This new open forum is for layoff-related comments: news, memos, etc., about the planned 10% workforce reduction set for early December. (Archived daily.)
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
10% Layoff Central: Your news, comments, here!
This new open forum is for layoff-related comments: news, memos, etc., about the planned 10% workforce reduction set for early December. (Archived daily.)
61 comments:
Jim says: "Proceed with caution; this is a free-for-all comment zone. I try to correct or clarify incorrect information. But I can't catch everything. Please keep your posts focused on Gannett and media-related subjects. Note that I occasionally review comments in advance, to reject inappropriate ones. And I ignore hostile posters, and recommend you do, too."
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A friendly reminder: This open-comment post is for layoff-related stuff only. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAnyone hear anything about Cherry Hill -- other than the 30% rumor?
ReplyDeleteI have heard that Cherry Hill is looking at 30%. This is not a rumor. I also heard that Philadelphia is going to be taking over some of our duties and delivery, etc.
ReplyDeleteIt is going to be ugly.
Maybe Philadelphia Media Holdings will buy the Courier.
ReplyDelete9:13 p.m.: what do you mean, philadelphia will be taking over some of our duties and delivery? a merger? a partnership? are we living in bizzaro world?
ReplyDeletePhiladelphia what? The company that owns the Inquirer or a separate distribution company?
ReplyDeleteBecause God help us if JG, MF, and TG get their mitts on us in any way again. I blame them for a lot of the trouble we're in now. They were skinflints when it came to the important things but lavish spenders when it came to their own perks and favorites.
REgarding Cherry Hill's Courier-Post: Remember that there are some unions here. Pressman, circulation district managers and a circulation sales person or two, mailers, truck drivers and some maintenance people, etc. If you go into the press room you will often see that some of the pressmen and mailers wear Philadelphia Inquirer uniforms while working at the Courier because the Union pool feeds to both of the papers. Is it possible that there might be a deal whereby the Courier-Post is printed at the Inquirer's massively under-utilized printing plant in the Philly suburbs? Sure! This way, the Courier-Post could be loaded onto Inquirer trucks along with the Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News to head into NJ. Such an arrangement would benefit both Gannett and the Phila papers. In terms of getting rid of 30 from the newsroom...unlikely. If you think about it, they can rid themselves of many in classified since most people sit around in there waiting for phones to ring which never do. And, there are non-union circulation people who are full time who coujld go and not be missed. Unfortunately, it looks like the advertising dept may not be hit much if at all, although there are MANY in there who should have gone a long time ago. For instance there are two administratie types who are near useless, a special sections guy who is clueless and no longer needed, too many "managers" most of whom don't know their butts from a golf hole and at least 4 so called sales people who've been there way too long and add nothing more than overhead. One of them hasn't done much in terms of productive work in decades, yet, she remains and everyone wonders why....or do they wonder...the ghosts of Bob Collins remain, don't they!!!!!! Then there is the ad production department headed up by one of the most incompetent people in the building. Oh well just a few more days will tell and some of us will remain (God help us) and others will be gone forever.
ReplyDeleteHey, can we PLEASE talk about a newspaper other than The Courier-Post?
ReplyDeleteThat would be great. K, thanks.
This is said with all due respect. Genuinely.
ReplyDeleteDon't the New Jersey folks talk amongst themselves?
Perhaps we could have a New Jersey-only thread, Jim?
We hear about Jersey because that's the only group of employees who are digging and spilling the beans.
ReplyDeleteIt'd be great to hear about other papers, if anyone had any other info on other papers.
If you are desperate for info, start digging yourself.
maybe we should just perge ourselves of all of jersey. It seems like most people dont do anything and noone reads the papers and advertisers dont buy ads. Lets just close those papers. My paper has some issues but we have readers, some advertisers still see value, and we have good people working for us.
ReplyDeleteAh yes, lets just "purge" ourselves of New Jersey. Throw those suckers out to save the rest of us. I'm originally from Long Island, a long time NJ rival, and even I can see the flawed logic there.
ReplyDeleteJust remember, this isn't the end. You may feel a compulsion to throw your co-workers under the proverbial bus, but it's going to make a U-turn and come right on back.
Whatever, New Jersey doesn't need you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the explanation, 11:42pm.
ReplyDeleteTo the others: tell people at your paper to join in so it's not just Jersey talking. Or be gutsy enough to tell us which paper you're from. Or just use the scroll button to pass us by.
Rumor in Phoenix is that it's all happening this Friday 11/14.
ReplyDeleteShow of hands among Cherry Hill employees, how many think we can cut the newsroom by 30 percent and still put out a paper and maintain a Web site?
