Friday afternoon, 1:55 p.m., I make my way to the conference room. Every head in the newsroom turns and looks at me, but no one makes eye contact -- except my four buddies, who are making stabbing and choking gestures as I a pass. Waiting for me is the guy from HR and the assistant managing editor. What, no coffee swilling supervisor? A spineless pussy to the end! I was given two weeks of severance for every year of service, and three years medical.I was told that if I waited a couple of minutes my personal belongs from my desk would be brought to me to carry out. I explained that wouldn't be necessary and that I’m ready to go. They both had a puzzled look on their faces and looked at each other not knowing what to say, and I explained to them that I had cleaned out my desk a week ago. . . .
I heard the following Monday evening that they had to have keys made to open my file cabinets and desk drawers. In each drawer were 20 Xerox copies of my ass, each with a personal note to the Gannett guns, starting with Sue Clark-Johnson and working my way down to the assistant managing editor.
What's your layoff story? Please post replies in the comments section, below. E-mail via gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.
I found out that USA Today was laying me off when an e-mail appeared in my in-box, saying that my buyout application was one of 43 accepted. That e-mail was sent to the entire staff, rather than addressed individually to the 43 of us. I never heard another word from the publisher or top editor back in McLean, Va. -- not even so much as a simple thank you for my 20 years' work in Gannett.
ReplyDeleteA filing cabinet full of ass photocopies - I LOVE IT!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if they got delivered ...
They got delivered to everyone except for Sue's copy. Last Christmas my coffee swilling supervisor sent me his copy in a Christmas card. It read Merry Christmas Asshole! It was the best card I have ever received. My family I laughed about it for months.
ReplyDeleteWow. At least you can laugh about it now, I guess ...
ReplyDeleteI take it you knew your departure was near. lol Classic story. Were you planning to resign?
ReplyDeleteConsider 2 weeks of pay for each year of service and 3 years of health insurance to have been a pretty damn good deal for a layoff situation, considing what is going down now. Your deal was even better than some of the "voluntary early retirement offers" that were made earlier this year.
ReplyDeleteManagement and HR like to tell employees that the payout was decided by corporate. Not true, each site is independent to make that decision. The last buyouts had employee’s getting more than others. You should ask for more time or more medical coverage if that’s important to you. All they can say is no, and show you the door, you were heading in that direction anyway.
ReplyDeleteAll Gannett Digital job postings have suddenly disappeared from the website. What has changed? Have the headcounts been eliminated? Hiring freeze?
ReplyDeleteAll of the Gannett Digital jobs have been moved to Career Builder/India. If you know Hindi and have always wanted to live in Mumbai, just fill out an online application: http://tinyurl.com/6xfh5w.
ReplyDeleteIndia, TX? That's where that link goes.
ReplyDeleteJim, you didn't get laid off. You took a buy out, voluntarily. The sword you fall on is your own.
ReplyDeleteI respectfully disagree, 6:12 pm. A buyout is a voluntary layoff. My choosing to be laid off was much more preferable than a forced layoff -- as it always is. But no matter how you slice it, I was laid off.
ReplyDeleteI have always believed it's never a good thing to burn bridges when leaving a job -- regardless of the circumnstances. I find this little "joke" to be immature and evidence of misplaced anger. I have worked for several different newspaper and newspaper companies. They have paid me weekly or bi-weekly the amount for which I agreed to work. I expect no more and no less.
ReplyDelete7:39, I'm taking it you never had a boss who lied to your face and went out of his way to try to set you up so he could turn around and fire you.
ReplyDeleteI did.
Two days before I my final day there, the bastard had the balls to try to shake my hand -- after repeatedly denigrating me to anyone who would listen. Thankfully I was on the phone on a call for one last story and couldn't hang up and was able to semi-politely blow him off.
My co-workers later told me they cheered inwardly when the guy walked away looking rather embarrassed and confused.
I firmly believe he will get his someday, too, because he destroyed the careers of a lot of good, honest hard-working people who merely had the temerity to disagree with him. He's certainly someone I wouldn't piss on if he were on fire.
I worry about friends who are still employed by Gannett and would prefer not to mention the city but I'll bet this applies to many locations. I have seen several people get fired with no plans for forwarding their emails or voice mail. Good job managers! Even better job by senior managers who should be preparing middle management for changes. Better yet, I'm not talking about recently but over 2 years ago and the managers are still there. The company has no heart and lost it long ago. Worse, they don't plan for the consequences of their actions.
