Prothom Alo gets angry with those who resign

No matter how employee friendly an organisation is or how improved working environment it offers to its staff, anyone has the right to quit and pick new paths. But Prothom Alo gets angry on its journalists who serve notice to leave their jobs. It considers such decision as an insult for the newspaper and consequently it retaliates or wants to take revenge on the outgoing employees in various ways until the process of leaving the job is completely over.

Young author, journalist, teacher and a former photojournalist and content creator of Prothom Alo, Sudeepto Salam, in his book “Photosangbadiker Journal: Prothom Alor Ondormohol”, shares how he became the victim of vengeance when he left Prothom Alo.

According to Wage Board rules, an employee needs to give a notice two months prior to leaving the job. Sudeepto served his notice on his birthday. He thought he would work for one month and take another month off as he had so many holidays in his account. 

“I informed Shuvro [Mohiuddin Saifullah Shuvro], the then chief of video journalism department). I have been in this department for six months and he is the one who eagerly brought me in the department filing an application. He was stunned. I will take leave! He wants me to work harder for two months to brighten up his fading image! I did not agree as taking leave is my right,” Sudeepto writes.

He mentions that Shuvro sent a letter to Human Resource department chief Shamim Khan so that Prothom Alo doesn’t continue with Sudeepto after a month. As per Shuvro’s wish, the newspaper left Sudeepto a month earlier without offering salary of that month!

“I didn’t have a job yet! I needed that money! The reason was that my camera and computer should not sit idle for a month. He (Shuvro) had applied for my used camera while I was there as the camera belonged to the photojournalism department.”
Head of Admin Utpal Kumar Chakravarty and Manager ABM Khairul Kabir conducted all possible investigations against Sudeepto Salam immediate after he served the notice to quit but found nothing against him.

Being unable to cut salaries and other payments in excuse of any accusation, they blocked his motorcycle.

“When I joined Prothom Alo, the rule was that the employee will be the owner of the motorcycle provided by the office if he uses it for six years. I was given an old motorcycle in late 2014. Then Kabir said even if the new motorcycle is given to me, my term of six years will be calculated from this old motorcycle. I was given a new motorcycle in mid-2015. Even if we calculate from the new motorcycle, it will be six years in 2021. The motorcycle was not given to me due to leaving the job. He said, ‘there is a new rule. Seven years must be completed.’”

Sudeepto told about the rule when he joined Prothom Alo but they were not ready to accept it. In the end, he wanted to buy it for Tk20,000. Yet they didn’t give it saying that the price was too low. Many told Sudeepto to inform the matter Prothom Alo Editor Matiur Rahman, but he didn’t.