BBC tech workers call off strike

Following 20 hours of mediation, the BBC's technical workers union, Bectu, has suspended its threat of a two-day strike, scheduled for next week.

Bectu, along with Amicus and the National Union of Journalists, called off the planned walkout as a gesture of goodwill following a new offer from the BBC.

The three unions had proposed a programme of industrial action following proposals from the BBC that would see 4,000 workers facing redundancy.

Among the proposals in the latest BBC offer are a one-year moratorium on redundancies and a framework for discussions to mitigate the threat of redundancies in 2006 and 2007. The BBC, however, made the offer on the conditions unions called off the stoppages scheduled for next week.

A BBC statement on the halt said: "The BBC believes an opportunity to resolve this dispute is now in sight... and we very much hope that this is the first step in what will be a productive relationship with the unions in the coming months."

The three unions are now consulting on the offer, which, if accepted, will be put before union members on 31 May. The unions are not recommending acceptance of the proposals, however, and if members reject the new scheme, a further round of strike action may go ahead.

If the offer is accepted, the BBC will begin calls for voluntary redundancies.