Friday, July 10, 2009

Part 2 | Friday's Layoff News & Comments

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98 comments:

  1. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:12 AM

    11:01, In Phoenix readership is only up on Sundays and it's a fraction of a point and only in areas where East Valley Trib doesn't deliver anymore. Overall paper readership is down but they'll spin the numbers to make it pretty.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:12 AM

    any truth to the latest post on the Other Blog that layoffs continue today in Wilmington, Del?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:14 AM

    Yes, Jim, people have to pay for COBRA. That's still not the same as getting no benefits, which is what you wrote. What an arrogant asshat you are!

    Do us a favor and wrap this up early. It's 5 o'clock somewhere, perhaps even where you are now. You and Spanky can go wild and share a milkshake and your thoughts. Watch the sun set, and try to get a handle on your delusions and paranoia.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:15 AM

    Layoffs are continuing...everywhere.

    Too many papers have yet to check in, and so it stands to reason that more bloodshed is on the way.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:16 AM

    9:44 Replied about Burlington:
    10 positions cut, three in the newsroom.

    Any news on what the other 7 positions were?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Gannettoid.com7/10/2009 11:16 AM

    Don't give up on Gannettoid.com.

    Check over my math and compare the list on my site with Jim's list.

    Please help make sure when this blog shuts down, nothing is left behind as we continue to track the layoffs.

    If you don't like my site, make a suggestion. I've been planning an update or revamp for a while, but that's been stuck in the first phase while these layoffs picked up.


    YES: The site will continue to grow despite my layoff. The site is not about me or my opinions, it's about having a place collect links and news about the company.

    E-mail: news@gannettoid.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:18 AM

    Look, 11:14:

    GANNETT IS NOT PAYING FOR COBRA! YOU ARE, OR WILL BE!

    That's like saying unemployment is a benefit, you fool.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:27 AM

    Gannetoid writ:
    Check over my math and compare the list on my site with Jim's list.

    Ok, but who wins?

    Just looking at Burlington VT, Gannettoid shows 3 layoffs, a poster in here says there's 10 with 3 in the newsroom, and Jim doesn't even have Burlington VT listed as a paper.

    ((shrug))

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:28 AM

    Gannettoid,

    I have to admit that http://www.gbdeux.blogspot.com/ is the same format as Jim's and that is what I am used to. Of course I will go where the news is but I prefer what I am used to. If for nothing else than to make a quick change and still get the skinny on scoops!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:28 AM

    You still get the benefits through the company, though. Yes, moron, you have to pay for them. As someone already pointed out, the stimulus package picks up 65 percent of the tab.

    The alternative is to have no health coverage at all. That's what Jim was implying, and it simply is not true.

    Now, get a clue. Stop arguing about things that already have been discussed. Jim Hopkins is the only one implying that no benefits are available. Yes, the employer has to pay for them. Not the same thing. Sorry if you can't comprehend this point, as it is the difference between having health insurance and no insurance.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:28 AM

    Please use Gannettoid when Jim's site shuts down later today. It's important to keep communication going.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:29 AM

    Thanks Jim for all your hard work.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:29 AM

    "Of course I will go where the news is but I prefer what I am used to."

    How evolved you must be. No wonder the company is shedding people like a snake shedding its skin.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:30 AM

    To everyone defending Gannett's immoral behavior today...

    Dow Jones & Co (publisher of the Wall Street Journal and Barrons') had a round of layoffs in the spring. Their employees were given a severance package of 2 weeks pay for every full year of service (with a max of 52 weeks). The employees were given 30 days notice of the layoff. They were not asked to pack their personal belongings in a box and leave on the spot. The severance was paid in a lump sum within a couple of weeks of the layoff date. There was no "transition" pay combined with unemployment. There was no "continuation" pay as Gannett has done in the past to prevent employees from obtaining unemployment immediately in the hope that severed employees will find jobs before continuation pay runs out, allowing Gannett to avoid an unemployment insurance expense. Employees eligible for retirement received full standard retirement benefits, including continuing health care coverage at employee deduction rates.

    Dow Jones is a large media corporation that has experienced the same challenges as Gannett. DJ employees will tell you it has been a miserable place to work since advertising went in the toilet, same as Gannett. DJ employees will also tell you that the financial struggles of their company are largely due to the mistakes of upper management, same as Gannett. That company has demonstrated, however, that when it gets to the point of layoffs, it is possible to treat employees humanely and give them a fighting chance to salvage their personal and financial situations until another income can be obtained.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:30 AM

    It's just totally unrealistic to even contemplate shutting down the Gannett Blog while this incredible upheaval and pain is continuing.

