As of 12:01 AM this morning over 5,000 union members have been locked out by CBC management. The workers who are represented by the Canadian Media Guild (CMG) have been without a contract since March 2004.

In an open web-posted letter to Guild members, CMG national president Lise Lareau called the lock-out an "aggressive move" and "un-Canadian" for a national public employer adding, "This is the work of a small group of senior managers, led by VP of Human Resources George Smith."

The CBC's position remains firm saying it "needs more flexibility to hire new staff on a contract basis instead of full-time," according to an article on the broadcaster's website. Thirty per cent of the CBC's workforce is already non-permanent and the union accuses the Corporation of moving toward temporary or 'contractual' positions only for all producers, newsroom staff and technicians.

Lereau added, "This fight is about an agenda driven by senior managers who are not rooted in the values of public broadcasting. Their focus is on appearing to be efficient to themselves and to another small group of Ottawa bureaucrats."

The CBC is assuring their audience that although scaled back, most programming will continue on television, radio and on the Internet. Local radio morning shows will however be replaced with a national broadcast.

NHL hockey will also be broadcast as usual along with CFL football but intermission commentary by such personalities as Don Cherry will be absent for the duration of the dispute.

The Guild has been representing unionized CBC employees since 1953 and currently has a membership of approximately 5,500 people across Canada not including the province of Quebec and the city of Moncton, NB.