Author: Dallandyshe Xhaferri
Before the dawn sheds its first rays of morning, Anila's alarm on her cell phone breaks the silence at five in the morning, heralding the start of a day that will take her to the buzzing newsroom where work starts at 6 am. As a young journalist working for one of the most popular television portals in the country, Anila seeks to complement her career by pursuing a master's degree. Despite her passion and determination, Anila tells Sinjalizo the challenging realities that journalists face every day, especially those who are new to the profession.
Although journalists have the power to raise their voice about the rights that can be violated in the workplace of professionals of various profiles, they remain shy and divided when it comes to finding a solution to their problems. The fear that her real name can be identified has made her choose the name Anila in her confession to Sinjalizo.
"For 8 months I have been working as a journalist in one of the most popular online media in the country. From the beginning, I was asked for my diploma, a medical-legal report, proof of the penalty, although I signed the contract only 3 months ago and I still don't have a copy of it in my hands.- she says for "Sinjalizo", adding that she works 8 hours a day and in one hour she has to publish at least 5 articles of different categories. Despite the fact that he has to work overtime every day, he has never been paid for it.
"As in most media in Albania, the salary in these 8 months has never been given to us on time. There are always delays of 2 to 4 weeks", - says Anila, who adds that she is still paid minimum wage.
Aleksandër Çipa, Chairman of the Union of Albanian Journalists, says that the most complaints of journalists for the period 2023-2024 are related to delays in receiving monthly payments. This problem is faced by journalists of traditional media such as television and radio, but also those of new media such as portals.
"Online media do not always have the opportunity to pay the journalist as some of them are not even registered.",- says Aleksandër Çipa, adding that the failure to give permission from the employer to go to work in another media where the journalist can be paid more has been accompanied by an increase in court cases between both parties.
Anila's case shows another problem of employees in the country, that of not knowing the Labor Code and not being aware to demand the respect of rights in the workplace.
While talking about her previous experience as a journalist in another online media, Anilat emphasizes that she did not sign any employment contract for more than 1 and a half years. Moreover, it was unable to react to the announcement that the number of journalists' staff would be reduced due to the lack of funds for the realization of monthly payments.
"Ignoring the rights as employees, left us unemployed without having the opportunity to do anything. My colleagues and I had not signed any employment contract and the insurance was dropped once every 1 months,"- she says for "Signalizo".
According to Albanian Labor Code, the employee must be informed of the termination of the employment contract by the employer two months before leaving the workplace. This notice period must be respected if a 3 to 5 year employment relationship has been signed between both parties. In the event that a contract is concluded between the employer and the employee for more than 5 years, it can be terminated only after 5 years and the employee is notified 3 months in advance. However, employers in the media field are still far from complying with this point of the Labor Code.
Underpaid and self-censored journalists
Esmeralda Keta, a journalist who has been investigating various issues in the country for many years, tells "Sinjalizo" that despite the fact that the job market in journalism has made positive steps compared to 10-20 years ago, journalists still face challenges various, which start from late payments up to 6 months to informality, where journalists return part of the payment received through the bank account manually to the employer.
"The employment contract in a large part of the media continues to be a formal document, where the employee always wins and the journalist can be thrown out on the street, regardless of the contract", says Keta, emphasizing that while the state sector has increased salaries several times, salaries in the media have remained static for several years. This fact has increased the dissatisfaction of journalists. Some of them have given up this profession, while others have chosen to emigrate, despite their long experience.
According to journalist Keta, journalists do not even benefit from official days off, which are not compensated with additional payments, although the contracts are drawn up based on the labor code.
The Labor Code stipulates that in the case of work on the day of weekly rest, the reward can be either a salary supplement of not less than 25%, or paid leave, equal to the duration of the work performed.
It is very rare that journalists working in private media receive 4 weeks of annual leave as stipulated by the Labor Code.
These problems have also been associated with the shrinking of the journalist's freedom to carry out his work professionally. According to Esmeralda Keta, the intervention of politics in the media and the direct connections it creates with media leaders has led to an increase in self-censorship among journalists.
Meanwhile, for Aleksandër Čipa, another factor that becomes an obstacle for journalists to exercise their profession professionally is related to the incomplete answers given by the public authorities within the law on the right to information.
"The public authorities give routine, general answers which are mainly related to the fact of their readiness for communication, but not to their readiness to provide the specific information requested by the journalist". says Aleksandr Chipa.
Journalism, need for self-regulation
According to a STUDY published 4 years ago by the Albanian Committee of Helsinki, it turns out that informality in journalism is a problem that has been going on for years. 23.33% of the sample of journalists asked from all over the country say that they do not receive the full payment in their bank account.
One of the main findings of this study is related to the safety of journalists in the workplace.
"More young journalists, than experienced ones, report that the employer addresses them in an insulting manner. They also feel unsupported by colleagues if they have a conflict with the employer. As a result, they are less inclined to protect their rights...",- is written in the study of the Albanian Committee of Helsinki.
Despite the accompanying problems in the professional life of journalists, building a union is not seen as a solution.
"For the last three decades, the unions in Albania have been used as they wanted by all the politicians and in many cases they have been used as crutches, which have ruined the jobs of the employees. This is the reason why when you say union it is seen with suspicion, but I think that the media needs an organization. There is a need for a union, but to gather all journalists under one umbrella and not to be divided into several unions, unions or connections", - says the journalist Esmeralda Keta, while for the journalist Çipa Albania has lost the time to create a union for journalists, who should follow the path of self-regulation.
According to Çipa, it is necessary to create a national media self-regulation Congress where all entities of interest in the intellectual scene are represented, such as journalists' organizations, media organizations, media owners' associations, public media entities such as the AMA (Authority of Audiovisual Media) and AKEP (Electronic and Postal Communication Authority). "After this Congress convenes, the National Council of Self-Regulation and the National Executive Board of Self-Regulation must be elected. If we respect both of these structures, we will have another reality in the field of self-regulation", - ends Chip for "Signal"
Anila's story tells not only about her struggles, but about a phenomenon that affects most journalists and media workers.
There can be no media freedom when journalists have vital challenges and great professional insecurities.
While the daily work for Anila ends long after the sun sets, it is time for a new dawn in the Albanian media where those who raise their voices for the violation of the rights of others find the strength to raise their voices for their rights as well.
This article was created based on input provided by individuals who have chosen to speak up. Share your story, empower others and be an agent for change. Visit the website: www.acqj.al/sinjalizo-dhe-ti/
