Strike off as owners concede union requests

Journalists at Herts and Essex Newspapers have suspended their threat of strike action. Members of the National Union of Journalists took the decision after the owning company, Iliffe News & Media, made concessions about its proposed restructuring of the titles, which disposes of several senior editorial positions through the merging of roles. One controversial example means that the editorship of the Herts and Essex Observer will vanish because the editor-in-chief will take over the job. Under a new deal, there is to be a thorough review of the process, improved voluntary redundancy packages and the appointment of a production editor, as requested by the union. (Via holdthefrontpage.co.uk)