The Montreal Newspaper Guild has been contacted by the conciliator and both sides have agreed to meet on Jan. 7 and Jan. 8, 2009. As a result, journalists have ceased their byline strike and photos and articles created by Gazette journalists once again have their names attached. This is done as a show of good faith on behalf of Gazette workers, and the byline strike may return if it becomes necessary.

The work-to-rule campaign remains in effect.

Beyond the bargaining meeting in January, the guild is also awaiting an arbitration hearing Feb. 19 to deal with the outsourcing of editorial pages to Canwest Editorial Services in Hamilton, Ont. If the guild is successful at proving that the move violates the current contract, all work that has been outsourced will return to the Gazette and be done by Gazette employees in Montreal.

The Guild wishes to thank members of the public that have overwhelmingly supported our cause, and urge them to continue to express their feelings about the deterioration of quality that is a direct result of job cutbacks and outsourcing.