The UJF Council decided, 4 February, that the union Board can institute immediate industrial action if required by the situation at the talks concerning the collective agreements for the press and publishing sector. If industrial action does get underway, it will involve news media journalists and publishing editors. A strike warning will be issued two weeks in advance of a possible strike. Other forms of industrial action, such as an overtime ban, do not require prior warning. Both sets of talks have still to resolve issues concerning the additional working hours associated with the competitiveness pact and holiday entitlement. “Management wants to lengthen working time, and we don’t. This is what it boils down to,” said union president Hanne Aho. Progress has been made on smaller issues. Talks on the collective agreements for the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle) and MTV are also at a standstill. Collective bargaining agreements, both in the UJF arena and in other sectors, are being slowed down by the fact that the export sectors have been unable to conclude their own agreements. Management in the media sector is reluctant to reach collective bargaining agreements until such settlements have been reached in the export sectors. “The UJF is ready and prepared for industrial action,” said Asko Lehtonen, who chairs the organisation’s industrial action preparedness group for the press journalists. “The plans are all in place.”