By Sunita SamarooAs the new government continues in its efforts to protect workers, the Ministry of Social Protection is pushing to bring media entities in line with existing, but oftentimes ignored labour laws.(From Left) Consultant within the Ministry’s Labour Department, Francis Carryl, Junior Social Protection Minister, Simona Broomes and Assistant Chief Labour Officer, Lydia Green engaging media operatives yesterday.Long hours marred by no compensation or overtime,Cheap Jerseys For Sale, inadequate protection, problems with annual leave and days-off as well as improper record-keeping were among the issues being discussed yesterday as media operatives gathered with officials from the Ministry at their Brickdam, Georgetown office to discuss the state of affairs in the media, from a labour perspective.The engagement was headed by Minister within the Ministry of Social Protection, Simona Broomes along with Assistant Chief Labour Officer, Lydia Green and Consultant within the Ministry’s Labour Department, Francis Carryl.The meeting was part of the continued efforts of the Ministry to engage employers and employees as well as one where discussions on policies and engagement on areas where help is needed,Wholesale Jerseys From China, could be discussed.The Junior Social Protection Minister highlighted that reporters are workers willingly going beyond the call of duty and they deserve to be recognised.“People think a reporter is just about running out there and writing a story. Well I have no apologies. I really condemn the manner in which reporters were being referred to and treated in the past by the past government. For me, you are very important, and because of that we cannot go without recognizing the importance of you, the reporters out there.”She said reporters are dissatisfied that the law is not protecting them, and the Ministry will correct that.“With media houses, you find that over time it is a problem. Most workers would say that they have to work beyond the regular time, but the overtime is not given to them. Workers have complained about annual leave, days off and we have also, in our inspection, come across with proper records not being kept: the leave roster, the wages book, the timesheet and more so what is not common is proper lunch areas and the conditions in which persons? operate and work,Cheap Jerseys From China,” the Minister disclosed.These things will change,Clark Griswold Jersey, Minister Broomes assured.“We are not doing this because we want to put a deadlock on the employers, but without you (the reporters), there is no news; without the employees, there is no newspaper. It is not only the employers that are important here but the employees. You are moreso very valuable,” Broomes said.“Reporters have been making a difference in the country, in human rights and in every area and because of the value you carry, like all the other workers, I want to ensure you are being treated fairly and right,Cheap Jerseys Paypal,” the Minister added.STATE MEDIAIt was raised that most state media operatives bore the brunt of labour violations with the Guyana Chronicle, National Communications Network (NCN) and Government Information Agency (GINA) being thrust into focus.The Minister stated that reporters from the state agencies are more afraid and it was brought to her attention that their employees were being disallowed from accessing the Guyana Press Association (GPA).“We cannot have workers and their rights are being violated because they are from the state media,” said Broomes as she added that labour inspections will be conducted on all media houses.Carryl offered that media functionaries are affected by fear of victimization, whether by agents of the state or private entities. A number of anonymous complaints (letters without signatures) have been forwarded to the Ministry from media operatives, it was revealed.“It would not be fair for us to convince ourselves that all is well out there,” he said, adding “I have had to intervene in a very huge matter where workers were being ill-treated, dismissed at random and you may very well find that in the private media people are treated worse than in the state media.”“Media workers are very unhappy, whether in the state or in private,” the Labour Department Consultant commented.LONG HOURS, NO COMPENSATION ?The life of a media worker is usually characterized by irregular working hours; well beyond the eight hours stipulated in local laws.But after eight hours of work, media operatives receive no overtime. For some media houses, staffers receive extra for working on Sundays and holidays. But it was pointed out that in some private media house