Waterstones says it can't pay living wage, as 1,300 authors support staff appeal

Managing director says book chain ‘simply not profitable enough’, as Sally Rooney, Val McDermid and other authors write to protestMore than 1,300 writers including Kerry Hudson, David Nicholls, Sally Rooney, Michael Rosen and Val McDermid have backed a campaign for Waterstones booksellers to be paid the living wage.The support follows a petition from staff at Waterstones, signed by more than 6,000 people, which calls on the book chain’s managing director, James Daunt, to pay booksellers a starting living wage of £9 an hour, or £10.55 for the Greater London area. “Working for a rate of pay that is below the living wage results in booksellers who are stressed, preoccupied and who have little spare time and energy to devote to buying books, reading them, and keeping up with news and trends in the industry – all of which activities are undertaken outside contracted hours, and which many staff consider to be (and are encouraged to view as) integral to their role,” says the petition. Related: Balancing the books: how Waterstones came back from the dead Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2019-03-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #sally rooney #val mcdermid #david nicholls #michael rosen #living wage #book chain #james daunt #spare time

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Apple loses ebook price-fixing appeal on same day as Apple Music launches

On the same day as Apple Inc.'s release of its much-anticipated Apple Music streaming service, a federal court upheld a ruling Tuesday that states the company illegally conspired with book publishers to drive up prices for ebooks to compete against Amazon.com Inc., USA TODAY reported. The... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal

[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2015-07-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Russian Gov’t Offers Support for Bookstores

With the number of bookstores in Russia in free fall as a result of rising rents, the Russian government is extending subsidies to support retailers. The post Russian Gov’t Offers Support for Bookstores appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple To Pay $450 Million In Settlement For Price Fixing E-Books

A federal appeals court stood by a 2013 decision that found the tech giant guilty of fixing ebook prices with publishers.Apple's last-ditch attempt to avoid paying $450 million to ebook buyers was just quashed, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple to pay $450 million in ebook price-fixing suit

Apple conspired with publishers to artificially raise the price of ebooks, the Second US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled today, upholding a verdict from 2013. Now that the company has lost its appeal, Apple is expected to pay $450 millio... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple DID conspire to inflate ebook prices, must pay $450 million

On the same day that Apple Music launched, Apple received some bad news from the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In a 2 to 1 vote, judges ruled that the company did conspire with publishers to inflate the prices of ebooks sold through iBookstore, agreeing with a 2013 ruling. The judges found... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Awards for Christian Fiction Honor Publishing Vets, New Authors

The Christy Awards for excellence in fiction were presented Monday at the Christian retail show in Orlando. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple Loses Appeal, E-book Decision is Affirmed

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed Judge Denise Cote's 2013 finding that Apple orchestrated a scheme to fix the price of ebooks. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Daunt: 'higher energy booksellers' at Waterstones

In the last four years, Waterstones has changed to a company which is more customer-focused, with booksellers who have more flexible working hours, more accountability and higher energy, according to the chain’s m.d. James Daunt was speaking on the subject of the value of booksellers in a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones 'petitioned' to open in Welwyn Garden City

Waterstones is set to open a store in Welwyn Garden City next month after being “petitioned” by the town’s residents. The chain will open a branch in Howardsgate on 25th July, with a special Peter Rabbit family fun day. The shop will include a cafe as well as a stock of close to 20,000... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How will Amazon's new pay-per-page model change ebooks?

Just as Spotify has done for music, the new pay-per-page system could change the way ebooks are published and authors paid. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's authors say curriculum hurts creative writing

A group of children’s authors, including this year’s Carnegie winner Tanya Landman, is preparing a letter to the education secretary protesting against the way writing is taught in schools. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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iBooks Bestsellers: ‘Grey’ Stays Put at #1

For the second week in a row, E.L. James’s 'Grey,' the next installment in the Fifty Shades of Grey series, topped Apple’s iBooks bestseller list. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones Summer Book Club titles revealed

Two novels from Pushkin Press have made it onto the Waterstones Summer Book Club collection. The chain retailer has revealed the 10 titles it will champion by recommending to customers over the summer, with Pushkin Press’ One Night Markovitch by Ayelet Gundar-Goshen and The Brethren by Robert... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Should an Author Favor PR or Marketing?

The one questions author should ask themselves that they typically do not when it comes to book marketing is: Should I do PR or marketing? The post Should an Author Favor PR or Marketing? appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-06-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After First Weekend, E.L. James's 'Grey' Sells over 1 Million Copies

Given demand, publisher Vintage plans to go back for third, fourth and fifth printings on the title, which was released June 18. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-06-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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S&S launch new series by Dork Diaries author

Simon & Schuster UK has acquired a new series by Rachel Renée Russell, author of the Dork Diaries series. The Misadventures of Max Crumbly is about a boy called Max and his dailyups and downs at South Ridge Middle School. After being home-schooled by his grandmother Max begs to go to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Salt and Seren authors among Jerwood winners

Two independent presses are among those celebrating after eight authors were chosen as winners of the Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize. Jo Mazelis, published by Seren, and Carys Davies, published by Salt, were two of the eight authors who will each receive £5,000. The prize, set up to celebrate... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. to pay dividend to shareholders

Publishing company News Corp. said its finances are in good shape and that it would begin paying investors a semiannual cash dividend. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2015-06-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors' profiles key in resurrecting fiction brands

The reputation of an author writing a continuation novel in a well-established brand series is just as important as the brand itself, publicists have told The Bookseller. Novelist Sophie Hannah added that authors who are fans of the series they are writing in can channel the original author... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Battling bias on the shop floor: how bookstores can support diversity

A bookseller explains how Kamila Shamsie’s call for gender equality in the industry, and the fiery debate it provoked, could lead to greater diversity all aroundKamila Shamsie calling for a year of publishing only women has certainly unleashed a storm. Some disagree that gender bias exists,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-06-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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