Joining Al Jazeera

dunmanfc
By dunmanfc

Hi guys in QL!

I'm about to accept an offer to join Al Jazeera English. Can anyone share some light on the company and where the staff are being housed? I will bring my family of wife and 2 small kids along. Grateful for any advice.

Many thanks.

By dunmanfc• 4 Sep 2008 06:08
dunmanfc

Thanks Stork for your great and honest assessment.

Yeah, my son is of schooling age, he'll be 6 this year. I very much hope to get him a place in a good school, but I understand the difficulty in getting one. I'll try as soon as I get to Doha.

I do hope things will get better in AJE. Do you mean that children's school and medical claims will take months to be reimbursed? On this note, I hope the salaries are credited punctually every month!

Despite this, I revving up to join you a soon as I get my visa approved.

Hope to meet you in person soon Stork!

Cheers.

By Stork• 3 Sep 2008 10:28
Rating: 5/5
Stork

Hi,

I work at Al Jaz. Housing should be fine. You should get a four bed villa somewhere decent. It'll be on a compound which should have a gym and a pool at least. Some have squash and tennis courts too. I live on Al Faisaliya which has the lot. I have heard Al Jaz is not taking any more homes here as it has become too expensive.

Are your children of school age? There is a huge problem in Doha getting places in good (or any) schools. My Daughter goes to DESS (Doha English Speaking School) which is a great school but massively oversubscribed. You need to make sure your kids are not going to be left with nowhere to go.

As you will have seen, the on-air product is strong most of the time. There are issues with H.R. and Finance which cause a lot of problems. People often find it very difficult to claim back expenses as the system is unbelieveably bureaucratic. To be honest morale is quite low as we are very understaffed. So you'll get a very warm welcome when you do arrive.

It'll take a minimum of three months for you to get out here as Al Jaz needs to get you visas etc which takes an age. I would strongly advise you to NOT hand in your notice with your current employer until everything is sorted and you have your visa and work permit. I know one recently arrived member of staff who was offered a job last September and only arrived here this July...10 months! She very nearly told them to shove it where the sun don't shine.

I hope I haven't left you downhearted. Once you have settled life here is pretty good. You have to make quite an effort to get the most out if it but if you do family life is great.

All the best.

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