    With Gannettoid's creator himself fired, who knows if that site will even continue.

    It's not really a rational choice to end Gannett Blog. It would be unjournalistic to leave mid-story and inhumane to the thousands who need to work their way through this.

    To walk away from a disaster scene would be irresponsible, even though Jim dearly wants to.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:30 AM

    "Gannettoid shows 3 layoffs, a poster in here says there's 10 with 3 in the newsroom, and Jim doesn't even have Burlington VT listed as a paper."

    Most of Jim's numbers have been wrong from the start. My count was up to five papers that were listed with the wrong count, and then I gave up when it was apparent he was simply relying on whatever numbers someone threw his way. It could be a street-sweeper in Nantucket, and he's taking those numbers as gospel.

    Brilliant, Jim.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:31 AM

    As a member of the December massacre crowd, thanks, Jim, for all you did to keep so many of us informed and our heads held higher. I'm sorry that this week's lay-off victims won't have the on-going benefits of GannettBlog. Enjoy your new life, Jim.

    Just curious, are there any key issues hanging that you'd suggest Gannettoid or another follow-up blog look into?

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:32 AM

    "If you don't like my site, make a suggestion."

    All these people want to do is whine and bitch. They have no suggestions. Haven't you been reading this blog in the last six months?

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:33 AM

    "To walk away from a disaster scene would be irresponsible, even though Jim dearly wants to."

    It's very responsible. Jim needs an umbrella drink with a side of STFU for a while.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Jim7/10/2009 11:33 AM

    All:

    For the first (and last) time, I did not spend a dime of the $8,000 readers gave me on a bodyguard, plane tickets to the annual meeting -- or even my COBRA health insurance payments.

    I donated every bit, and more, to Investigative Editors and Reporters last month.

    Statements to the contrary are assumptions, or outright lies.

    Disagree? Provide documents proving otherwise.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:34 AM

    Jim, shouldn't YOU be the one providing the proof?

    Post it today. After all, this is the last day.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:34 AM

    You do NOT get the benefits through the company. You get them from a third party who, for and additional 3% of the cost of the coverage, bills you for the full amount.

    As far as the stimulus package 65% reduction, that, like Cobra itself is not something a company can opt out of. And it's only for 9 months.

    If you can't see the difference between 26 weeks of company subsidized insurance vs. 26 weeks of pay-it-yourself, you're obviously still working in the right place.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:34 AM

    A few weeks back when a couple newsroom types were let go at KARE and I said here that they got no severance, there were people who said that couldn't be possible. I guess there are some believers now.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:35 AM

    "Just curious, are there any key issues hanging that you'd suggest Gannettoid or another follow-up blog look into?"

    No need to suck up now. Jim's fleeing the scene.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:36 AM

    11:14 you are really the a--hat, if you will allow me to say so. Gannett is not paying a dime for health benefits. It's going through Cobra, of which the laid off folks must pay 35%. Prior to this layoff, Gannett had to pay for your benefits through your severence period. It appears the only contribution Gannett is making is the difference between your unemployment payment and your former paycheck during your severence period. Another words, if you don't apply for unemployment you are an SOL.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:38 AM

    How will Gannett survive when they refuse to purge the bureaucracy in management.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:38 AM

    11:29 #2, You said that right...The comapny is shedding PEOPLE like the snake that it is!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Jim7/10/2009 11:39 AM

    I posted the proof -- a letter of acknowedgement from IRE -- last month. Do some reading, first, before you post. Besides, you're the ones making the false accusation. What's YOUR "proof"?

    ReplyDelete
  29. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:40 AM

    "If you can't see the difference between 26 weeks of company subsidized insurance vs. 26 weeks of pay-it-yourself, you're obviously still working in the right place."

    Idiot, it's still a benefit. It's far better than having no health insurance at all.

    And you idiots are the only ones who don't grasp the difference between subsidized insurance and COBRA. YOU ARE STILL ON THE COMPANY'S PLAN, dumbfuck. Remember the little book they gave you about benefits? All of that is the same. Provider network? The same.

    These are things you might want to know. Or do you plan to whine and bitch when you go out of network and don't get the same coverage?

