Little vignettes. A conversation. A look in someone's eyes. The call home. A cardboard box on an empty desk. The long, last walk to the car. Stuff like that, in just two or three paragraphs, 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.
You can leave out your location and other such identifying details, if necessary. Or e-mail it to me, and I'll work with you on the editing.
ReplyDeleteThere are also many title changes to take a tenured, higher paid employee to a new title at say 60% to 80% of the pay. Or, they can be a part of the RIF, the choice is theirs. So, those types of changes will not even be tallied in the numbers.
ReplyDeleteThere are also many more planned efficiencies and consolidations that will happen in the next 3,6,9 months that will either mirror these quantities or more than likely surpass these numbers.
Your count on Salinas is off. It's more like 120 total employees. And considering that they're killing more than 30, that might be the highest number of any paper.
ReplyDeleteWhy is Salianas the biggest lamb? Why isn't sister Visalia feeling some of this pain? Big questions here that need to be answered - truthfully and frankly.
Visalia will take over Salinas? Making Salinas a sort of bureau of Visalia? That'd be my guess.
ReplyDeleteAll the leaves are brown
And the sky is grey
on Visalia and Salinas it only take two word to answer why!
ReplyDeleteDee Dee?
Word Smith Story
ReplyDeleteThe people being let go where crying, the people seeing it happen where crying, the managers doing it where crying.
Me? I don’t cry I am a man who hates crying.
In Westchester, they had Building Maintenance repaint the walls of the hallway to the employee entrance by the security guard station late Monday night.
ReplyDeleteThe same soothing yellow shade it was before, and, really, it didn't need repainting. I thought, "What a waste of money," but then I remembered, "Oh, yeah, they are laying people off tomorrow."
I guess they thought they needed a freshly painted plank for the people to walk down.
Newsroom was very somber and people wanted to be respectful of those let go. Some send out e-mails saying it had been their privilege to work there. It was like a death had hit the family.
ReplyDeleteI don't know exactly what made this different than other layoffs, maybe because it's just before the holidays. But anytime you let someone who has been with the company for 20 years go for no other reason than a greedy bottom line, it hurts.
I didn't get laid off this time but I got drunk last night with those who did. They get to sleep late today. I have to go in and do three jobs.
ReplyDeleteThe bureau photographer with a newborn baby was called on his day off and laid off over the phone.
ReplyDeleteI was laid off in August. After 14 years of dedication, hard work and stress. Even though I know it had nothing to do with it, it still hurt to feel unwanted or perhaps "unnecessary" is a better word to use. Then the realization of the ones that managed to keep their jobs had much less experience. Also, other jobs being "created" to keep "preferred" employees (teacher's pet?) made me realize how glad I was to finally be leaving.
ReplyDeletealthough I make less money, I'm much happier.
I'll second that 8:23. Same story with me.
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of agreements did you have to sign?
ReplyDeleteAlso, don't forget to cancel your subscription if that was, indeed, on your post-layoff list.
Earlier this year when I learned my position was being axed but I had to stay on to wrap up several assignments, the news leaked out by a high level, busybody co-worker. Thereafter, just about everyone in my department and from other departments on the floor stopped speaking to me, couldn't look at me, and went out of their way to ignore me. It was very painful and difficult.
ReplyDeleteAfter my departure, I learned that several of the worthless "tokens" chosen to stay were absolutely elated and actually celebrated the event. They were happy that I was officially unemployed. In fact, it was this very same group of morons who celebrated other former employees' departures.
I loved and miss my work, but I feel so relieved and blessed to be away from those rotten people.
To those of you who just lost your jobs, good luck and please believe me - brighter days are ahead. There IS a future.
Extra cardboard boxes are stacked in a cubicle near my desk, a reminder of my co-worker's departure yesterday. After he got the call, reporters and editors ambled up to his desk and shook his hand. It was sort of like mourners filing by a casket at a funeral to take one last look.
ReplyDeleteElsewhere in the newsroom, people who work near the elevators were firing off emails, updating the rest of us about which employees were "heading down" to the HR office. There wasn't much crying, but that's because the volunteers left yesterday. I expect the tears to come this afternoon.
A bitter, bitter day in Westchester, with our revered Broadway critic being shown the door after 30-plus years. The phantom publisher sent out a memo warning of more non-payroll cuts in the coming days. Meanwhile, managers who sit in darkened offices (too cool for fluorescents?) keep their jobs to go to more meetings another day, and leave the building by 4 p.m. The newsroom was dotted with whispering clusters of stunned employees. "What have you heard?" was the question of the day. Bitter, bitter day.
