Friday, November 05, 2010
Week Nov. 1-7 | Your Layoff Comments: Part 5
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74 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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The SEC is another one of those do-nothing federal agencies that I doubt would bestir itself to look at Gracis's lies. But anyone who is a stockholder can file a complaint with the SEC. This can be done with a letter to the SEC in Washington outlining what happened. Being a stockholder gives you a claim that you suffered material harm as a result of corporate wrongdoing.
ReplyDeleteDon't expect much action. This is the same agency that had clear and compelling evidence of Bernie Madoff's fraud 1991, and did nothing until Madoff's company collapsed in 1999.
Is it possible that Gannett's brass has decided it's easier -- and quieter -- to implement layoffs in smaller doses quarterly than in one huge sweep yearly? A layoff number like 1,500 yearly gets more attention than 200 to 300 employees quarterly. Plus, it's much "more" manageable on the local operations.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the SEC will do anything, but I could imagine analysts starting to distrust Gracia ... just as a journalist would if a source continually fed him/her misleading information. Not many people are recommending buys for media stock anyway, so convincing analysts that you're drastically spinning information out of desperation isn't smart.
ReplyDeleteIf you think you have a case, see a lawyer right away. There are some provisions of Sarbanes-Oxley that require you to file a complaint within 90 days of being dismissed in order to have the case taken. I don't know enough about how this law operates because the courts are messing around with the meanings as cases are considered. It costs nothing to talk to a lawyer.
ReplyDeletejust a point of clarification the VP of HR in Wilmington did not retire yesterday. Whomever wrote that doesn't know what they are talking about.
ReplyDeleteNow Friday afternnon and no Des Moines
ReplyDeletecomments......
It must be going to be a very bad bloodbath there
and in other Iowa sites!
Des Moines OC should be ashamed of themselves. Their inaction speaks loudly about their character.
ReplyDelete12:19 p.m. makes a good point: "Is it possible that Gannett's brass has decided it's easier -- and quieter -- to implement layoffs in smaller doses quarterly than in one huge sweep yearly? A layoff number like 1,500 yearly gets more attention than 200 to 300 employees quarterly. Plus, it's much "more" manageable on the local operations."
ReplyDeleteIn 2009, all the attention was focused on the July 2009 layoffs, where Bob Dickey said 1,400 newspaper jobs would be cut. Yet, regulatory filings showed Gannett had eliminated 4,500 jobs by the end of the year. And that was out of a total 6,500 jobs lost across all divisions that year.
Some west group papers are still in the processes of finalizing and getting approval for their plans I would expect those sites will be taking their actions next week since the proposals are due on the 9th
ReplyDeleteRegarding Des Moines, a reader says in an e-mail: "The only thing we've been told is that the paper has to cut something like 95 pages from the newspapers between now and the year's end."
ReplyDeleteReminds me of the foolish boy who had a hole in his jeans, so he took a knife and cut it out.
ReplyDeleteThe stockholders should complain about too many people whose only accomplishment was whining. Gannett waited too long to get rid of them.
ReplyDeleteAnother Gannett tactic is to let people go here and there, on the downlow, and of course make no mention of it. I just found out that the head design god at the PC in Appleton, Wis., was let go a few weeks back, and the design center in Green Bay has picked up his work. So by laying people off in dribs and drabs, it doesn't have the impact of the 1,400 canned in July 2009, for example.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteHere is something to make your stomach churn, and you don't need to be a Harvard Business professor to feel its truth:
ReplyDelete"Losing streaks are often created and then perpetuated when people lose confidence in their leaders and systems, while winning streaks are fueled by confident people who are secure in their own abilities and the ability of their leaders. Winning streaks are characterized by continuity and continued investment, Rosabeth Moss Kanter argues, while losing streaks are marked by disruption and a lack of investment that typically give way to a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure."
(From a review of her book "Confidence")
From Ft Myers: 1 higher-up moved from Ft Myers to become Operations Director in Montgomery, another is being moved to GPC. Between those and the addition of Yahoo taking some from the Ad Dept; I would make a reasonable dumb guess that there will be no layoffs in Ft Myers this round.
ReplyDelete2:09's comments should be removed. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteAgree with 2:13. 2:09's comments could be construed as an incitement to violence.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete2:09's comments should remain: Management is the one inciting violence; they have created this abusive and hostile work environment, not 2:09!
ReplyDeleteI've removed that comment. However subtle, threats such as stalking don't have a place here.
ReplyDeleteFollowing is an edited version of a comment posted at 2:22 p.m.:
ReplyDeleteAnyone know why Gracia Martore seems to have changed her name. Until 2002 or so, her bio lists her as Gracia Mangano Martore, Mangano being her maiden name. Today it is officially Gracia C. Martore.
http://thecenter.mit.edu/people/board/
ReplyDeleteI just gained a whole bunch of respect for her for serving on this board.
The Tennessean (Nashville)
ReplyDeletePreviously it was stated that Nashville lost a Circulation (Admin) position. Could someone verify the job title?
2:09's comments were not out of line. People are stressed from the situation, being pushed to their limits.
ReplyDeleteThe approximately three dozen papers for which I've received no information include three of Gannett's biggest: Des Moines, Detroit and Phoenix. Some possible explanations:
ReplyDeleteDes Moines. Anonymous@1:53 p.m., above, says the paper is among some West Group papers still finalizing their plans.