    To imply that all of this is handled by a third party is asinine. Yes, a third party is involved. It's still your newspaper's plan, though.

    And -- back to the original point -- none of it is the same as not having health coverage. Which is what Jim claimed.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:40 AM

    Hey asshat 11:14,

    Please explain to me how Gannett is giving me a fucking thing when COBRA coverage for my family is $900 a month, wiping out a very large chunk of my unemployment check.

    Yeah, that's about as much of a fucking benefit as having my kneecaps broken.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Gannettoid.com7/10/2009 11:41 AM

    Both of our layoff counts are in progress, so still changing as we learn more.

    My 3 is not a final number.

    The number that wins (3 or 10 at Burlington) depends on the truth. I had an employee of the paper identify them self to me and provide the 3 very early in the process.

    I'm waiting for an update, a memo or an article before changing it.

    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:41 AM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:42 AM

    11:36 -- how dumb are you? No one said the company was picking up the tab for the health benefits?

    It's making the plan available. Like the rest of the world, the ex-worker has to pay for it.

    Stop claiming someone said something that was never said. Jim said no health benefits were available, and he is simply wrong.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:44 AM

    COBRA is a federally required option. If it was not, companies, and this one especially, would not make it available. To say it is available through the company is a technicality.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:45 AM

    The stupidity level is amazing.

    How does:

    "Yes, Jim, people have to pay for COBRA. That's still not the same as getting no benefits, which is what you wrote."

    get interpreted as saying the company pays for the health benefits? Why are there still muffin-brains claiming this was said?

    The company seems to have axed the right people. Lots of stupidity today.

    Try going without health benefits at all, asshats, and see what happens.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:46 AM

    "COBRA is a federally required option. If it was not, companies, and this one especially, would not make it available. To say it is available through the company is a technicality."

    It's the company's plan, asswad. Same provider network.

    Yes, COBRA is a federal option. Thanks for pointing out the obscenely obvious.

    Damn. The real morons are surfacing on the last day.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:47 AM

    RE: 7/10/2009 11:40 AM

    You are so full of crap!

    This from the COBRA website at
    http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq_consumer_cobra.HTML:

    "Group health coverage for COBRA participants is usually more expensive than health coverage for active employees, since usually the employer pays a part of the premium for active employees while COBRA participants generally pay the entire premium themselves."

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:48 AM

    "Another words, if you don't apply for unemployment you are an SOL."

    Yes, assball, you have to apply for unemployment. How else would you get it? The stork? Santa Claus?

    ReplyDelete
  39. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:50 AM

    Jim,
    I wanted to thank you for your contributions to the community. I was laid off on December 3rd of last year (voluntary). I've used Gannett Blog over the months to keep in touch. Seems Gannett is still going down the tubes - and friends lost their jobs yesterday. I'm disgusted with the management there. Thanks again!
    -Mark Mckee
    Greenville, SC

    ReplyDelete
  40. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:51 AM

    11:47 -- for the one millionth time -- NO ONE EVER SAID THE COMPANY PAYS FOR THE COBRA PLAN!

    STFU if you don't understand this. Jim said there were no health benefits. That would violate federal law.

    Yes, the former employee pays for the insurance. But -- again for the millionth time -- YOU ARE STILL ON THE COMPANY'S PLAN. Same provider network.

    If you don't grasp this, then you shouldn't be posting here. Go get some advice. But stop trying to sound as if you know what you are talking about.

    Once again, no one ever said the company pays for the COBRA coverage. You would have to be a complete asshat to think that would happen.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:52 AM

    On many occasions, especially during these last few weeks, I have griped about Jim's posts. Here, on this blog. Sometimes he even deleted me!

    However, trying to fault him for saying that this severance package has no health insurance coverage is moronic.

    Try and follow me here:

    It doesn't. A severance package only includes things the company gives its ex-employees. Gannett is NOT giving us health insurance as part of the severance package.

    Ergo, Jim is right on this score.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Jim7/10/2009 11:53 AM

    Yikes! Here's what I originally wrote:

    "And most shocking of all: virtually no severance, and absolutely no medical benefits. This is immoral."

    If it will make you feel better, management ass-kissers, I'll append it as follows:

    ". . . virtually no severance, and absolutely no medical benefits -- at company rates, as in past layoffs. (Unless, of course, you are Craig Dubow & Co., in which case you get fully paid health insurance for you and your family for life."

