Media regulator needs experienced staff

Staffing in a new Media Commission will need to be adequate to its task of effectively regulating social and other media, according to Fórsa. In a submission to an Oireachtas committee currently scrutinising legislation that will establish the body, the union says staffing levels will need to be comparable – or even higher than – those of the Data Protection Commission.

Fórsa also noted that legislation establishing the commission specifically provides for a role for a recognised trade union to negotiate the transfer of staff from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI). “This provision will ensure that the Media Commission has a body of staff at the outset with a significant level of experience not only in broadcasting but also in online regulation,” it said.

Fórsa’s predecessor IMPACT played such a role in past staff transfers in the broadcasting regulatory sector.

Read more on this story in our Services and Enterprises members’ news bulletin published Friday 12th March HERE.

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