IFJ Welcomes Plan for Wage Standards for Newspaper Staff in India

http://peacejournalism.com/ReadArticle.asp?ArticleID=12746

Issue 30 - December, 2006
  By: IFJ  Posted on: 12/19/2006

Media Release
19 December 2006

IFJ Welcomes Plan for Wage Standards for Newspaper Staff in India

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today welcomed the
announcement by the government of India that it will set up wage
boards for newspaper employees, which will provide a nationally
negotiated agreement on wages and working conditions for the country's
media staff.

"This announcement is a good start to setting fair and equitable
standards for journalists and other newspaper staff in India and
hopefully will lead to better employment conditions for all media
workers in the country," said IFJ General Secretary Aidan White.

The decision came after the country's three major journalists groups –
the Indian Journalists' Union, the National Union of Journalists,
India and the All India Newspaper Employees Federation –formed a
confederation to demand that the government made good on promises to
re-launch the country's wage board system.

The IFJ had supported the confederation's efforts to institute the
wage board system. The group held recent demonstrations and protests
in major cities across India to press for the demand in the face of
the rapid growth of personal contracts, which are being used by media
employers to weaken journalists' rights at work.

"For three years the government has been saying it would tackle a
growing media employment crisis," White said, "as media companies
forced employees to accept vulnerable labour conditions with 'take it
or leave it' contracts and in the process they are denying
international labour standards and sending standards of journalism
into freefall."

With such uncertain labour conditions, journalists were not able to
fully exercise their rights to report independently and press freedom
has been suffering. The IFJ believes the re-institution of the wage
boards will improve labour conditions and the quality of media in the
country.

Two months ago the IFJ wrote to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
calling on the government to prepare a strategic plan for the
development of India's media.

On Monday India's Union Cabinet decided to set up two wage boards. One
will cover working journalists and the other will cover non-journalist
newspaper employees. The two wage boards are to submit their reports
within a period of three years.

"We are calling on the wage boards to act quickly to set fair and
equitable standards for labour conditions for journalists and
non-editorial newspaper staff, which will give a vital boost to
India's media industry," White said.

For more information contact the IFJ at 32 2 235 2200
The IFJ represents over 500,000 journalists in more than 100 countries worldwide


--
Members of the ZESTMedia list exchange news and views about the media in 
Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bhutan. Write to 
ZESTMedia@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

If you got this mail as a forward, subscribe to ZESTMedia by sending a blank 
mail to ZESTMedia-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx OR, if you have a Yahoo! ID, by 
visiting http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/join/

Get all ZESTMedia mails sent out in a span of 24 hours in a single mail. 
Subscribe to the daily digest version by sending a blank mail to 
ZESTMedia-digest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, OR, if you have a Yahoo! Id, change your 
settings at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/join/

theZESTcommunity-------------------------------------------------

ZESTCurrent: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCurrent/
ZESTEconomics: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTEconomics/
ZESTGlobal: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTGlobal/
ZESTMedia: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/
ZESTPoets: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTPoets/
ZESTCaste: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/
ZESTAlternative: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTAlternative/
TalkZEST: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TalkZEST/ 
Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
    http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/

<*> Your email settings:
    Individual Email | Traditional

<*> To change settings online go to:
    http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/join
    (Yahoo! ID required)

<*> To change settings via email:
    mailto:ZESTMedia-digest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
    mailto:ZESTMedia-fullfeatured@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
    ZESTMedia-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
    http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/