Guwahati: 10 September
Journalists organisations express grave concern at the laying off staff by various media houses in the countries. Some media houses in the northeast also cut the sizes of thier staff showing shrinking media revenue due to the pandemic. A number of TV channel and leading newspapers teminated srvices of many journalists in the name of Covid-19 crisis. Sadin , a popular weekly published from Asamiya Pratidin group closed publication and sacked the entire staff. Many media houses including premiere English daily The Assam Tribune have resorted to pay cuts of the staff. Indian Journalists Union (IJU), Nationsl Union of Journalists, National Network of Women Journalists in Media and many othet journalists organisations expressed concern for the lay offs in media houses.
Indian Journalists Union ( IJU) and Northeast India Federation of Journalists expressed serious concern at the termination of services of three senior most journalists by the Shillong Times, a leading English daily published from Shillong. The three senior journalists were sacked summarily without serving any show cause notices and enquiry which is mandated by the labour laws, said IJU in a press statement. The reason of sacking of the Journalists as mentioned in the termination letter is ‘ COVID-19 generated reasons’ which cannot be accepted as there are no such provision for arbitrary sacking of journalists in the laws governing the services of journalists, the statement said.
IJU President and former member of Press Council of India Geetartha Pathak and IJU Secretary General and Vice President of International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) Sabina Inderjit said in the statement that the Shillong Times earlier has allegedly resorted to salary cut in the name of financial constraint due to the pandemic and also forced its staff including Journalists to work in a Covid-19 exposed environment.
The IJU and NIFJ leaders also said that the Shillong Times being a leading daily was enjoying the lion’s share of government’s advertisement revenue and other incentives since last 75 years and they have all the strength to withstand a few month’s pandemic generated temporary crisis.
The local media sources said that The Shillong Times has the record of sacking staff including Journalists violating all labour laws. In 2016 Dhrubajyoti Chakraborty, a sub editor was summerily sacked without following the procedure prescribed in the labour laws. His case is stil pending in the labour department and allegedly due to the pressure from the influential media house of the state the case is hushed up.
IJU and NIFJ joins the Shillong Times staff with solidarity for protesting against the illegal termination of services of the three journalists.
The Journalists bodies demand the management to withdraw the termination order against the three senior journalists and also urges the state government to take suitable action against the newspaper management for the illegal termination of services of the journalists, illegal pay cuts and violating wage board’s provisions.
This is not acceptable and quite inhumane in naturr too. Govt must intervene into it. No one is above the law.
And just why should they be retained when every sector of business and employment is severely financially affected….. perhaps marginal salary cutback could have been offered to them to allow them to survive.