In whatever direction my next career takes, I'll probably earn less as I retool to become a 21st century journalist -- once my USA Today buyout checks end next month. Now, a reader is contemplating the same step, and poses this provocative question for all of you: "How about a post asking people how much of a pay cut they would consider taking to get out of Gannett? I'm weighing that myself tonight, and am wondering what others are doing or would do in order to leap into calmer waters."Please post your replies in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, write gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
Earlier: Here's something I'm not supposed to tell you
I think there are many people in Gannett who earn big paychecks, but won't leave the company -- even though they know they should -- because they don't want to take a hit in their income.
ReplyDeleteThat's shortsighted. If you know you'll eventually have to leave, and you're not close to traditional age-65 retirement, putting off the inevitable -- retraining yourself for a new career -- will only make the transition harder.
Jim this is something interesting that you touched on...........of course you have probably realized that Gannett charges people"surcharges" for smoking and employee spouses that work and could have medical benefits at thier job! Smoking goes for like 60.00 a month while spousal medical goes for 150.00 a month and people actually volenteer!!!!!! Unbelieveable, yes gannett charges them so actually the employee is paying wages earned back! If you think about this it is Ingenious but really remids me like one of those late night infomercial gimmicks! What is next? well in the phoenix mailroom they have agreed "union" to take a 60.00 dollar a week decrease in pay or 1.50 an hour. That is drastic and thats what your topic is and what gannett is all about by pushing the limits to see how they can swindle money back by employees that are scared to lose their job in a very political uncertain economy!! We employees should never forget the underhanded deeds that so called professionals are handing down to lyal employees just trying to make a living. I really almost hope the company goes bankrupt and management gets a taste of their own medicine....Gannett makes money off thier emploees in more than one way!!
ReplyDeleteA reader who wants to stay anonymous asked me to post this comment:
ReplyDeleteI left Gannett a little over a year ago. While I kept the same income, it actually related to a drop due to cost of living differences between my Gannett location and the area I relocated to. I feel this was a positive move even with the lesser income. Quality of life is better, I'm not tethered 24/7 anymore, and while I'm still in the struggling industry, I feel much better about my situation.
I left the newspaper industry a few months ago to work in media relations/marketing and I nearly doubled my salary.
ReplyDeleteNot to seem snide, but if everyone quits journalism and becomes a flack, who will they be sending their press releases to? Bloggers and TV talking heads?
ReplyDeletePlus, no reader ever calls a PR person to thank him or her for the article that rallied the community to a good cause. Or do they?
When I leave I'll make more... I was just hoping Gannett would pay me 2wks x yrs worked to leave.
ReplyDeleteThen I found out I am essential personnel. That means I shortly -- essentially -- gone to a higher paying job with less stress.
Bubye, Gannett. :D
I was a writer for a biggie and I left before the bloodletting; I could not match my salary and benefit package away from GCI after months of looking. But I am insured, still paying the mortgage and filling the tank. For a senior hourly employee, it can be tough to match the bux, but that's true in any profession. The key, and I stress key, is to match the skills, not the job. My other bit of advice - take the first job you can. It is easier to find work if you are working. You're networking among the employed, not the unemployed. The hardest hurdle for me to clear was the persistent feeling I had somehow personally failed. Many Heinekens later, I am healed.
ReplyDeleteI left an OC level Advertising position in 2005 and make a lot now.
ReplyDeleteHeck, I took a pay cut to go to work for Gannett. That's the way it goes in the business sometimes...I closed that gap fairly quickly, though. Sometimes you have to take a step back to take a step forward.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize Gannett paid journalists a middle-class wage. The only way I could afford to work for Gannett in the first place was because my spouse has a better-paying job.
ReplyDeleteI would take a 10 to 15 percent pay cut without batting an eye. With the nearly nonexistent pay raises Gannett offers, I'd certainly catch up and pass my current salary within five years.
ReplyDeleteAnd just maybe I wouldn't have this constant, sick churning in my stomach that makes me dread waking up each day.
Jim, you could alway come back and work for GCI. I am sure that no one in the company has any hard feelings at all about your current activities, and they are all warm hearted enough to forgive misunderstandings. So there could be a future on a GCI desk ahead for hopy, and you could come back to mother.
ReplyDeleteAfter your 1% raise for the third year in a row, and not getting paid for the overtime that you put in, you will make up for it in a few years at another job.
ReplyDeleteA $5,000 a year decrease would be a no-brainer. More than that could get tough, but I would consider $10,000 a year less if I could offset it a bit with a lower cost of living.