    There. Mo betta?

    ReplyDelete
  43. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:53 AM

    "I posted the proof -- a letter of acknowedgement from IRE -- last month. Do some reading, first, before you post. Besides, you're the ones making the false accusation. What's YOUR "proof"?"

    "Last month." How specific.

    Jim, you are a hemorrhoid in the buttocks of life.

    ReplyDelete
  44. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:54 AM

    Anything more on NNCO, including the papers we have not heard about yet?

    ReplyDelete
  45. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:55 AM

    11:34am
    I thought a person is innocent until proven guilty so why does he have to prove his innocence? Leave it alone and face the fact that what Jim has said about Gannett is on the mark. He should win an award for his work on the blog. He has inspired all of us to take a look at the company in their true light. Everyone needs to let it go and realize that the industry is gone and online is not ever going to make up for the loss of the printed word. Freedom of speech as we have known is gone.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:56 AM

    Thanks for everything, Jim.

    My life as a "former employee" has commenced.

    Enjoy your life.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Jim7/10/2009 11:57 AM

    Here's the letter from IRE: http://tinyurl.com/ntg6zl

    I posted it on June 20.

    But, no, I will not next wipe your butt for you. (How lazy can someone be?)

    Now, where's YOUR proof?

    ReplyDelete
  48. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:58 AM

    11:53

    Let me make this easier for you.

    Type "IRE" in the search Gannett Blog line and all the proof you need will magically appear.

    ReplyDelete
  49. Anonymous7/10/2009 11:59 AM

    "It doesn't. A severance package only includes things the company gives its ex-employees. Gannett is NOT giving us health insurance as part of the severance package.

    Ergo, Jim is right on this score."

    100 percent wrong. The company is required to allow employees to participate in its plan through COBRA.

    It is not required to pay for the plan. But the benefit is still available. This is far, far different from kicking people out the door with no health insurance. If you don't understand this concept, then you are an idiot and should be out getting smarter, rather than posting here.

    ReplyDelete
  50. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:01 PM

    "Now, where's YOUR proof?"

    The proof is that you could have donated $17,000 to IRE if you hadn't been a paranoid freak. The evidence is in the omission.

    Thanks for playing, Jim. Consolation prizes are available on the way out. Don't let the door hit you too hard.

    ReplyDelete
  51. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:03 PM

    12:01 PM:

    Your post was dumb as balls. Way to go!

    ReplyDelete
  52. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:04 PM

    10:08 "Here is the story of my 27-year cycle/spiral.... "
    You've just told my story too, except I wasn't in sports. It's too bad that companies can't figure out how to use their people in positions that meld their passion with their skills. That's what I think the best managers are able to do, but in journalism, they elevate those because they're good at their current position. Just because you're a good writer/reporter doesn't mean you'll be a good editor or manager. I felt I was Peter Principled out of a job, moved up until I finally reached a position that didn't use my best skills. I'm gone now, thank goodness, and God willing, I will never see the inside of another newspaper building.

    ReplyDelete
  53. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:05 PM

    11:58 -- sorry, assmunch, but the search bar is not displaying here.

    How many of Jim's hissy-fits do we have to wade through to see that post?

    ReplyDelete
  54. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:07 PM

    12:05 PM:

    Try going to the main Gannett Blog site and looking for the word "SEARCH," idiot. Do you use your hand to wipe yourself, pray tell?

    ReplyDelete
  55. Jim7/10/2009 12:08 PM

    (Thinks to self, about 12:01 pm: Now he's shifting the argument, having lost the first round.)

    ReplyDelete
  56. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:09 PM

    11:48, you can call me an assball, I really could care less. I was laid off last year and collected unemployment while I was getting severence and it really helped me survive until I find a job. Believe it or not, there are some folks who felt it was wrong to double dip. I am assuming you are still employed with Gannett. I hope you aren't in the coming rounds because you will get nothing,probably,and then you will become the assball.

    ReplyDelete
  57. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:09 PM

    Ignore asshat boy. He is a dripping-dick, syphllitic moron who thrives on the attention caused by his toxic spew. Let him wave his putrid little organ around the site. There are many more important things to discuss.

    ReplyDelete
  58. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:10 PM

    Hey Jim,

    Just want to say a big thanks once again for your work. This website has been a piece of sanity for myself. I know it's been hectic and people have turned on others and sometimes acted like children. But when you're trying to plan your life I thought of it as a godsend. So Thank you!