ReplyDeleteJust Jersey
There's definitely a lack of holiday spirit around the Clarion-Ledger in Jackson. Everyone's afraid to spend, even for Thanksgiving dinner, since no one knows who will have a job come December.
ReplyDeleteLousy timing!
Any word on when the cuts will start? Will it be another Black Friday?
Any news on Jackson, MS? Anything? Please?
ReplyDeleteOur work continues to increase, and our editors, I assume, by now know which of their employees are going to be cut. Every exchange is tinged with that possibility, every facial expression heavy with untold news.
ReplyDeleteIt does wonders for motivation.
I'd like to hear some news about USA Today. Ken Paulson was allegedly in a long meeting Monday. Of course, nothing from that meeting was shared with the troops. Once again it seems we'll have to get our news on Gannett Blog. Yet, even this blog hasn't had much on USA Today's situation. How is USAT keeping such a tight lid on potential staff reductions?
ReplyDeleteIs anybody stopping you all outside of New Jersey from posting here? I didn't think so.
ReplyDeleteI imagine a 30 percent cut in Cherry Hill would mean the elimination or reduction of the features section. Several layers of newsroom management will have to go. I can't see them trimming any more metro reporters or photographers. Purely speculation here, however.
ReplyDeleteAs a former courier-post employee, it baffles me that the place could even run with 30 less (or is it 30%?) in the newsroom. The paper would have to change drastically!
ReplyDelete9.46: that's the idea
ReplyDeleteI don't know about the ins and outs of individual Gannett papers. But I worked in seven newsrooms during my career (three Gannett), and I really doubt that the typical U.S. newsroom can withstand many more cuts and remain a viable provider of information to a wide metro region.
ReplyDeleteMost newsrooms have been cut by 20-40% in the past two years. And now more cuts are coming? In Minneapolis, where I live, the publisher of the Star Tribune just issued a dire memo warning of more cuts. This is a paper that already cut about 25% of its newsroom staff in 2007-08. (Through buyouts, not layoffs -- I was in the first group to take one.)
As a previous poster said, how do you put out a newspaper and a website with those numbers?
Maybe it really will all come down to Web-only. You could put out a pretty damn robust website with 100 reporters and producers. But you wouldn't have the revenue to pay for them.
Jesus, what a quandary.
Why don't news organizations collaborate to say something akin to "No more free news on the Web?" We collectively could do something like charge a monthly fee to Web access. It could be small. But if everyone does it, it would leave online news readers few options but to pay out or shut up. Then, perhaps, anyone who links to our Web sites to "ahem" post news on theirs could be charged a small copyright fee. This is just brainstorming, folks. But bottom line is, the issue of free news on the Web produced by people who need salaries is somehow going to have to be addressed in the future.
ReplyDeleteAt the C-P, our loyal readers have already noticed the reduced news hole and loss of long-time staffers. With more cuts on the way, they haven't seen anything yet.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone noticed that Walt Lafferty hasn't made a single comment to staff about the layoffs?
ReplyDelete@Anonymous 11/18/2008 10:06 AM
ReplyDeleteBecause even if you did that, there are still radio and TV stations that will beat you to the punch every day. There's also a growing crop of freebie news sites that will chip away at it. We don't have a monopoly on information anymore.
10:06 AM
ReplyDeletethat would be a good way to hasten gannets (and every news outlet's) demise. the answer is out there, it just hasn't been executed properly. the problem is that, in my experience, ad directors and ad salespeople are completely clueless about the web. it's simple actually. (1)produce good content... (2)target ads well... present it all in a user-friendly way.. (3)??? (4)profit!
unfortunately, gannett fails horribly in all four of those disciplines.
Re: Poughkeepsie Journal, the newsroom staff is tiny. We're talking something like 10 reporters left. Every time someone leaves (and they're dropping like flies over there) the position is not filled, but the bosses still expect the same amount of work and give no thanks at all really to the reporters who have been doubling up, no, tripling up, on work. News meetings center around target audiences and other marketing ideas about how to raise revenue through the wealthy homeowners in southern Dutchess County - a task that was at one time limited to POJO's magazine, "Hudson Valley Conoisseur."
ReplyDeleteDuring the same lay-off period where they lost the managing editor, they also let go of the head of web design (big mistake in this web era) and the head of operations. Those 45 people who are about to lose their jobs started then to report to the publisher since their former supervisor was let go. Just a few weeks later, it was announced they would no longer work there, and the paper would be printed in Westchester. And that is going to have an enormous effect on circulation and customer service. Is anyone here aware that calls for missing papers are directed to Kentucky now? These subscribers, the good people who actually still read the paper, are being left in the dust. The carriers don't even get paid enough to afford the gas for their routes, so it's no surprise an abundance of papers are missing in the morning. They also laid off the head of circulation.
