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TV workers` ends strike, new programme to start from next week |
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Television workers have called off the fortnight-long strike on Wednesday as they agreed to compromise with TV producers over better pay and working conditions.
The striking employees are supposed to start work from today thus opening the way for the shooting of fresh episodes of TV serials. The regular viewers will get relief as they are favourite programmes will be telecast again with fresh episodes.
Dharmesh Tiwari of the Federation of Western India Cine Employees, which represents workers, said, "We have a lot of workers who work very hard and have an equal hand in the success of these serials and soaps. They deserve to be treated like professionals."
The television producers have also put a new contract system in place for the workers apart from a pay hike.
Mukesh Bhatt, chairman of the producers association informed, "We have agreed to increase their pay, introduce a contract system rather than have daily wage workers and introduce insurance for the more than 500,000 workers who work on producing content for television."
Nine general entertainment channels stopped telecasting fresh content on Nov. 9, banking on repeats of serials to take their place. Bhatt estimated that the television industry suffered a loss of a billion rupees after work stopped.
Broadcasters, including global names like Sony Entertainment and Viacom, had made it clear they were in no position to absorb any more cost increases and that producers would have to deal with any pay hike themselves.
India`s television industry has seen a lot of new players in the last one year, giving rise to a lot of jobs, most of which are held by daily wage workers paid by production houses.
Keerthan Adyanthaya, general manager of Star Plus, the top broadcaster and a unit of News Corp`s Star India, said, "Rather than functioning like a fly-by-night operation, we should function like a professional industry. I hope that with the introduction of measures such as insurance or fixed shifts, this should happen."
Bollywood also saw a similar stoppage of work in September but filmmakers agreed to increase wages and add more structure to the way the industry works.
There is still a hindrance though as sound recordists of TV industry are not happy with the way things have worked out and have threatened another strike if their demands are not met. They have been asked to work on a monthly salary of Rs 40,000, are not. They want Rs 55,000 a month. They have threatened to strike work if their demands are not met.
The producers gave in to most of the workers` demands and appeared to have blinked first. Members of the Allied Mazdoor Union will get paid according to the new rates proposed by the FWICE. Compulsory group insurance for all workers will come into effect and every worker will have to sign an individual contract with the producer. Producers will also have to give a month`s notice along with a month`s salary before sacking a worker.
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| TV workers` ends strike, new programme to start from next week |
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