European Federation of Journalists

European Federation of Journalists

Policy

Freelance

The importance of cooperation between freelancers across borders in Europe has increased over the years. Colleagues inspire each other; union workers share ideas and experiences.

Contracts and fees, training, authors’ rights, and professional standards are all key issues for the growing – and ever more precarious- freelance community of journalists. Innovative financing models, which can give freelance journalists new possibilities/niches in media, are being explored by the EFJ and its affiliates.

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) Authors’ Rights Expert Group (AREG) and the Freelance Experts’ Group (FREG) strive to defend and to promote freelance rights. We say to our staff colleagues: in order to defend your rights and conditions of work, you can do nothing more effective than to promote the highest standards for freelances.

The Freelance Experts’ Group’s focus for the coming years’ is based on the EFJ’s working programme:

  • collective bargaining for all, including freelancers;
  • ensure competition law does not undermine the right to collective bargaining;
  • organising and training for freelances including on safety.

Links to freelance sites of our unions

Members: Erik Back, Marta Barcenilla, Michele Catanzaro, Baptiste Cessieux, Victoria da Silva, Renate Gensch, Michael Hirschler, Laura Jõgar, Ajdin Kamber, Andrus Klikunou, Vânia Maia, Maria Markus, Oddrun Midtbø, Andrea Milat, Jelena L. Petković, Céline Pierre-Magnani, Claudio Silvestri, Heini Hietikko (reserve), Ana María Martinez (reserve), João Miguel Rodrigues (reserve).

Actions

Workshop: Developing services for atypical workers

A workshop on atypical workers organised by the International Federation of Actors (FIA) in cooperation with the Dutch actors’ union (FNV KIEM) within the joint project with the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), International Federation of Musicians (FIM) and UNI-MEI took place in Amsterdam on 20 May. The participants, union leaders from the creative and media sector, discussed the impact of the changing landscape for workers and the impact on their working conditions and union services across the European Union. Yvonne Dankfurt from the EFJ affiliate in the Netherlands(Nederlandse Vereniging van Journalisten – NVJ), outlined the programmes offered by NVJ…

EFJ webinar on social security for freelance journalists in Europe

Join us for a webinar on April 21, 2015 at 12:00 AM CEST. Register now:! https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1619804193653421057 The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and its Freelance Expert Group (FREG) in cooperation with the Deutscher Journalisten-Verband (DJV) are organising another webinar, this time on social security for freelance journalists in Europe, a theme ever more important in times of increasing flexibility and decreasing social security. Ivan Declercq, freelance advisor of the Flemish journalist association (VVJ) will give some examples from European countries including Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Norway. The special system in Germany of the so-called Künstlersozialkasse (KSK) (artists’ social insurance)…

Belgium: A new platform for freelance journalists launched

How to improve the situation of freelance journalists? “To build a permanent structure”, was the answer of the Association of Professional Journalists of French-speaking Belgium (AJP/AGJPB) On 20 March, the Belgian Association of Journalistes (Francophone group AJP) launched a new platform offering a series of services to freelances, in order to better commercialize their products. It includes a calculator to define how much should be paid by line (page), news on the profession, training, conferences, events etc., a freelances’ repertoire listing freelance journalists with their expertise,  an agenda and a platform of exchange. For further information about the new platform,…

Can Europe do something for freelances? EFJ meets MEP Steinruck

On 31st March, EFJ Director Renate Schroeder together with Freelance Expert Group member Michael Hirschler from the German affiliate DJV met with Member of the European Parliament Jutta Steinruck for a very engaged one hour discussion. Steinruck is member of the Committee for Employment and Social Affairs  and trade union co-ordinator of the S&D Group. Main theme of the talk were the urgent problems journalists’ and other unions face throughout Europe: There are grave loopholes when it comes to social security for freelances; no real negotiation mandates for unions on behalf of freelances, in some Member States freelances cannot  become…

Belarus: EFJ reiterates appeal to lift ban on freelance journalists

The European Federation of Journalists has sent a letter to the Minister of Information of Belarus demanding to abolish the provision in a media law forbiding freelance journalists from practicing journalism in the country. According to the Mass Media Law in Belarus, freelance journalists are banned from reporting in the country. The law only recognises employed journalists working for major media organisations in Belarus. Foreign journalists who are working in Belarus on assignments can also get press accreditations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus. The EFJ proposed to the government to organise a round table discussion with all…

Freelance journalists need more freedom, campaign and organisation

The Freelance Expert Group (FREG) of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) agreed at its latest meeting in Brussels (26/02/2015) to reinforce its campaign to improve the social and professional status of freelance journalists in Europe. The EFJ experts reached an agreement on two major issues: All freelance journalists are journalists and have the right to be member of a trade union or professional association. They have the right to be represented and defended by the organization of their choice. This may seem to be an obvious fact but in several European countries – such as EU member states Greece and…

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