By virtue of Article 185 and 187 of the Labour Act (Official Gazette 38/95, 65/95 and 17/01)
GLOBUS MEDIA D.O.O. ZAGREB,
represented by Uros Soskic, the Managing Director of the Company
(hereinafter referred to as: Employer)
and
the Trade Union of Croatian Journalists –
Branch Office JUTARNJI LIST
(hereinafter referred to as: Union),
represented by the Union Branch Office Official – Ivica Buljan,
as Parties to the Contract have signed on May 16th 2002 this
COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT
For Professional Journalists and Other Employees at the Daily Paper Jutarnji list
A. GENERAL
I. INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS
Content
Article 1.
This Collective Agreement (hereinafter referred to as: Agreement) contains stipulations fixing mutual rights and obligations of the parties who signed this Agreement, and the provisions regarding the rights and liabilities of the employed persons.
Application of the agreement
Article 2.
2.1. This Agreement is applied to those Employees (persons employed by the Employer) who, at the time of signing this Agreement, were members of the Union or they become its members during the validity of this Agreement (hereinafter referred to as: Employees).
2.2. When considering questions arising from the work relations or related to the work relations of other Employees (who are not members of the Union) the Employer shall respect legal regulations on the prohibition of unequal treatment.
Principles
Article 3.
3.1. The Parties to the Agreement agreed they will follow the following principles:
- mutual co-operation in the field of work relations and social insurance,
- promotion of social partnership and collective negotiations,
- peaceful solving of disputes,
- promotion of the freedom of informing, reporting, commenting and
criticising,
- observance and promotion of the principles of the International
Declaration on the Rights and Obligations of Journalists from 1971 (the
so called Munich Declaration) and the Statutes of the International
Federation of Journalists.
3.2. The employer shall not discriminate employees for their race, gender, ethnic origin and the like.
II. RESOLUTION OF DISPUTES
Conciliation
Article 4
4.1. For the purpose of solving collective labour disputes that could not be solved through mutual negotiations, a conciliation procedure shall be effected.
4.2. The conciliation is performed by a Conciliation Committee consisting of 3 members – one member of which is nominated by the Employer, one by the Union, and one by mutual consent of both Parties from the list defined by the Economic-social Council.
4.3. Parties have to nominate their member to the Conciliation Committee within 24 hours and immediately agree upon nomination of the third member.
If the Parties do not otherwise agree upon, the Conciliation Committee shall present their proposal for resolution of the dispute within five days from the date of notification of the Economic-social Council or County labour office about the dispute.
4.4. Parties may accept or reject the proposal of the Conciliation Committee and reveal their decision the first next working day after they received the proposal. If one party does not declare its decision about proposal of the Conciliation Committee within time in point 4.3., it is considered that the proposal is not accepted by that party.
4.5. Proposal accepted by both parties has legal strength and effects of the Collective Agreement.
Arbitration
Article 5
5.1. Parties can entrust the solving of the collective or individual labour dispute to an arbitration council in mutual consent.
5.2. The arbitration council has three members one of which is appointed by the Employer, the second one by the Union, and then those two members choose the third one which is, also, the chairman of the arbitration council.
The third member cannot be a person which is a Union representative, Union official, member of the Supervisory Board or Management Board, member of the Association of Employers, editor-in chief or representative of the Employer.
5.3. Parties shall appoint their member to the arbitration council within 24 hours. Appointed members shall agree upon nomination of the third member within 24 hours
5.4. If the parties do not agree otherwise, the arbitration council shall bring its decision within the period of maximum 7 days from the day of appointment of all the members.
Mediation
Article 6
Parties can agree to solve the dispute by mediation of the third parties.
Strike
Article 7
7.1. While this Agreement is in force, the Union will not strike because of the issues which are solved by this Contract, providing that the employer carries out his obligations with respect to them orderly. In the case of amending or altering certain provisions of the Agreement which could cause strike, parties shall start conciliation process before the Union organises a strike.
7.2. Union can organise a strike in cases regulated by Article 210 of the Labour Law and in all other situations of protection of the level of economic and social interests of employees defined by national legislation.
7.3. The Union will use the strike as the utterly last means, after all the other possibilities have been used.
7.4. The Union brings the decision about strike in a thought-out way, taking care about the relation of the interests it represents and the damage caused by strike.
7.5. For organising of strike and other issues of strike which are not solved by this Agreement, provisions of the Labour Law and the Union rules will be applied.
7.6. The Union shall not force anybody to strike.
7.7. The employer shall not prevent, limit and disturb the strike, which is legal and organised in accordance with this Agreement, the Labour Law and the Union rules.
7.8. The strike should be announced to the employer at least five days before the beginning. In the letter in which the strike is announced, the Union must designate the reasons for the strike, the place, day and time of the strike, as well as the data about the strike committee, that is persons leading the strike.
