Elizabeth Gosch | April 03, 2008
WEST Australian Newspapers is fighting battles on all fronts, with a Supreme Court hearing set for today over its dispute with newsagents and delivery contractors.
Newsagents and contractors across the state have been pushing for higher delivery fees to cover increased workload and costs, especially since the move last August to deliver the Saturday edition of The West Australian in two separate bundles.
Because WAN refuses to negotiate with newsagents as a group, one agent's lawyer tried to have the matter resolved through arbitration. However, WAN refused and instead referred the matter to the Supreme Court.
Neville Roediger, from the Australian Newsagents Federation, said newsagents had been asked to do extra work for no money.
"Basically, what's happened is newsagents have been asked to do twice the work on delivering this Saturday paper," Mr Roediger said.
At the Perth business breakfast yesterday, Mr Roediger asked WAN board contender Kerry Stokes what he planned to do.
"Newsagents are the lifeblood of the paper. Without them there is no circulation," Mr Stokes said.
"I think that they have a very strong case ... they haven't had an increase in 10 years, not even to cover petrol. They have been asked to cover two drops a day on Saturday for no extra benefit. No business can be asked to continually expand costs and not have an expanded revenue."
Mr Stokes proposed a complete change in the arrangement between The West and newsagents.
"How about instead of this being just about you delivering papers and getting so much per paper, what say we take a base and we give you a much higher commission for every increased paper you sell?" Mr Stokes said. "So if you sell 1000 papers now, (and then) you sell 1100 papers, maybe we double the commission rate on the next 100. We've got to find ways to sell more newspapers and we've got to make sure we don't send our suppliers broke. The system is inequitable."
West Busselton newsagent Sharon Armour, who contacted Mr Stokes last May to ask for help, liked the proposal.
"I wrote to Mr Stokes because I was so concerned about the management's lack of foresight," Ms Armour said.
"Delivery agents are leaving. That has happened in Northam, Esperance, Busselton, Mount Baker and Pemberton, and I do know that there are at least three other towns in the process of writing their resignations."
Ms Armour said in Busselton alone more than 800 readers were no longer getting the newspaper home delivered.