ReplyDeleteI would probably take a 50 percent cut to leave USAT for something I enjoy at a "mom and pop" publication or niche/community paper. Maybe more if the location and cost of living were right. Problem is, as we all know, print is dying and there aren't many places to go, even for folks willing to take a substantial cut. For someone over 50, it becomes even tougher. This is the unique and most challenging thing for folks being phased out in this industry. They would leave on their own (as they have done when younger) if they could, but there is nowhere to go unless people want to leave the business entirely, and even then there are obstacles. Look at the ads on E&P or other journalism job sites. Pretty dismal if you don't know how to write code for web sites. I am not ready to leave journalism for PR or become a software engineer, so I try to make the best of a worsening situation at Gannett. Delaying my exit might make it tougher when that day comes when I have to retrain in my 50s (because as we know, Gannett doesn't like employing too many folks over 50, particularly with this web/youth-first push), but with no safety net, it's not an easy decision to leap. Guess that's why some people are actually hoping for another round of buyouts. They need that money to have that cushion so they can go back to school or retrain in some other field. I for one wish USAT offers us something soon -- either hope for the future or a decent buyout. Just letting us languish in uncertainty and get crushed by ridiculous print workloads seems rather cruel.
ReplyDeleteLeft more than two years ago, took a pay cut of about $4,000, which had little-to-no-effect because I actually worked 40-45 hours a week at my new job (also media) instead of the 80-plus thankless hours at gannett. Just more than two years later, still in media (but not newspapers) I'm making roughly $20,000 more than when I left.
ReplyDeleteBottom line: Better off on all accounts. Pay, quality of living and my wife doesn't berate me constantly for not taking days off and working double shifts when others are out sick or we're short-staffed.
I have said I would take, at the most, a $10,000 pay cut for an entry-level job in PR or something else. Here's hoping.
ReplyDeleteThis is the plan I am currently working:
ReplyDeleteI have 3 bills that need paying off. My goal is to have them paid off by next May. Once done, I'll be ACTIVELY looking and will gladly settle for a 25% cut. I figure I'll recoup that cut eventually.
But, if I could get the decent buy-out offer I stupidly passed up last year, I'd take it, find another job as quickly as possible (doing whatever...,) still pay off those bills, and work toward soemthing I might enjoy.
I was lucky - I work in accounting; I left the newspaper I was at for 2k more than I was making and was so excited; I was prepared to take a 10k pay cut if necessary. A year and a half after leaving, I'm now making $20k more than when I was there. I was stupid not to leave earlier.
ReplyDeleteI left at the publisher level for another newspaper company and doubled my income. Gannett sucks even at the senior levels. ahh...good ole SCJ and GLW....ruined the company. I love this blog.
ReplyDeleteI left a year ago and took a drastic pay cut -- nothing. Luckily my other works and earns well. Decided to take some time off and chill. Now I'm into retraining for a whole different field. It's difficult. Everyone says go into teaching, but I don't know. I've been in love with newspapers so long and even though the last year or two was really abusive (newsroom, middle manager, 80-plus-hour weeks) I still love it. Which is why I come here so much.
ReplyDeleteHere's another issue for those thinking of leaving to consider. The housing market. It would be easier for me to get another related job if we moved, but we own where we are. Moving would be expensive on one salary. So retraining is my best option.
I took a cut of about $5000 to leave about 9 months ago, including the spousal surcharge for benefits (which happens to be less expensive than benefits with my new employer). But we did some financial restructuring, refinanced our house and eliminated some bills, and the cut hasn't crushed us, even with the insanity of fuel prices this year.
ReplyDeleteIt has, however, made a huge difference in my state of mind, and quite probably saved my life.
After spending 15 years at Gannett,at age 55 I was forced out....
ReplyDeleteTwo nervous breakdowns in 14 months...all caused by Gannett trying to get me to resign.
Seems that after 15 years of Excellent reviews, I suddenly became unable to do anything correctly according to The Enquirer. I was written up for trimming a hangnail in a meeting,
missing my first sales goal in 15 years, yet my sales were up 22% from prior year.
I wish I had left earlier on my own, as I have been medically unable to work since.
The Cincinnati Enquirer destroyed my health - Don't stick around and wait for them to do to you what they did to me.
There are no $$ worth it.
I left an OC Advertising position in late 2004. I took a job a top 50-market metro and increased my salary by 30% and my bonus income by 100%. However, pay isn't everything. Be careful of the culture shock. After a decade at Gannett the culture shock was incredible for me. I went from working at the worlds largest publicly traded newspaper company to the worlds largest privately owned newspaper company (at the time). I worked less hours. I made more money. The work was incredibly frustrating. It was like emerging from a time machine back to 1980 or something. These people couldn't find their asses with both hands and my explaining it was like a Martian talking to a Fungo. I left after two years to a company much closer in culture and talent to Gannett and been much happier since AND making more money. So...be careful what you wish for 11:16am and others. Make sure you look hard at the cultural differences.
