Scientific community backs workers at The Lancet going on strike
More than 120 members of the scientific community around the world have signed an open letter expressing solidarity with workers at The Lancet as they prepare to take strike action.
NUJ members working at The Lancet, one of the world’s leading medical journals, will strike tomorrow (22 September) following a long-running dispute over pay.
The union balloted members last month after the NUJ Lancet chapel overwhelmingly rejected the company's pay offer following extensive negotiations with management. Members' strength of feeling was reflected in the ballot results with 94.5% supporting strike action and 97.8% supporting action short of a strike on a turnout of 87.5%.
Striking members will strike under the slogan ‘Solidarity for Science’. In an open letter published on 17 September, a host of experts working in science, including academics and medical professionals, urged Elsevier CEO Kumsal Bayazitl, and Erik Engstrom, CEO of Elsevier's parent company RELX, to “return to negotiations with a pay offer that reflects the crucial value that these staff continue to bring to both the company and the scientific community.” The full letter remains open for signatures.
The picket - taking place between 8am and 12pm on Tuesday outside The Lancet’s London office - represents the first time a walkout has been staged by staff in the publication’s 200-year history. Workers at The Lancet held action short of a strike last week and will do so again from 23 to 30 September.