ReplyDeleteOur newsroom (sorry, Information Center) has all the look of Hiroshima this morning, with empty cubicles, desks swept clean of piles of papers with dark computers, and empty garbage cans. It smells of the Windex spray left by the overnight cleaning crew, and it is quiet. Once there was laughter, people talking on the phone or gossiping across their cubicles with their colleagues. Today you can hear only phones occasionally ringing but left unanswered, and the muted noise made by a reporter in his corner cubicle tapping energetically at his computer. On the other side of the room, desk editors stare with blank expressions at their computer screens. One looks up to survey the vacant desks around her, and then returns to her work. On one desk near the front door is the fresh pile of today's paper standing as a silent epitaph for employees who didn't show up today, and so didn't need their copy of the edition to read.
ReplyDeleteWilmington very recently just physically rearranged its newsroom to accomadate the new universal copy desk. I guess there's some more rearranging in store to cover up the empty holes. Hey, maybe we can get some more TV screens to show the Web site?
ReplyDeleteYesterday, those who were not at the paper -- due to previous layoffs, departures for other jobs or simply because it was their normal day off -- the morning was slow, torturous. You checked email every few minutes, reached out to friends at other properties to ask how they were. Then the cell phone began to buzz with text messages, the Facebook page lit up with posts and the phone began to ring with the news. Names were shared, and produced surprised and horrified responses.
ReplyDeleteGetting anything productive done was next to impossible, as you stayed glued to the computer, looking for any hint of what happened to whom. Shock washed over you as the name of a friend you'd talked to that morning, one who said "I almost hope it's me," pops up on the list, and you hope they are OK.
Today, the sense of mourning for an industry we loved is pervasive, even if you're not someone who has to face it directly.
8:52 AM
ReplyDeletethanks for putting me right there. Great descriptors.
Wonder if someone who was laid off could share some feelings of the first morning after?
We didn't think it was coming until today, so the sweep of at-home layoff calls was a surprise last night.
ReplyDeleteThen came the mass of text messages, calls and emails: Are you alright? Still there? I'm OK, but can you believe...
My best friend works for a Gannett paper and survived yesterday's cuts at his paper. We often talk about exit strategies and being prepared financially for the possibility of losing his job. He sees the writing on the wall long-term, but isn't sure what to do in the short-term. I'm a former newspaperman myself, having voluntarily resigned my position three years ago because my wife's job required us to move. While I left my position on my own terms, it was not a job I enjoyed anymore as our newsroom suffered from the same ailments. What I can tell you is that while it was tough for a year or so, I've moved on from newspapers and have never been happier. It won't be easy, but, eventually, it will be better. So much better, in fact, you'll wonder why you didn't leave sooner.
ReplyDeleteGood luck to all of you.
-Mike
Having the cuts come right after Thanksgiving has left all of us wondering which ones of us will be the turkeys. It's hard to get work done as you tell a contact, "I'll check with you later" and don't know if there is a later. Those outside people, the clients, sources and others with whom we do business, are the lifeblood of our company, too. They're being cold-cocked as well.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the poignant tales from your sites. 9:10, you hit the nail on the head with your last sentence. Mourning for an industry we loved, indeed.
ReplyDeleteI feel sick to my stomach thinking of the damn good journalists that were laid off already in Wisconsin, with more to come today.
Not sure how much longer this will be online it's written by the Cherry Hill Phillies beat writer.
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.courierpostonline.com/phillies/2008/12/02/19-years-six-months-23-days-and-its-all-over/
My layoff was in August, I was recently relocated 1200 miles from one Gannett site to this current site as a Manager of Creative Services.
ReplyDeleteMy boss had been somewhat distant with me in the coming days. Emails not returned from IT on computer issues I was having. Perhaps because they had the "list" so they could turn off email privileges immediately? I worked through the morning and sent a reminder email to my boss that I was going to take an extended lunch to put down a deposit on my condo I was going to lease.
After I returned from putting down a $1200 non refundable cash deposit, I saw my first glimmer of my boss all day. She quickly called another fellow manager into her office. (Hindsight tells me that she was warning him of what was about to happen). Then off she went to the upstairs conference room. 10 seconds later my phone rang. RING-RING goes the phone as the caller ID reflected the words "publishers conference room". "Hello", I said. "Can I see you upstairs in the conference room please," she said. "Gulp" My heart sank! My face turned red, I started shaking, my gut told me, "this is it, your one of the choosen 10".
As I climbed the stairs, my heart started to beat faster and faster with every step I climbed. When I walked into the room, it was just my manager and a representative from HR with a envelope and some papers. At that point the HR mgr said "We called you in to tell you that your position has been chosen to be eliminated effective immediately. This was a decision made by corporate, not your manager. Here is a letter and a pamphlet about COBRA, 401k, etc... At that point I felt myself start to hyper-ventilate. I asked to be excused from the room for a minute. I walked out to the stairwell and tried to catch my breath. They only gave me about 60 seconds before they came out after me and said I must come back in the room. At this point I was fuming. I expressed my displeasure with their choice as there are many other myspace surfing, youtube watching slackers that they could of picked from.
