FT journalists call off 24-hour strike after new pension deal offer

Financial Times journalists have called off a 24-hour strike after receiving a new pension offer from management, ending the prospect of what would have been the first strike in more than 30 years.

FT staff that are members of the National Union of Journalists have been locked in talks with the management, mediated by Acas, for the last two days.

The acrimonious battle, which the NUJ has branded a £4m “pension robbery”, has been running since Japanese group Nikkei’s £844m takeover of FT Group last year.

The strike has been called off while the revised offer is put out to a consultative ballot of FT NUJ members.

The result of the ballot is expected by Monday 15 February.

“During talks over the past two days at Acas in London with representatives of the NUJ and the FT, we have worked together to achieve a revised pensions offer,” said Acas in a joint statement. “As a consequence of the revised offer Thursday’s strike has been called off. The offer will be put out to a consultative ballot of NUJ members for their consideration.”

A spokewoman for the FT said: “The planned strike at the FT has been called off. This follows constructive talks over the last two days at Acas in London between representatives of the FT and the NUJ who worked together on a revised offer for the transition of pension arrangements following Pearson’s sale of the FT.”

If the strike had gone ahead it is thought it would have been the first such action since a pay dispute in 1982.

In that instance the action involved journalists walking out to a meeting at St Bride’s on Fleet Street, which resulted in the newspaper not being published.

Earlier this week, a group of MPs launched an early day motion supporting the FT’s journalists.