most important, the agreement allows employees to get back to the business of broadcasting immediately. CBC/Radio-Canada hopes to begin the return to normal programming and to have it entirely back to normal as soon as possible.
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