The strike shall not start before the procedure of conciliation is completed.
7.9. The strike is led by the strike committee of the Union or by an appointed person of the Union, which will perform the functions of the strike committee. The persons from the previous line cannot be designated to work during the strike.
7.10. At the latest on the day of the announcement of the strike, the Union must publish the rules about jobs on which work should not stop during the strike or lock-out, agreed in accordance with the Law with the Employer. The rules about jobs which cannot be stopped also include the number of employees which shall work during the strike.
III. UNION WORK
Basic rules
Article 8
8.1. Union operates in line with the Law and Union rules.
8.2. Union shall inform Employer about election or appointment of Union representative and other Union officials.
8.3. Employer shall not discriminate employees for their membership and activity in the Union.
Obligation of Employer to consider proposals and requests
Article 9
9.1. The Employer shall receive the Union representatives at their request, and discuss with them the problems of the Union activities, material and other interests of the Employees, within the shortest possible time but within five days, at the latest.
9.2. The Employer shall consider proposals, initiatives, opinions and requests made by the Union representatives regarding realisation of the rights, obligations and responsibilities arising from work, and based on the work, and inform the Union about its positions.
Access to data
Article 10
10.1. The Employer shall enable Union representative access to important data for promotion and protection of labour rights and interests of employees.
10.2. Trade union representative shall use this right from the previous line in a way not damaging to the Employer.
Ensuring the conditions for trade union work
Article 11
11.1. The Employer is obliged to enable the Union and its officials to perform their activities (meetings, gatherings etc.)
11.2. In performing its activities as under Paragraph 1 of this Article, the Union shall take care as to make the least possible damage to the business operations of the Employer.
11.3. The Employer shall provide the following for the Union and Works Council’s activities, free of charge:
- room for work, meetings, and gatherings of the Union,
- use of phone and telefax devices,
- freedom of the Union to inform its members, and disseminate publications
- technical and administrative services necessary for the Union activities,
- charging of the Union membership fees and loans through the payroll
of the Employees, and crediting the account of the Union with these
amounts
Shop steward
Article 12
12.1. For carrying out of his Union activities, a Union shop steward is entitled to the salary in the amount he would get as if he was actually working.
12.2. For each member of the Union, a Union official is entitled for, at least, two hours of activity receiving the indemnity for the salary as under Paragraph 1 of this Article during one calendar year.
12.3. A Union shop steward and Union official is also entitled to the right of indemnity when absent from work in cases of attending the meetings of the Union, attending congresses and conferences, training courses and training for the Union activities
12.4. A Union shop steward cannot, due to his Union activities, be called for responsibility nor brought to an unfavourable position.
12.5. During his activities for the Union, and six months after ceasing to act as a Union shop steward, the Union official can not be fired or transferred by the Employer without his previous consent or without the consent of the Union.
Works Council
Article 13
13.1. Employees have the right to elect Works Council defined according to the Labour Law
13.2. If the Works Council is elected, Union representative can participate in its work.
13.3. If the Works Council has not been elected, his rights and obligations according to the Law, are enjoyed by the Union.
IV. PROFESSIONAL RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS
Professional rights and obligations of journalists
Article 14
14.1 Employer defines basics and specifics of editorial policy of the Jutarnji list, and the editor-in-chief determines and realises editorial policy of the papers. Editor-in-chief is obliged to act in line with the legal framework and rules of journalistic profession (code of conduct) and especially in line with the principle of the right of the public to be informed about all the important events, manifestations, persons, objects and activities, within the framework of the content specifics of the newspaper.
14.2 In performing his professional duties, a journalist is entitled to the freedom of collecting and interpreting information, investigating events of public interest, reporting about public events, and about events, manifestations, persons and activities of public interest and express opinion about all the questions of public interest. Journalist has the right to comment and express opinion about all the events, manifestations, objects and activities of public interest, in line with legal provisions and rules of journalistic profession.
14.3. Journalist cannot suffer damaging consequences when reveals true facts and when expresses opinion in good will and public interest, in line with the law and rules of the journalistic profession.
14.4. Due to his opinion expressed in accordance with the rules of the profession, journalist’s labour contract cannot be ended, nor his salary lowered, nor his position in the company changed, nor his performance of his professional duty threatened in any other manner (non-assignment of tasks, assignment of inappropriate tasks, and similar ways of pressure on journalists).
14.5. Journalist has the right to refuse to perform a task which is contrary to the rules of journalistic profession. Due to such refusal journalist’s labour contract cannot be ended, nor his salary lowered, nor his status in the company changed, nor his performance of professional duties threatened in any other way (non-assignment of tasks, assignment of inappropriate tasks, and similar ways of pressure on journalists).