I don't necessarily think this is the first step toward POJO and the Journal News merging, but I do think it's the first step toward the Poughkeepsie Journal selling the building (they own it), and moving the small staff to some rented office space somewhere.
@10:28
ReplyDeleteWestchester here. Just thought you would be interested to know: we have heard NOTHING about the plan to print POJO here in January. Funny how we are all learning about it here.
Stay strong. Keep warm. Us underlings are all paddling along together, waiting for the tidal wave to hit.
Walt Lafferty, publisher of the courier post is a slug! He stays in his office hole and avoids the people. Demonstrating how to further demorilize the people who work here. No one has any respect for him at all. His so called management team is a further joke and fit into his style. The EE is a complete loser who was dumped on the paper when he failed (again) when in Nashville. Gannett had to keep this useless EE for obvious reasons and dumped him where he could (supposedly) to the least damage. Ha!!! Everyone in the newsroom thinks he is a bumbling idiot and a weirdo. The majority of what's left inthe newroom are low paid inexperienced people and a previous blogger is right in saying that the few readers remaining are noticing the dumbing down of the paper. Local advertisers have dried up because their ads get almost no response. Lafferty's production director (who came with him from the Gannett Morristown paper he screwed up) is a foul-mouthed incompetent. A real leader would stay in touch with the organization and work toward understanding of the critical situation so that the company can move on after what is about to happen. Lafferty has no idea how to manage in such an environment. Lafferty under the direction of Gannett's idiots will further destroy this once good newspaper. More reductions will come in 2009 as this paper disintegrates.
ReplyDelete10:28 you point about carriers is something rearly seen here. I know of one 20-year Carriers who has had it and will leave after Christmas tips. A former co-worker called the way newspapers (in general-not just Gannett) the equivalent of an "American sweat-shop." Carriers are out of sight and thus out of mind to most of GANNETT. All newspaper companies will be in a state of shock when we lose 5-to-15% of the carriers and have no personnel to get the papers to the subscribers.
ReplyDelete10:06 here speaking to 10:20 and others
ReplyDeleteThose freebie Web sites produce news themselves? Who's paying them? My point is that a lot of stuff on the Web was originally produced by a news company. If we somehow make other sites that link to our stories pay for doing so, it could greatly help. As for television, well, it was there before the Web and we've been competing with it for years. We weren't going under in the 1980s and TV was just as strong back then.
Eventually, people are going to have to pay for news online or it will go away. Who's going to create online news to our level, taking as much time as we do, talking to as many people as we do, without somehow getting paid for it? Bloggers??? Give me a break. They have other jobs to put food on their tables. There's NO way they could do what we do to our level and hold down a job, too. It would simply take too much time.
It's 10:06 again -
ReplyDeleteOne more thing, if news organizations somehow band together like the recording industry did against Napster and similar sites, something might be able to be accomplished. But it would take ALL large news companies working together.
At least two reporters in Jackson have already been hired for jobs outside and are leaving soon. Does anyone know if this will lessen the pain the newsroom will feel from layoffs if those positions just close due to attrition?
ReplyDeleteThe elephant in the room that newspaper industry management is unable/unwilling to recognize is that the cost/revenue model for online news doesn't work. At least, I've never seen any numbers that show how online advertising will support the enormous infrastructure costs of traditional news organizations.
ReplyDeleteOnline generates profit only if content is free or very low. That's why search engines and sites with "user-generated content" do well. A national site with only a handful of originally produced stories, such as Politico or Huffington Post, can also thrive, with millions of hits and only a handful of people to pay.
Try exporting that model to a daily news organization with a large staff dedicated to local stories, and it doesn't work.
I don't think there will ever be enough online readers to support anything like the news staffs of an Indianapolis, Cincinnati or Louisville.
USAT, with its national reach, might survive in a vastly scaled down version. Perhaps there could be a national USAT with a local news page in each city served, employing no more than a dozen or so local reporters/editors.
All of that is based just on my own observations, and I'm just a flunky reporter. But IMHO, our revenue model is gone and will not come back.
I've heard there won't be any 10% cuts at the Gannett Television properties. They have already made cuts several months ago. They will continute to cut through attrition throughout 2009 however.
ReplyDeleteA few years ago, Gannett purchased Clipper Magazine. We never hear anything about that organization. How are they doing financially and are they subjected to the 10% reduction program to hit us shortly. Was Clipper affected by the other recent reductions? Jim, what can you find out and tell us about Clipper Magazine??? Anyone else on this subject?