ReplyDeleteOK, this is my first post since leaving about two months ago. I was downsized (position eliminated) at a small Gannett property.
ReplyDeleteI am well into middle age and was not sure what to do. I had some options within the company (none of them particularly attractive in terms of salary or title).
So I opted to leave and launch a second career. It took me exactly five days to find a job that is paying me more money than the decent salary I was earning at Gannett. It's outside of newspapers, which is where I want to stay. Media relations would be a good description of my new work.
Moral of the story: Get out and get on with your life and change careers if need be. I did and I'm thankful every day that I parted ways with the worst newspaper company on the planet.
The industry is in trouble, which saddens me since I worked in it for more than 25 years. But short-sighted management by companies like Gannett have made it that way. I tell everyone I meet who is considering a newspaper career one word — DON'T.
It was once a proud industry. Now it's run by corporate hacks, blogger wannabes and accountants and HR types who have no clue what the First Amendment looks like.
Sorry if this is harsh. It's true and I'm proud to be a former Gannett employee.
Left the Courier-Journal a decade ago, mostly due to intolerable working conditions and resultant stress - the result of an incompetent bully of a metro editor who apparently was left in place expressly for the purpose of running off senior, relatively well-paid reporters. I was one of about half a dozen who fled the place at about the same time. (He went on to an encore in Indy.) Took a PR job at 12 grand more per year, plus bonus. That lasted until economy tanked in 2001. now work in government - started at below my last Gannett salary - am now approaching PR firm pay several years down the line. But am a whole lot happier, healthier in a rewarding job. Sometimes miss journalism - never miss Gannett. My advice - if a window opens and a non-crash landing beckons - jump. Now!
ReplyDeleteYup - I remember Binder Boy at the C-J too before he departed for points north. I cannot begin to count the ruined vacations; the spoiled holidays, the rants and raves. The hidden benefits to leaving is your lower blood pressure and stress level.
ReplyDeleteI'm middle management in ad design - came over from Thomson, doing it a long time. Very choosy about where I send resumes, but I always get invited in for interviews.
ReplyDeleteThere's the country song about 'thanking God for unanswered prayers' - every print/advertising/design opportunity I had real interest in has felt the layoff axe swing, though I've had no concerns at the paper.
As much as I bitch about my job, I'm glad that I've stuck with big G so far. Sooner or later, Wall Street will realize that 11% profit is still a profit, and our stock prices will go up. Small comfort to the laid off, but consider GMAC is laying off 5,000 of their people, a 60% drop.
I retired and fretted I would have to end up a Wal-Mart greeter to supplement my savings. Instead, I landed a freelance corporate writing (non-PR) job that will pay me 100% of my newspaper salary -- for working about 20 hours a week.
ReplyDeleteWhy did I wait so long?
3:31, this was and probably still is a very common practice for Gannett. Once you're a target, watch your back. It's been an accepted way of management for a very long time. If Jim were to do some research on this, he'd be surprised by his findings.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Jim. Would love to see people post the details of what it feels like to be targeted. I watched it happen to people where I work.
ReplyDeleteI took a buyout late last year and found a new job roughly four months ago. When my buyout money runs out soon, I'll officially be making less than half of what I made before. But I was very well paid before, and I'll survive -- happily. I was unhappy at that well-paid Gannett job and don't miss it in the least. There IS life after newspapers ... it's sad, of course, to have had to leave to begin with, but life continues on.
ReplyDeleteJim
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to thank you for posting my question. Great answers, so many insights, so much rich experience and lots to consider as I decide what to do.
I think this sort of conversation is so welcome and useful right now, both to those of us still in and to those who were recently let go. Thank you!
Thanks for suggesting it, 10:39 pm: It was a good one!
ReplyDeleteWhen I left USAT for a web startup I took a huge paycut. I left the routine and security and the really nice gym facilities for the insanity of pasting together a whole new content operation that worked, for the first three months, in someone's living room. Friends thought I was crazy and late at night, I thought that too. But fast forward. Web project eventually became success and I had doubled my USAT salary. And then the website got caught in the bust. Disaster?
ReplyDeleteOn the contrary!
To my amazement I ended up with three great job offers, due to both my web experience and the business development work I had done to get the site going. I took the craziest job offer, which included a move. It's fascinating, challenging and intellectual work. I look back and cannot believe I took the crap at USAT as long as I did, but I was scared to leave The House of Pain. The lesson I've learned is take a deep breath and JUMP. Take a risk.
And oh, by the way, did I mention I make a lot more money?
Yes Jim this is a great topic for all the dearly departed such as myself. I was middle management, mid 50's and am appreciating the feedback from those that left earlier. I am taking some courses and thinking about relocating (and trying not to feel quilty about not doing anything for the last 2 weeks). It's a scary world for me right now but I am hoping I will be better off as so many of you have indicated. Thanks everyone for your input.
