AFP journalists in İstanbul plan to strike if salary demands not met

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The Journalists Union of Turkey (TGS) has announced plans to strike after failing to reach an agreement with the Agence France-Presse (AFP) on a collective bargaining agreement.

In a statement, the union said that if no agreement is reached by World Press Freedom Day on May 3, they will commence a strike at AFP.

The TGS explained that they have been negotiating with AFP for over three months, but the company has ignored the economic crisis that has deeply affected all employees in Turkey.

Despite AFP reporting on Turkey's economic crisis almost every day, the company refused to discuss real inflation rates, according to the TGS.

The TGS emphasized that journalists at AFP's İstanbul bureau have won awards, and brought prestige and money to the company, but are unable to reach the salaries they deserve.

"We cannot make ends meet with our salaries that are eroding every day, and unfortunately we have not seen any proposal that could compensate for this," the statement said.

If launched, it will be the second strike in the media sector since 2009, as there have been no strikes between 2009 and January 2022. The first strike occurred between TGS and BBC due to a stalled collective bargaining agreement process.

The BBC strike was the first in the media sector since the ATV-Sabah group strike in 2009, which lasted for five days and ended with an agreement. (HA/VK)