Silence of PBA on Plight of Its Own Work Force

WEB DESK: The body of media outlet owners has come out in support of detained owner of Jang Group Mir Shakil Rehman unlike this, it has never comes out with a statement for the welfare and well-being of its workers.

Though in an isolated event PBA did issued press release on Geo News Reporter Ali Imran Syed’s few days back event of going missing, but other than that most of the times media owners body has neglected media workers plight which they face every day.

Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) issued a circular on Saturday, pleading the state to look into the matter of Mir Shakil ur Rehman, who has been in custody for almost seven months.

However, the same activism has never been apparent on the part of association when media men suffer.

The association has pulled together against the detention of a media giant but have never against unsubstantiated measures taken by the owners of TV channels inflicting damage to employees.Hundreds of workers were laid off by different channels without any prior notice while those who were retained had to work without salaries for months. Many media outlets opted for pay cuts but PBA met with deafening silence.

The media giants sitting as the board members have not ever devised any strategies for improvement in working conditions for the journalists or for the welfare of those who lost their lives in the line of duty.

The association of media outlets’ owners never bothered to even extend an apology to hundreds of workers who were laid off neither it justified if existed, like financial crunch, a reason behind the measure.

It never planned any strategy to develop a mechanism regarding working conditions in the channels or a uniform policy for incentivizing the journalists who put their lives at risk while performing duties. All this indicates that the association merely exists to protect the interests of the giants of the media industry and it has no concern with the employees.The journalists’ fraternity believes it to be a union of media giants aimed at protecting their interests and rights only. Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ) Office-Bearer Riyaz Sohail criticized the media group owners and blamed them for leaving workers alone in difficult times.

He said that PBA was a body of media channels heads formed recently. “Even All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) never raised issues of the journalists, be it professional or financial”. Sohail cited that channels like ARY News and Geo News remain indulged in a tug of war but get together when it comes to the protection of their interests.

The channel owners treat the employees like the owner of a cement factory, it’s the same mindset, he added.

Sohail said that the channel employees were the ones protesting against Mir Shakeel’s detention but the problem is that their loyalty would go in vain once the outlet owner would return to a normal life.