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Journalists in Aceh rally on May Day for better pay
Jakarta Globe - May 1, 2009
Nurdin Hasan, Banda Aceh – Dozens of journalists in Aceh commemorated international Labor Day, or May Day, on Friday by holding a peaceful rally in downtown Banda Aceh.
The journalists called on media owners in the province and across the country to improve the wage standard for their employers, including journalists.
Mukhtaruddin Yakob, chairman of the Independent Journalist Alliance (AJI) in Banda Aceh, said the rally was organized to shed light on the plight of media people in the province, who he said received meager pay from their companies.
"It is sad that some journalists [in the province] are being exploited by the national media," he said. "The journalists get paid only when they file news. Even then, the pay is still below standard."
Mukhtaruddin said that even though Indonesia had recorded rapid media growth, not all companies could afford to pay their journalists decent salaries. He said some journalists were paid below provincial and city minimum wages.
He did not say what the average salary was for journalists in Aceh, but the province's minimum monthly wage is Rp 1.2 million ($115).
The low pay for journalists, according to Mukhtaruddin, an SCTV television correspondent in the area, affects the quality of journalism. "Low wages create a pragmatic journalist, prone to bribes and in turn, not independent to external influence," he said.
He called on journalists to establish a union and continue to improve their craft. Mukhtaruddin said a union could fight for the welfare of journalists and provide a bargaining chip for media workers.
The journalists urged the management of media companies to stop using the global crisis as an excuse to exert pressure on the right of employees to form unions, initiate layoffs and change employment status from permanent to contractual.
The group also asked national media companies to clarify work contracts with their contributors in the province. They also asked the government to continue to protect workers, including their right to organize.
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