SECTOR 4 required to form and be part of a union, many journalists from private media houses do not have the support from an appropriate bargaining unit. It is not uncommon that journalist’s salaries are delayed; this is happening across the board in print and broadcasting media houses, whether they are private or public. Journalists often “still continue working” in these instances. Taking from the example of a public media house, starting salaries for a reporter include benefits, and starting salaries are higher for those who have completed a relevant degree. In some public print media houses, starting salaries were the same for those with or without degrees which is considered “a bit unfair.” For some radio stations, entry level salaries start at K4,500 (US$453) for full-time employees. This is in contrast to other stations which will pay their experienced hosts a maximum of K2,500 (US$252). Journalists often lack access to adequate equipment and transport to be able to do their work, but the situation is generally better in public media houses. There is “little done in terms of safety measures;” and this was particularly evident during the 2016 elections. There was inadequate protection of journalists “because the police who are supposed to safeguard them take sides.” Journalists have been harassed “in full view of the police” without any protection. Journalists are often required to identify themselves, which reveals the identity of their media house and in turn what political affiliation they are perceived to have. If you are perceived as “an enemy of the government [...] you become a target.” In fact, “public media journalists were attacked by the opposition, and private media houses [were] attacked by the ruling party. “Some (public) media houses increased the security measures at their premises during the election period. They also provided non-branded cars for their journalists to drive to assignments in.” Aside from this, “no protection measurements for journalists are in place from the side of the media houses”. A few training institutions offer short courses on elections, but there is a minimal focus on protection and safety measures in these courses. AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ZAMBIA 2017 59