Swiss women journalists decide to set up a strike fund
Impressum, the largest professional association for media professionals in Switzerland, held its annual delegates’ meeting on March 16, 2018. The approximately 60 delegates, representing nearly 5,000 journalists, decided to establish a strike fund and adopted a resolution calling for direct and indirect support for the media.
The delegates of Impressum - Die Schweizer Journalistinnen met on Friday, March 16, 2018 in Versoix (GE). In the current media environment, in which both large and small publishers are restructuring on a large scale, the delegates discussed the establishment of a strike fund. After an intensive debate, including on the SDA strike and the ongoing restructuring at Tamedia, the delegates approved the creation of such a fund by a majority. The strike fund will enable Impressum to offer its striking members compensation for lost wages.
The delegates' meeting also unanimously approved Impressum's participation as a founding member in the "Pacte de l'enquête" of the Fijou association in Suisse Romande for new financing of journalism. The project supports investigative ideas from independent journalists. According to the press release, Impressum hopes that such a project will also be launched in German-speaking Switzerland and Ticino. In its resolution, Impressum reaffirms its position in favor of direct media funding from the federal government and cantons for print and electronic media. The professional association also proposed new ways of financing journalism, such as making the subscription price tax-deductible for taxpayers. The delegates also agreed to create a new interest group for entrepreneurial journalists.
Impressum does not refrain from questioning itself and the structure of its professional organization. Among other things, the delegates discussed whether a reorganization of internal structures was necessary in order to reduce costs while maintaining its own effectiveness.
Two honorary members were appointed. One is Gisèle Bottarelli, who was secretary of the Vaud section for over 52 years, and the other is Frédéric Gonseth, director of the film "Le printemps du journalisme". At the delegates' meeting, the latter looked in particular at the demise of L'Hebdo back in February 2017.