I was then told by HR that I could go down and pack my desk but was not allowed back on my computer for anything. I asked if I could burn a CD of some of my art samples for my portfolio. With a stone cold heart and no emotion, the HR mgr said "No, that is company property". I asked, what about my personal information on my computer like addresses, etc... She said, well since you brought it to work, it is now company property. (Stone cold Bitch!). I went downstairs, located a cardboard box under the stairwell and dumped whatever crap was in it on the floor. I then went to my desk and started packing. I tried to email my friends that I was leaving, but my email password had already been locked out by IT. I had 30 minutes to pack and was still going thru drawers when I was told that I needed to "wrap things up". I said, "why is there a time limit". They said, "yes". They brought down a big/tall guy from upstairs and he actually carried the heavy boxes to my car. I carried one myself. When I went to come back in to get the last of my personal stuff, I was meet at the door by my manger who was holding my purse in her hand and tried to not let me back in the door. I said, "I have other personal stuff and I need back in". The reluctantly let me in. I hugged my fellow co-workers as they cried.
After getting to my car, I just sat there, stunned, in awe. I started my car and pulled away from the building, knowing it was forever.
The next morning was weird. My internal body alarm woke me up at 6:30 am, It then hit me...I dont have a job to go to. I tried to go back to sleep but it just wasn't going to happen. I then decided to take 2 of my 8 week severance to rest and re-coupe. Updated my resume, enjoyed time with family. Each day, I felt more and more relieved to be out from under Gannett's thumb, but more and more stressed about finding another job.
I was prepared to take a paycut, but was one of the fortunate ones who found a wonderful place to work, with higher pay and excellent benefits!
Good luck to all of you, my thoughts and prayers are with you!
This is making the Spanish Flu look good. And remember. Just because you've escaped the Grim Reaper so far, your health is still very much at risk.
ReplyDeleteI now know what Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is. As I read these posts it all comes back. I haven't found a comparable paying job yet - not ready to take a 30% paycut but may have to. Problem with doing that for interim work is it will be harder to get a higher paying job down the road. Oh well, good luck to all of you - I feel your pain.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, yes, you will probably have to take a good-size pay cut. It is the way of the world right now. Hubby took nearly 50% pay cut, DEVASTATING to us financially, but he's a ton happier emotionally, except when paying bills, haha or not so haha. He also delivers for Domino's 3-4 nights a week to help make up the difference. Tiring, but the biggest stress is getting someone their pizza on time. And most tips are cash. It's a strange life we've moved into in our 50's.
ReplyDeleteSorry 8:52 but how can you compare newspaper layoffs with Hiroshima? Thousands of people died from a nuclear bomb vs. some of your co-workers losing their jobs? That's like equating a crappy football season with the sinking of the Titanic, etc. I hope you're not a reporter (or editor).
ReplyDelete8:21, would you please send that laid-off photographer's contact info to Jim's blog email address? I might know someone who can help.
ReplyDeleteI sat across from Executive Editor and heard words: restructuring, position, sorry, future. I said nothing. I listened to HR woman painfully recite her lines and all I could think was: her day is as bad as ours. She was the only one close to tears. I walked back to my desk to get my things and gave my colleagues a sad smile. I said nothing. I started forwarding emails to my editor, tying up loose ends and then I thought: just say nothing.
ReplyDelete1:12 PM
ReplyDeleteI applaud your gracefulness.
All heads turned when the HR person got off the elevator on the newsroom floor and walked toward the EE's office.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it was good or bad that she made eye contact with me.
Each time the EE's door closed and opened there was a flurry of whispering.
Nothing is getting done today.
Sadly, something is getting done today. Gannett is cutting its throat.
ReplyDeleteI got the call from HR.
ReplyDeleteI immediately logged into my laptop to send out a thank you to my former co-workers.
I had already been locked out.
I hope every manager in Gannett gets hit by a bus. Repeatedly.
10:35, thanks for flagging Radano's blog. If you know him -- or even if you don't -- it's a must-read.
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.courierpostonline.com/phillies/2008/12/02/19-years-six-months-23-days-and-its-all-over/
My head chopping actually came quite a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteThe day I was let go was three days after my 40th birthday (they wanted to do it ON my birthday, but I took the day off to play golf.)
I was told by my 'boss' that we needed to go to HR (I thought it was because I put a hole in a bathroom door in a fit of rage.)
I was handed a letter and a schpeal about the economy and tough times and blah, blah, blah...
So, needless to say, I was given no warning.
That was my last (thank GOD) day of working for the pinheads in Gannett.
There is a saying that goes something like 'You can wrap a piece a crap in pretty paper and bows, but it's still a piece of crap.
ReplyDeleteThat pretty much sums up Gannett right now.