Newsquest editors should “stand up and be counted” in the campaign for improved pay for journalists at the US owned company, the NUJ said today.

The union's General Secretary, Jeremy Dear, issued the call as journalists from across Newsquest’s regional newspapers began two days of action timed to coincide with the company’s annual editor’s conference in Surrey. Previously, the union's wide-ranging Fair Pay Now at Newsquest campaign has included strikes, parliamentary early day motions, lobbying advertisers, and intervening at last year’s Gannett AGM in the USA.

Jeremy said: “In our pay talks most editors tell us in private that they agree with us but are constrained by head office accountants from properly rewarding their editorial staff."

He added that editors should “stand up and be counted in Weybridge by telling Newsquest’s senior management their real views about low pay".

“The editors know the company are exploiting people and making them work long hours. They know they can’t retain staff or recruit people of the standard they really want. Many of the editors themselves are underpaid, over-worked and stressed out. As journalists we should be working together for justice.”

“Gannett makes $35 million profit every day. Their reports to American shareholders always seem to praise the profitability of the UK papers. But they are paying trainee journalists – with degrees and postgraduate qualifications – as little as £12,000 a year. Many journalists with all their professional qualifications are earning less than the £17,000 starting wage of a trainee manager at McDonalds.”

Last year the company’s regional titles returned profits of tens of millions of pounds. US owned parent company Gannett made profits of $1.3 billion last year.