SECTOR 4 Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: ✓✓✓ ✓✓ ✓✓✓ ✓✓ ✓ 1.7 (2005: n/a; 2007: n/a; 2009: 1.8; 2011: 3.3; 2014: 3.0) 4.4 Journalists and other media practitioners are organised in trade unions and/or professional associations, which effectively represent their interests There are various associations that cater to the needs of media professionals, though their effectiveness differs from one to the next, with some being in desperate need of resuscitation to communicate and ensure their effectiveness. The Media Workers Union of Swaziland is the one union that represents the interests of media practitioners. According to panellists, the union represents all media workers (i.e. not just journalists), but it is unclear what level of membership and engagement, particularly of journalists, it attracts. It appears that professionals in the printing sector are more inclined to be a part of the union. The union currently has an agreement with Swazi TV and the Swazi Observer. However, for many media workers beyond these two media houses, joining a union is a risk to job security and might compromise other benefits. One panellist also suggested that having a craft union for journalists, rather than a general media workers union, could help to ensure stronger engagement from journalists in the union movement. ‘As we are approaching the end of the year, some publishers will give out bonuses. But if you are a member of a union or other body, or seen as troublesome, you won’t get a bonus. And this can create issues because some media practitioners end up being given loans instead.’ ‘At the Times, there is no union and there is also no incentive to form or join one because you get punished for it at the end of the day.’ ‘The founder of the Workers Union used to be at the Times and was fired for his involvement in the union. His firing was to set an example to everyone else and may be part of the reason why people at the Times are not interested.’ 50 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ESWATINI 2018