RTÉ Sport staff vote no confidence in leadership team

Members of the National Union of Journalists, in the RTÉ Sports Department, have expressed "no confidence" in the broadcaster's senior leadership team.

A statement said that "recent revelations" regarding the appointment of a new podcast presenter have brought "embarrassment, dishonour and ridicule, yet again, to RTÉ".

It comes after issues regarding the 'Howler' sports podcast at the broadcaster, presented by Ger Gilroy.

In its response, RTÉ said that it acknowledged receipt" of anonymous email from the NUJ Sports Chapel and would "respond in due course".

At the first meeting of the reformed NUJ Sports Chapel, the statement outlines how members "unanimously" expressed "no confidence in the RTÉ Senior Leadership Team" who have presided over "this debacle."

The statement goes on to say that RTÉ staff have been "consistently" told that the era of "murky practices, secret deals and a general lack of transparency is in the past", adding that "but the events of the last weeks have shown us in fact that nothing has changed."

The statement addresses the "expressions of interest" process and outlined members view that "RTÉ's cultural charter identifies respect, accountability & courage as its core tenets," adding that "we have all signed up to these values and to an ethos of public service."

However, they say, in their view "disappointingly," RTÉ’s "commitment to these values has now been seriously called into question by the irregularities and inconsistencies in the RTÉ expressions-of-interest process."

The statement adds that the chapel "rejects " statements made by both the Director General and Deputy Director General at the recent Oireachtas Media committee appearance , during which , they say the "opinion and motivation of staff" in criticising the recruitment process were "falsely framed".

The members "urge" both the DG and the Deputy DG to "reflect on their regrettable comments", which it says "maligned" their own staff and are at "fundamental odds" with the reassurances given to the public that "truth matters".

Members agreed at the meeting that the financial implications are of "grave concern" at a time when the organisation is facing a "severe cash and funding shortfall."

The statement described the "apparent a-la-carte adherence to transparent HR practices" as having "aggrieved Sports staff who face a number of longstanding issues including incorrect grading, career progression and a lack of programme resourcing, including underinvestment in technology."

"We believe the values of public service broadcasting have been trumped by commercial interests," members agreed, adding that "nowhere is the abandonment of public service values more evident than in the lack of women’s voices on the new podcast in its first few weeks. "

It concludes with saying that "serious questions" must be answered in relation to "accountability and process within the organisation," adding that "regretfully, very little seems to have changed at RTÉ senior leadership level.