    I know you are planning on shutting it down tonight and it will be missed. I wish a few good people would step up to take it over so it can continue on. But I guess all good things must come to an end.

    Again, Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  59. Jim7/10/2009 12:10 PM

    Note: There's an even better search box in the green rail, to your right. It's very cleverly hidden under the label, "Search Gannett Blog, Etc."

    ReplyDelete
  60. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:11 PM

    "11:58 -- sorry, assmunch, but the search bar is not displaying here."

    If you have no idea how to use ctrl+f then you must be executive material, good luck in your promotion and don't get too many hairballs from sucking all that ass.

    ReplyDelete
  61. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:12 PM

    A couple random things...

    Jim, wonderful job. While I didn't always agree with your approach, I did appreciate the way your journalistic skills helped you get to certain truths. The fact that you had a major corporation squirming was absolutely precious. This company has operated badly in so many ways for so long. It was good for you and all of us to finally get under their skin. Things probably won't change, but it was a worthy effort nonetheless.

    Seeing that USA TODAY is excluded from these layoffs is rubbing salt into many wounds. Defenders of USAT like to say they've already suffered cutbacks. Oh, really? As I recall, we were all a part of the December layoffs and the layoffs at USAT weren't nearly as bad as in most places. Many of us have been furloughed right along with our USAT friends. Some have been bought out or pushed out. Why USAT is exempt this time around makes no sense. They're the highest paid, one of biggest newsrooms around, yet still only publish five days a week. Even taking into account whatever role they might have with ContentOne, it seems quite unfair that big brother isn't facing a single job loss. Makes me question if things are really as bad with this company as the empty suits claim.

    I know many careers will end this week. The abruptness of it can be impossible to reconcile. The company betrayed us with its spending sprees and corporate bonuses, not to mention the pricey palace it built for its royalty. It's all rather sad and depressing. We all helped build this company through sacrifices that went above and beyond the call of duty. But when we most needed our company to protect us, they threw us overboard. Those who do these unjust things, actually sleep well at night, I am sure. Amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  62. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:14 PM

    whoops, Jim, I meant what you said -

    ReplyDelete
  63. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:19 PM

    I'm not going to waste anymore time arguing with an idiot who twists truth to match his idiocy.

    and no, I don't mean Jim.

    (at least not this time)

    ReplyDelete
  64. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:20 PM

    Bodacious post! Did you find the search function yet?

    ReplyDelete
  65. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:21 PM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  66. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:23 PM

    Jim, do you know the person who is running www.gbdeux.blogspot.com?

    Also, there are posts about pay cuts for remaining employees? Is there any truth to that?

    ReplyDelete
  67. Jim7/10/2009 12:28 PM

    Heh. We'll just file all that under this familiar heading.

    ReplyDelete
  68. Jim7/10/2009 12:29 PM

    Nope: I do not know the publisher of that new Gannett Blog Deux. As always, proceed with caution!

    ReplyDelete
  69. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:29 PM

    "Note: There's an even better search box in the green rail, to your right. It's very cleverly hidden under the label, "Search Gannett Blog, Etc.""

    Thanks, ass, but I just said that's the one that wasn't displaying. Do you read?

    ReplyDelete
  70. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:31 PM

    MARK YOUR CALENDARS - WED., JULY 15
    "Gracia Martore, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will take your questions in an audiocast at 2 p.m. (ET), Wednesday, July 15 following Gannett’s second-quarter conference call."
    http://gannett.gci/chat/live.asp?chatid=189

    Please, everyone, let's give em hell. Be informed. Don't accept the "it's the economy, stupid" line. It's time to punch back.

    ReplyDelete
  71. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:31 PM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  72. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:32 PM

    Even though Asbury moved or fired the magazine staff yesterday you can bet they'll still try to publish it. It's been a money loser from the start, but someone has an unexplainable desire to keep it going. It's like a women that still loves the creep spouse that beats her.
    The total lack of any business sense is frightening.

    ReplyDelete
  73. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:32 PM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  74. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:33 PM

    12:12. I wouldn't sweat the fact that USA TODAY has been excluded from this round of layoffs. The editors here are a self-serving bunch of incompetents who would have chosen all the wrong people to be let go. In fact, many of them should be fired, but they tend to circle their wagons and protect themselves in hard times. I am grateful a couple of the worst offenders have left, but there are still some remaining who shouldn't be in charge of anything, let alone people's careers. The newsroom management team is a disaster at this newspaper. Where else could some of these fools lasted for so long or been promoted as they have been here?

