More guarded optimism

Again, It may be undue optimism but it sounds as if Fontana has given the negotiators something like a 48 hour deadline to get a deal done. I don't know how realistic that time frame is after 16 months of failing to negotiate, but even if they exceed that time limit somewhat I can't help but feel that a deal is approaching. The alternative would likely be binding arbitration and I don't think that either side really wants that.

Much has also been made today of Rabinovich's refusal to participate in the negotiations and so I need to chime in briefly. The entire issue of 'contract vs. staff' was supposed to be part of Rabinovich's vision for the future of the CBC, but since this started he has been absent. He has made no attempt to get the people he locked out, managers inside the building (or so I've heard) or the Canadian public to understand this vision, understand what it is or given us any reason to buy into it. He has made few public comments at all about the situation, he has completely ignored calls for his resignation from outside and inside the CBC and now he has refused to be a part of the negotiations or to have further meetings with the Minister of Labour. I can only assume that Rabinovich does not feel that he has a stake in any of this, which would lead me to believe that a resignation is coming at some point after the doors are open.

Once a deal is actually done there is still one more major hurdle to overcome and that is ratification. I don't think, after everything that has happened, that anyone is in a mood to simply rubber stamp anything that comes out of negotiations. That said, and again this may be overly optimistic, I can't help but feel that the negotiators are aware of that and won't come back with something that is going to be voted down.

Once that is done, the real challenge begins. CMG's membership, whether they wholeheartedly support the union or not, has pulled together admirably, supported each other selflessly, and shown amazing initiative, creativity, determination and resourcefulness during the lockout. People in locations, urban and rural from one end of Canada to another have shown amazing dedication to their co-workers and to the mission and mandate of the CBC.

Once the doors are open, we must find a way to bring that same energy inside and, without skipping a beat, put it to work for the Canadian people with the full resources of the CBC. I'm not, in any way, trying to imply that people at the CBC don't normally work hard but, in the case of the lock out, most of the damage was done long before August 15. We cannot be caught sleeping again. We have to monitor and have an opinion, at times a vocal one, about board appointments and managerial hirings. We must get the MPs who supported CMG during the lockout, and some who were reluctant to get involved to push for a better, and stable, funding model for the CBC.

We have to connect with our audience in a way that not only brings back the viewers we had before the lockout, but that brings in new ones, and earns their loyalty, trust and respect. I think that part of this involves talking with and not simply to the audience (just one small lesson from the lockout.) I am only a 'casual' and I don't have, or pretend to have all of the answers, I don't know the ingredients of the magic formula, but I do know that in spite of the hardships that what has happened 'on the line' has at times been nothing less than magical - and the CBC, now damaged and abandoned by many could use some magic.

I'll be posting some more thoughts on this later on the CBC Renewal discussion group (and yes I probably will keep plugging it) and still more after Thursday's meetup (which is like a meeting, but with beer, wine and food) "From Blogs to Podcasts: Technology and the Future of the CBC."