ReplyDeleteI left a major Gannett paper more than a year ago, and I'm still startled at how much happier I am. I have regular hours, I can play with my kids longer after getting home from work, and I hug and kiss my wife more often. I also exercise more regularly and am fitter than when I first started my job in Gannett.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the question is about how much less one would take to leave Gannett. My new job took me to an area with a higher cost of living, so the raise I got was offset immediately.
But is that all this is about? How do you put a price tag on happiness? I liked the earlier commenter who said he'd/she'd take a 50% cut to work at a more cozy paper. I can relate to that -- before I got this job, I was considering getting out on my own business. It wasn't because I thought I'd necessarily make more money, but because the business I'd get into would make me HAPPY!
More than a decade of stress, deteriorating health, lack of connection to my family and frustration with the newspaper industry were enough for me.
My advice is to listen to your gut -- if you know you're stressed out, or you fear for your future, or your health is fading, or you wonder where the days with family have gone, get out. ASAP. I know it's scary to think about it, but it can be a great blessing. Save up some money, look for another job, move to another area. A better future awaits.
As someone else who left USAT voluntarily several years back, I also join the chorus and shout GO! to anyone who who has the chance for a new opportunity. I have not had a moment's regret since walking out of the newsroom, and I even had the perverse pleasure of having an intermediary approach me with the word that if I asked for my job back, USAT would rehire me. Why would I want to do that -- I quit, remember?
ReplyDeleteFor those of you who are worried about pensions/health care, a couple of things. As long as you are vested in the GCI plan, you will get that unless GCI files for bankruptcy protection. Even then, the PBGC will safeguard a portion of your pension income. Under federal law, the company has to offer you a COBRA, so you have a bridge until the health care benefits at your new employer kick in, or until you arrange health care from an outside vendor. I found minimal coverage on the Web that was fine as a stop gap.
One of the first things you realize when you leave GCI is the Pavlov's dog aspect of the place. GCI employees learn to involuntarily cringe whenever the word "evaluation" is heard. In the outside world, this is not a bad thing -- in fact at my new company, if you don't receive an evaluation, you can't get a raise, so people actually beg for evaluations. Second, the secrecy that permeates GCI is not the norm elsewhere, and you will be shocked how much informatiion other companies routinely share.
If you have something to jump to, GO. And even if you don't, but have savings or a working spouse who can support you for a few months, think about it any way. Getting out of GCI saved my sanity and probably my health,
I've been gone a few years now, and what I love about my new job and career in the investment world is not only the superior pay, but the fact that the people I work for are very complimentary of my performance. After years of enduring Gannett's prevailing management style, which is to criticize and fault employees into total submission, I am revitalized and fired up about exceeding my boss' expectations and helping the company beat its goals. So simple.
ReplyDeleteyes, the targeting of disgruntled sr reporters at top end of pay scale is a reality. editors trained to scout for write ups/performance issue infractions to nail those folks at evaluation time. our site was riddled with employee lawsuits -- for good reason.
ReplyDeleteworked for several other chains. gannett without a doubt the most hostile, punitive of them all.
Left for 20% less salary. still in newspapers. two years later got it all back and then some -- much better job at small town daily. run as fast as you can out of there. it is toxic.
I left Gannett earlier this spring - THANK GOD. And I took a $10,000 pay cut, but overall, my compensation is not equated in just dollars and cents. I get to have a LIFE without working overtime, holidays, weekends, and being called in because other "pet" editors didn't have to show up during an emergency! Plus my health insurance is HALF what I paid at Gannett, I get PAID professional development (my new job is letting me take classes in anything I want to learn) AND the people aren't crazy from working unpaid overtime because the office was understaffed and overworked. I say to those left behind, LEAVE. Before it is too late and you are all pounding the pavement at the same time trying to find jobs that match skills that don't include multimedia editing and reporting. Good luck and God Speed!
ReplyDeleteOH, forgot to add to 1:06, my new job also includes 12% additional in bonuses - I'm management. So that pay cut won't hurt me at all! Also, you CANNOT put a price tag on peace of mind and more time with loved ones.
ReplyDeleteI was in Corporate IT and participated in many "death marches" (projects without reward or end). Brutal hours without overtime or compensation were the norm. 24x365 tethering, even on vacation, really made points with the spouse. The daily commute was two hours - each way. Horrific managers without any social skills ruled. My salary was flat for the last four years I was with the company.
ReplyDeleteAll that ended when I left Gannett.
Now I make almost 20 percent more money, have better benefits, a twenty minute commute, a 45 hour work week (or less), 3+ weeks of vacation when I walked in the door and excellent managers.
Leaving Gannett was the best thing I ever did.