ReplyDeleteThe humiliating and less than honorable way that some of us were laid off is still too painful to think about, let alone recount here on this blog.
ReplyDelete"I'm taking it you never had a boss who lied to your face and went out of his way to try to set you up so he could turn around and fire you.
ReplyDeleteI did."
I did, too. And, add humiliate, intimidate and embarrass to the list. I think it's the Gannett way.
Of course I saw it coming, but I was determined not to quit, but to make them pay, at least with some severance and insurance. I also had cleaned out my office well previous to the big day. It was particularly interesting how fast they had me off the systems and had shut off my e-mail.
I still have a lot of anger, too, and I suppose that's why I still read this blog after all this time. I'm waiting for the day I hear that that publisher is laid off and/or that paper is closed.
I miss my former co-workers and wish you all the best going forward. And don't forget: make em pay.
Jim,
ReplyDeleteA rat came to visit us recently at the Poughkeepsie Journal, he's now at USAT. His partial name is Ton DeBar. Yes, a rat, a fink. When employees were trying to start a union years ago in the newsroom, the rat would attend and snitch to the publisher. The union never was formed partly due to the ass-kissing rat. I wasn't working at the Journal then, but the stories about this snitch abound.
Beware people of Gannett, the rats are watching.
I secretly recorded mine. I haven't been able to listen to it yet because the memory is too painful. But it's possible that I will reveal it at the appropriate time. Maybe everyone should record theirs, too, as long as it's legal in your state.
ReplyDeleteHi Jim, Not to belabor the point, but you were not laid off. USA Today said it needed to cut 45 positions. A letter went out to all eligible employees, offering a buy out. I received one. So did you. The choice was to accept, by Gannett standards, a pretty generous deal or to play the odds and stay. As it turned out, 43 people volunteered to take the money and leave. That's what you did. The company decided at the time that 43 was good and it would not lay off another two people. Being laid off is an emotional trauma. Those who are laid off merit respect, dignity and compassion. You, trying to cloak yourself as a "me too" victim, do a disservice to those fine men and women.
ReplyDelete12:13 pm: You and I will continue to (respectfully, I hope) disagree. I spent my career cutting through business jargon, which is why I treat buyouts and layoffs as the same animal.
ReplyDeleteYou are correct that we received letters from USAT. Yet, I'm looking at that letter right now, and the word "buyout'' never appears in the text. What does appear, however, is the following sentence: "This offer is voluntary; you do not have to accept it. However, if we do not meet our goal to eliminate 45 newsroom positions through this voluntary program, we will need to begin the process of identifying positions for an involuntary layoff program.''
Voluntary vs. involuntary layoff program? Whatever it's called, it's a layoff, in my book.
4:25 PM
ReplyDeleteI keep up with the job postings, and noticed those digital jobs vanished a couple of months ago. They reappeared under the publishing and corporate, I believe, but they're all gone now.
Want a laugh? Click back on digital and look for the big typo! We'll know corporate reads this if it gets fixed tomorrow.
Well I like how the person who was laid off on a Friday, better than mine. They waited till late on a Monday after I had put in a full days work. I don't remember much it was more like a Charlie Brown cartoon where you really can't understand the adults words, just sounds come out. I remember... nothing against you... your position has been eleiminated... you can re-apply for another spot... you will get severance... You see where this has gone. I only got 2 weeks and then a week for every year I was there. Funny thing was they had to call me 3 or 4 days later to start asking questions about how I had done my job. No one could figure things out. To bad... Oh they also told me that it came from corporate. Never believed that. And then to add insult they sat there and cried the whole time. They STILL have their jobs.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the post from 11.16.08 @ 11:14pm. When they let me go. They never told the people who advertised with the paper. I am still running into people who ask why I no longer go and take photos for them. Some even left when their contracts were up partly becuase of it. They then turned and ran ads in competors publications.
ReplyDeleteOn the subject of recorders and management, I'll relay a quick tale...
ReplyDeleteIn a meeting with several department heads, I recorded the conversation secretly (yes, my state has a single-party consent law), but had forgotten to turn the audible indicator off. So, when I switched the recorder off at the end of the conversation, a little beep burst from my pocket. Our managing editor, with a face built for Bambi's mother, gasped "can he do that?" Well folks, what does it tell you about a news organization whose chief is unfamiliar with state laws, especially one so essential to some of the work we do?
I'll have my recorder handy, just in case, but this time with the sound off, so I can be spared the moronic ponderings of the brain dead bosses.