    ReplyDelete
  75. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:34 PM

    Wow! The corporate management trolls are hard at work in here today. Be sure to give yourselves a raise! Assholes.

    ReplyDelete
  76. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:34 PM

    There is no reason to think that USA Today won't be hit with layoffs this year, so don't get all worked up about the injustice of it all (although I understand why you would feel that way).

    Unfortunately, we'll probably be blindsided now that Gannett Blog is gone. Which brings to this question: Is "My Boss" privy to info outside the community publishing division, or just inside? How will we at USAT even hope to get a heads-up?

    Best wishes and good luck to everyone out there. No one is safe.

    ReplyDelete
  77. James Geluso7/10/2009 12:36 PM

    A number of people have suggested a union. As a non-Gannettoid, March '09 newspaper layoff victim and Newspaper Guild proponent, I'll say this:

    A union contract would not have stopped these layoffs. Companies retain the right to run themselves into the ground. (And don't worry, Gannett isn't the only company doing that.) This is part of capitalism — a system set up to reward capital, that is, investors, not employees. Maybe someday there will be more employee-owned companies, but the existing system will fight that, so it'll take a while.

    What a union contract would stop is this ridiculous transition pay. The terms of severance are spelled out in each contract.

    Hey, Dubow has a contract spelling out his severance terms. Why shouldn't every Gannett employee?

    ReplyDelete
  78. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:36 PM

    The posts here are making me feel like the lucky ones are the ones heading out the door.

    Thanks, Jim, for all you've done. I'm still here. For now.

    ReplyDelete
  79. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:38 PM

    Here's a question or two for Gracia's call in show.

    "Why is it the executives and board members who proposed, approved and implemented the borrowing for the stock repurchase program and failed to refinance the companies debt to be more manageable longterm haven't been replaced. Why are they still drawing salaries?

    MARK YOUR CALENDARS - WED., JULY 15
    "Gracia Martore, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will take your questions in an audiocast at 2 p.m. (ET), Wednesday, July 15 following Gannett’s second-quarter conference call."
    http://gannett.gci/chat/live.asp?chatid=189

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  80. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:38 PM

    My understanding of "transitional pay" is that instead of the company paying severance, it will make up the difference between your state's unemployment payment and your weekly pay. By using this program instead of a severance package, Gannett has shifted most of the burden of compensating laid-off workers to the state. That of course does mean that state and federal taxpayers ultimately foot most of Pay former Gannett workers will receive. As an aside, the company does pay a premium to the state for unemployment insurance and, like all other types of insurance, the rate increases when claims are made. So Gannett will pay more for its contribution to state unemployment through higher rates next quarter as a result of the transitional pay plan. But, obviously this is far less expensive than giving severance that includes weekly pay and insurance benefits.

    Transitional pay differs from severance pay in several ways. For one, only workers eligible for unemployment will get anything from Gannett. No unemployment check = no company check. By comparison, those who received severance last year continued to collect their pay from the company even when they got new jobs or found freelance work. Transitional pay ends when you find work.

    Transitional pay is 1 week for each year of service between 3 and 36 months. That means that anyone employed for less than three years is not eligible. When it runs out, you will likely still collect state unemployment. In Ohio, benefits run for 26 weeks. I don't know if that is true for all states. After that states normally offer at least one extention and the federal government offers two extentions.

    You will automatically be eligible for transitional pay when you make your unemployment claim. To continue to be eligible for transitional pay, you must fulfill all state requirements for continued pay. You must also call Total Management Solutions, the company Gannett has contracted to administer the "Supplemental Unemployment Benefit Pay Plan," every week starting the second week of unemployment. Failure to do so will result in termination of eligibility and you will lose your right to any further payments.

    Thanks to federal stimulus money, any state-required waiting period for your first check is gone. If you file(d) a claim with your state's unemployment office immediately upon learning of your termination, you should get a check on July 17.

    Also thanks to the stimulus package, you will not have to pay into FICA (Social Security) during the transitional pay period and you will not be required to pay it when you file your 2009 taxes. That's an additional 7.65 percent of your gross pay that will go in your pocket.

