OTTAWA – Watchdog group Friends of Canadian Broadcasting delivered more than 120,000 signatures to Parliament Hill today in a petition opposing the Bill C-60 provision that would give the federal government sweeping powers over the CBC’s collective bargaining and impact its editorial independence.
The Free CBC petitions, coordinated by Friends along with Leadnow.ca and sumofus.org, call on the government to remove the provision. “With ultimate control of the salaries and working conditions of all CBC employees in the hands of the government, at a minimum CBC will have to contend with the perception that its editorial decisions may be politically motivated,” said Friends spokesperson Ian Morrison in a release.
“This isn’t about money. The CBC has demonstrated that its wage increases have consistently lagged behind the industry average. It’s about the government’s wish to control the CBC,” said Jamie Biggar, executive director of Leadnow.ca.
Last week, the federal government announced new measures added to its budget bill that would give political control to the Cabinet over how much Crown corporations such as the CBC pays its union and non-union staff and other terms and conditions of employment.