14.6. Journalist has the right to oppose any pressure against unbiased performance of his/her journalistic duties. In such cases journalist’s labour contract cannot be ended, nor his salary lowered, nor his status in the company changed, nor his performance of professional duties threatened in any other way (non-assignment of tasks, assignment of inappropriate tasks, and similar ways of pressure on journalists).
14.7. Previous paragraphs on the professional rights of journalists are applicable to other workers accordingly.
14.8. Journalists and other workers have to be adequately paid for their work.
Protection of professional reputation
Article 15
15.1. Journalist has the right to refuse to sign an article or other journalistic work which has been altered by editor’s, language or copy-editor’s interventions in such a manner that its attitude differs from the journalist’s delivered original work or that these interventions turned it opposite to the opinion or beliefs of the journalist.
15.2. Photographer has the right to refuse to sign a photograph so altered by interventions that it has become essentially different from the original photograph delivered by photographer.
15.3. If a journalist whose work had been so altered by intervention did not have an opportunity to see altered work and express his attitude about it, editor may publish such a work only without journalist’s name.
15.4. Journalist has the right to demand withdrawal of his signature also in case of justified interest (non-disruption of good relations with persons he/she writes about, danger of denial of information, personal security, etc.).
15.5. Journalist has the right to reply to a correction/reply which editor-in-chief publishes as a reaction to his article. Journalist’s reply cannot be published in the same issue in which correction/reaction is published.
Determining work tasks
Article 16
Work tasks for the journalist, photo-reporter, language editor and graphical collaborator are determined by relevant editors, based on the needs of the editorial board. Employees perform work tasks covered by the job description, which is determined through the work contract, or their professional position.
Protection from harassment
Article 17
If a responsible person harasses the employee in a way that he/she is denying employee his right to work, or degrades the employee, this employee has the right to ask for the intervention of the Union and the Arbitration Council. If the employee has addressed the Union, and the Union intervenes, the Employer is obliged to consider the opinion of the Union, and/or execute the decision of the Arbitrary Council, if the Employer accepted that the Arbitrary Council will decide on this issue.
Assistance and protection by the Employer
Article 18
18.1 A journalist is entitled to a professional and efficient legal and other assistance of the Employer for his protection against violence, threats, offences, libels and other negative consequences caused by his work as a journalist.
18.2. To ensure an efficient protection in compliance with Paragraph 1 of this Article, the Employer shall engage a lawyer, if he does not have an adequate expert.
18.3. In the case a journalist loses a civil lawsuit connected with his work for the Employer, the Employer shall indemnify the amount the journalist had to pay to the person who has sustained loss as per the verdict, except if there was an intention or an extreme negligence of the journalist.
18.4. If the threats to journalist and/or members of his family, regarding his/her work, are of such nature that they constitute danger to his/her/their security and life, the employer is obliged to undertake necessary measures at relevant institutions (bodies) so that journalist and his family are properly protected.
Protection of rights of Employees
Article 19
19.1. The Employee who believes that the Employer violated his/her labour right, can demand the Employer to enable him/her exercise this right, in a period of time of up to fifteen days from the day he/she received notification on the decision violating the right, or from the day of comprehension of the violation of the right.
19.2. If the Employer does not fulfil the demand in paragraph 19.1., employee can within the next fifteen days demand protection of violated right at the court.
19.3. Worker who did not act in line with paragraph 19.1. cannot demand protection at the court.
19.4. If by law or some other obligatory document a conciliation procedure is provided, period of fifteen days to file a lawsuit to the court started from the day of termination of conciliation process.
V. EMPLOYMENT
Employment
Article 20
20.1. The Employer has to notify Works Council or the Union if the Works Council ceases to exist, on the intention of employing new employees.
20.2. The priority of employment as a journalist is granted to freelance journalists having a co-operation contract signed with the Employer. This priority of employment means that the Employer shall, when deciding about the candidates he would sign an Employment Contract with, obligatorily consider journalists, permanent collaborators, with such co-operation contracts.
20.3. The stipulations stated in the previous paragraph do not refer to journalists who are co-operating with the Employer on occasion.
Fixed-term employment contract
Article 21
With employees who get employed for the first time, the Employer can sign a fixed-term employment contract for the period of up to one year, except in cases when these employees have previously performed certain tasks for the Employer for longer period than one year, on the basis of co-operation contract or on other similar legal basis.
Introduction to general acts
Article 22
The Employer has an obligation to allow the employee, prior to signing the employment contract, to be introduced with this Agreement and other general acts regarding labour and related issues. If the employee in question is a journalist, the obligation from the previous sentence also relates to the Code of Conduct of Croatian journalists.
Trial work
Article 23