ReplyDelete12:23 Are you sure no cuts in TV? I work in TV and have seen so many closed door meetings, cuts are the only explanation...
ReplyDeleteThe Courier-Post could reduce newsroom payroll by eliminating the managing editor position.
ReplyDeleteThe Courier post could also reduce payroll by getting rid of the classified ad manager who is an embarrasement, several worthless retail advertising "managers," at least 5 "sales" people who couldn't give away food to people starving in some third world nation, a couple of "administrative/secretaries" and on and on. Shame the publisher there doesn't see the light and has gotten rid of and will remove quite a few people who have contributed are good employees. Same ole politics, who you know, who is screwing who, who screwed who in the past and who has their head up the butt of a person above them. By the way, an earlier blogger outline the pending layoffs at Cherry Hill. From what I hear, this person is absolutely right on target with valid information.
ReplyDeleteIf the EE positions were eliminated, and the ME positions (less pay) kept, that would make a significant dent in the 10% payroll reduction.
ReplyDeleteLast I heard Clipper was still doing well. These mags usually do well in downturns if they can collect from advertisers. To be honest I haven't had an update on them in last 4 months or so.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI just removed a rather cruel comment about an individual who would be easily recognized by readers here because of specific physical details given by the writer. Please don't do that.
ReplyDelete@4:52...I work at Cherry Hill CP and I like the managing editor more than the executive editor. She actually has brains god gave a chicken. Let's keep her and get rid of him. I also agree that Lafferty is the biggest joke in the world. Too bad corporate can't see what he actually does.
ReplyDeleteReally doesn't seem much point in wasting our breath and key strokes over who SHOULD get laid off when those decisions clearly are already made. 'Til the March round. Ah, what's that you say? January? Shoot me, I'm an optimist.
ReplyDeleteJust got word that a number of Mailroom, Pressroom and Platemakers were part of the layoff at Louisville. Heard from several different sources. What I'd like to know if they are part of the 10% cut since they are all union or if that is separate. Anyone heard anything?
ReplyDeleteI've known Lafferty for years and have always found him to be a standup publisher who knew his stuff. I think he's getting a bum rap here, but that's not unusual I guess. What I like about Walt is that he's approachable. He's helped me on things several times when he didnt have to. Cut him some slack.
ReplyDelete8:23...Walt Lafferty approachable??? The guy hides in his office. And that Tom who came with him from Morristown is really a low class loser, but, I bet you think he's a swell guy too. Maybe Lafferty was mr. Wonderful before and somewhere else, but not at the Courier post. Lafferty has lied to the people at Cherry Hill often and his colors have been shown and the people see him for what he is...over his head and clueless. If he were any good he would have gotten rid of the many incompetents below him way before the reductions. Instead he's kept them around probably because they cower to him and do anything he wants since they couldn't get work at a 7-11.
ReplyDeleteCuts at TV are already underway. Some stations are laying off. Others are demanding a 10% wage reduction as well as elimination of overtime and bonus or performance pay. Certain older employees have been offered buyouts or be axed. Art, many accounting services as well as equipment maintenance have been outsourced or consolidated.
ReplyDeleteSome of these cuts will hurt the stations more than others. Unlike the papers; the TV stations have direct competitors and the cost of using them is exactly the same, $0.
Since the broadcast signal is the single largest driver to the web..not only will Gannet TV ratings drop (when the news budget is slashed) but the single biggest free advertising platform for the web will be less effective.
Smart? Huh?
What does anyone think about whether APP's new "fishing reporter" from marketing is going to be holding a real reporter's job after the December layoff?
ReplyDelete9:22pm: Whats a "fishing reporter"?
ReplyDeleteThe "fishing reporter" covers fishing, mainly for the "Hook, Line and Sinker" section that runs in APP and HNT.
ReplyDeleteI really hope that fishing person is holding down a full-time job by just writing about fishing, unless you have a full magazine or weekly page.
ReplyDeleteIsn't the Des Moines Register running more "canned" stories...less and less "local".
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/17/business/media/17carr.html?_r=1
ReplyDeleteSpells out exactly the reasons why the slash & burn strategy is stupid
JIm,
ReplyDeleteI noticed someone wanted to know the status of Clipper Magazine and how it's operation reflects to the bottom line. What is the story about this operation? What is the reason this unit is NEVER mentioned how the effect it has on Gannett local newspapers?
Unfortunately, Clipper is one of the many, many Gannett subsidiaries that I know little about. I'm always open to learning more, however!
ReplyDelete