AMH Crisis Rages On: Journalists humiliated as marketing and distribution staff treated better

The crisis at Zimbabwe's leading privately owned media house, Alpha Media Holdings (AMH), continues to deepen, with journalists bearing the brunt of the company's financial turmoil.

Only editorial staff have been placed on two-week forced leave, while departments such as distribution, marketing, and general staff continue to work more days - and, shockingly, now earn more than the professionally trained reporters. This disparity has become a major point of frustration, with management showing little regard for the growing discontent.

Initially, in March, AMH management had indicated that all staff would be placed on a rotational forced-leave program. However, implementation has disproportionately affected journalists, raising serious concerns that management no longer prioritizes the company's core business - news production. Instead, support departments like marketing and distribution now receive preferential treatment.

"This is a media company, and the newsroom is supposed to be the heart of it. But they've made it clear that they don't value us," said one disgruntled journalist. "Drivers and general hands now earn more than journalists because they work almost full-time - up to 26 days per month - while we are on forced leave with little to no pay."

Another employee added: "We've been humiliated to the point that drivers and other non-academically qualified staff openly brag about being paid more than journalists - professionals who went through years of training and face dangers like harassment, arrest, and physical harm in the line of duty."

Sources within the company say some journalists received as little as US\$100 for the month of May. Many are still owed half of their U.S. dollar component from September last year, and full USD components from October, November, December, January, February, and June. The Zimbabwe dollar (ZIG) portions for May and June also remain unpaid. Worse still, management has reportedly failed to communicate any clear plan to address the arrears, sparking accusations of disregard for workers' rights.

"As it stands, it feels like we have no rights at all. Month after month passes without pay or updates. We have bills piling up. We don't know if we'll ever recover," lamented one employee.

Another added: "Our children are dropping out of school because we can't pay fees. This situation has tarnished the company's reputation and dragged journalism through the mud. It's embarrassing to admit we work for a newspaper."

Sources also claim AMH management has effectively transformed the company into an advertising and distribution business, sidelining the editorial department entirely.

"Most of the company's resources are being diverted to marketing, where staff are paid their commissions on time, while the newsroom struggles," said a source. "Efforts to remind management that journalism is the core business have fallen on deaf ears."

Some journalists reportedly now live in poverty, especially those without alternative sources of income. "We never imagined the company would fall this low. Maybe it fell into the wrong hands - or perhaps it's being deliberately sabotaged for political reasons," one employee speculated.

"When this forced leave program began, they promised half salaries and arrears would be cleared by August. But nothing has happened. Instead, we're paid random amounts whenever they feel like it - sometimes just US\$100 after months of silence. Even domestic workers are doing better."

As the crisis continues, staff morale has hit rock bottom, and faith in leadership has all but disappeared.