    I also read something that said the first $2,400 of your unemployment payments are not taxable. I believe that is also made available by the stimulus.

    As for insurance, I was told that mine would end on Aug 1, unless I opted for COBRA. COBRA is the federal law that required employers to keep their laid-off employees on their group health plan for up to 18 months -- with the employee paying 100 percent of the premiums. The federal stimulus bill temporarily amended that. The federal government will pay 65 percent. The worker pays 35. I don't know if the length of time you can keep the coverage was extended under the new law. If I don't opt for COBRA by Aug. 1, I have 30 days to do so in order to have my coverage reinstated.

    I hope this helps answer some of the questions I see out there.

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  81. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:40 PM

    **************

    MARK YOUR CALENDARS - WED., JULY 15
    "Gracia Martore, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will take your questions in an audiocast at 2 p.m. (ET), Wednesday, July 15 following Gannett’s second-quarter conference call."
    http://gannett.gci/chat/live.asp?chatid=189

    *******************

    Definitely. Be tough. No softball questions even though it could be moderated in such a way that's all we may get to hear. Remember, after looking at the current "severance benefits" (I just threw up in my mouth a little calling them that) you literally have nothing to lose. This company doesn't respect you. And it doesn't care about you other than that it considers your salary a drain that should be eliminated ASAP.

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  82. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:41 PM

    To the editor who ended my career last December, I will never forget or forgive you. I wish the worst upon you and your family. You know what you did was wrong.

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  83. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:42 PM

    "COBRA is the federal law that required employers to keep their laid-off employees on their group health plan for up to 18 months -- with the employee paying 100 percent of the premiums."

    Thank you. The many retards in here were claiming someone said the company would pay the premiums, even though this was never said. And they did not understand the part about staying on the group plan.

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  84. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:43 PM

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  85. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:45 PM

    Ditto on that, the second 12:36 p.m. There's a lot of misguided anger here today, unfortunately, but I will scroll through all that to get to why I come here every day.

    To read about the thousands impacted by Gannett's foolish and dangerous decisions, and its lack of communication regarding the lives of those who sweat and toil to do an ever-increasingly difficult job.

    Jim, thanks again for putting up with the crap. Some of the writers had legitimate gripes, but so much of it is childish, boorish and unnecessary. Which is a true shame.

    What you did here was truly eye-opening. I plan to keep up on gannettoid.com to read the rest of the story, until Gannett finally shuts our doors.

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  86. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:47 PM

    USA TODAY, the most over-rated, over-staffed newspaper in the chain! There are so many "how many people does it take to" jokes that could be made about that paper/web site that it could fill a small book. Yet, the people in power are so disconnected from what really goes on there that they do things like this -- protect them from this round of layoffs.

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  87. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:48 PM

    So happy I was shown the door last year.

    Bye Jim. Thanks for helping everyone stay informed.

    - 30 -

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  88. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:48 PM

    I can't help but wonder why those of us who were laid off in previous bloodlettings continue to come back and check on things at Gannett. I guess it's like passing a bad car accident. You know you shouldn't look and even tell yourself not to, but you ALWAYS look anyway.

    Good luck to all Gannett vets!

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  89. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:51 PM

    Jim:
    I just want to echo the appreciation for this blog. Despite the intrusion of those who have posted the absolute nastiest messages I have ever seen on a journalism blog, it's been a Godsend. Congrats on the good work - I know it hasn't been easy, but you stepped in when no one else did and provided us all an invaluable service and good reporting.

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  90. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:51 PM

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  91. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:52 PM

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  92. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:54 PM

    Re; 10:26 and Phx managers. Do you have details of who was moved sideways instead of being laid off?
    Also, rumor of 10-14 today in Tucson at the (old) JOA.

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  93. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:55 PM

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  94. Anonymous7/10/2009 12:59 PM

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  95. Anonymous7/10/2009 1:00 PM

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  96. Anonymous7/10/2009 1:01 PM

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  97. Anonymous7/10/2009 1:01 PM

    QUESTION: With so few reporters & copy editors left, and mgt. trolling these boards spewing vitriol today, will any Gannett paper come out tomorrow? This is why mgt. gets the "big bucks"? What's the problem, trolls? Cat got your BlackBerry?
    Jim, let me buy you the first drink @ 12:01.

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  98. Anonymous7/10/2009 1:01 PM

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