Mediakunta cooperative, which according to the latest count employs more than 160 freelance journalists, has just received €50,000 from the Google Digital News Initiative, as funding support to develop its business model. Mediakunta was set up in January 2017 and manages its members invoicing and tax and social security contributions payments, thereby enabling them to access unemployment insurance. The cooperative also monitors remuneration levels and is always ready to intervene on journalists’ behalf whenever contractors abuse their situation. The Mediakunta situation is being closely followed by Finland’s unions and employers alike, which see it as a potential solution to the problem of growing freelance employment.
President of the Central Organization of the Finnish Trade Unions, SAK, Jarkko Eloranta has launched a reflection of the growth of independent employment at a time when new information technologies continue to develop and he is seeking to soon enter into discussions with business leaders on the topic. With this money, Google is signaling its wish that Mediakunta develops a business model that can apply in several countries.
Planet Labor, 24 January 2018, nº10536 –www.planetlabor.com
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