SRF slates TV channel owners' move to make NOC mandatory for journalists changing jobs

The Supreme Court Reporters Forum (SRF) has come out swinging against a directive by television channel owners making it mandatory for journalists to obtain a no-objection certificate (NOC) before switching jobs.

The Association of Television Channel Owners (ATCO) issued the directive on Sunday, signed by President Anjan Chowdhury and Secretary General Abdus Salam.

It said taking up a job at another organisation without first obtaining an NOC from the current employer -- whether still employed or after leaving -- was strictly prohibited.

Any employee who joined another organisation without an NOC would be considered to have breached company rules and could face legal action.

SRF President Masudur Rahman Rana and Secretary General Mehedi Hasan Dalim fired back in a joint statement, calling the directive a direct attack on journalists' professional freedom.

They said the constitutional right of journalists and media workers to change workplaces, choose employment according to their skills, and carry out their professional duties freely could not be curtailed by any unilateral directive from an owners' body.

The statement said the Bangladesh Labour Act 2006 left no room for imposing such conditions on an employee's right to change jobs.

"Any condition that conflicts with the Labour Act or restricts workers' rights is illegal and unacceptable. ATCO's directive is a clear violation of the country's labour laws and workers' rights," it read.

The SRF warned the move would poison the professional environment in the media, breeding fear, uncertainty, and instability among journalists -- a direct threat to independent journalism and a free press.

The forum called on ATCO to withdraw the NOC directive without delay and urged all stakeholders to step back from any decision that undermines journalists' professional freedom.