Sarajevo/Banja Luka, 1.5.2024. – On the occasion of the International Labor Day, the Board of Directors of the BH Journalists’ Association draws attention to the difficult labor-legal and social position of journalists in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), as well as unsafe working conditions and violation of the right to trade union organization and action.
According to the latest survey of BH journalists, most journalists have salaries that do not allow for a dignified life, economic security and independence. For 24% of journalists, monthly incomes are below 1,000 convertible marks (KM), 56% of them earn from 1,000 to 2,000 KM on a monthly basis, while only 2% have incomes above the amount of the trade union consumer basket. Particularly worrying is the fact that the lowest paid are beginners and journalists at the end of their careers, which in the long run makes the journalistic profession less promising and one of the lowest paid in BiH.
The Steering Committee of BH Journalists Association emphasizes that many journalists work without an adequate employment contract, some for 10 years, employers do not pay pension and health insurance even in the public media. A journalist’s working week is usually more than 40 working hours, excluding paid overtime and weekend work. Journalists are often not entitled to legally prescribed annual leave, as well as paid sick leave and other absences.
Of particular concern is the fact that the rights to trade union organization and action, the right to strike and other forms of legitimate struggle for workers’ rights in the media are violated in the media. There is no representative and unified syndicate of journalists in BiH, although there are legal possibilities for this in both BiH entities and the Brčko District. Only 16% of the media have trade union organizations, and only a few have employee councils.
Today, on International Labor Day, the Board of Directors of BH Journalists calls on all journalists from BiH to workers’ solidarity, support and joint struggle for better paid journalistic work, reduction of the precariat in the media, as well as more social justice and legal protection, and the immediate formation of a journalists’ union as a legitimate means of advocating and protecting the rights of media workers.
The Steering Committee of BH Journalists Association