Detroit. The unions there are negotiating with the company over a new contract that likely will include pay cuts and benefit reductions in lieu of job cuts.
Phoenix. It's not in the West Group, as I believe the paper reports directly to Bob Dickey. Still, perhaps it, too, is finalizing plans. While many papers were to disclose cuts this week, that didn't mean all of then.
A friend at Poughkeepsie said that everybody is nervous, that company-wide layoffs have been announced, but no one has gotten the ax yet.
ReplyDeleteJust to give you all some support, this is a great forum. I don't work in your industry and just found this blog in a related search. More transparency, more accountability, more power to the people will keep them honest.
I'm checking my portfolio to make sure there's no Gannett stock in there. I'm not supporting their corporate greed.
I am among those let go this week, an 'information center' manager who worked those long hours, holidays, weekends. I think I might just enjoy life again.
ReplyDeleteDetroit is not part of USCP, it is part of USA TODAY and reports to Hunke.
ReplyDeleteCuts are coming possibly next week as soon as final approval comes in the plan is to leave positions dark and cut hours for some to half time
ReplyDelete"Subliminal class warfare"? You must be kidding. We got N. Korean agents posting here now?
ReplyDeleteOh, and ditto on removing that post.
ReplyDelete@2:36 - I just lost respect for The Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values at MIT for the very same reason. "The Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values at MIT is dedicated to inquiry, to dialogue, and to the creation of programs that affect the ethical and humane dimensions of life." Yet Matore is on their board. Maybe the part about being humane escaped her.
ReplyDeleteThe Keith Olbermann suspension by MSNBC over political campaign contributions makes me wonder about similar donations by Gannett employees. Here, for example, is one by a KPNX-TV anchor in a race for the state Legislature. Anyone know of others? http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/RobertLeger/88313
ReplyDelete"Not communicating the layoffs, making them a mystery, claiming it's a "local*" decision and that corporate doesn't know about it is tortuous for the victims of layoffs and ethically reprehensible ..."
ReplyDeleteThat reminds me of a story about LBJ and Gov. George Wallace. LBJ had Wallace over to the White House to discuss discrimination. (Back then, Wallace was "for" it.)
LBJ pointed out the window and said, "George, see all those protesters outside on my lawn? Do you know what I'd like to tell 'em George? I'd like to tell 'em that we reached an agreement today, and you're gonna allow black people to vote."
Wallace responded, "Well, Mr. President, I don't have anything to do with that. The right to vote is in the hands of the local voter registrars."
LBJ laughed and said, "Don't you sh-- me, George. You got those voter registrars in the palm of your hand ...
" ... Now, in 100 years, both of us are gonna be dead and gone. Do you really want on your tombstone, 'George Wallace. He hated.' "
Obviously, more than one parallel there ...
Hang in there, good people of GCI. (No, not you Craig et al.)
3:07 p.m. Oh yes, trust me, you will enjoy life again because you'll actually have a life! I can attest to that.
ReplyDeleteIn the six rounds of "reductions" we've had there were only two voluntary buyouts and they weren't offered to everyone. If a company has to pay severance anyway, why wouldn't they automatically offer buyouts before doing layoffs?
ReplyDeleteHistorically, buyout benefits were more costly for Gannett. Two weeks pay for every year of service vs. one week per year in a traditional layoff.
ReplyDeleteNow, Gannett no linger offers those one-week-per-year layoff benefits. They've been replaced by so-called TPP, which is simply a supplement to taxpayer-funded unemployment benefits.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteHey 11/05/2010 4:23 PM:
ReplyDeleteAnd you reveal your shriveled and poisoned soul all at once.
Jim, re 4:23 p.m. maybe you need to stress that only adults post here. Please remove that puerile post.
ReplyDeleteone week pay and benefits to medicare, might be enough to induce veterans to leave - and not risk age discrimination suits.
ReplyDeleteLooks like Des Moines gets to enjoy a sleepless weekend.
ReplyDeleteappreciate
Any notion what might be happening at the paywall sites?
ReplyDeleteJim has been out of Gannett for years, and he has no life.
ReplyDeleteDon't go making assumptions.
4:52 PM's comment is ageist. Ageism is ignorant.
ReplyDeleteI would like to see people keep a log of all the ageist bull they have to endure everyday on the job,and post it here.
In other words, you don't hear (anymore) people making wise remarks about the color of a person's skin at work, do you? You don't hear people calling women broads and other derogatory terms. Nope. That kind of bullying is not tolerated, and it's time for us to start calling out Gannett on the awful treatment that's allowed that impacts people lives and careers----just because they've reached a certain age.
A log or record just might come in handy someday.
I thought Gannettoids were allowed to make political contributions without getting prior approval.
ReplyDeleteGracia Martore will be sleeping well this weekend knowing how much money she's saved GCI to stuff the suits' pockets.
ReplyDeleteJim is like the retarded 8-year-old who pulls crap out of his pants and throws it when he gets mad.
ReplyDeleteThere's been nothing helpful here for months.
Port Huron has a job posting on journalismjobs for an editor. Looks like they want someone with 7 years experience as ME or EE. Now, wonder if the recently laid off ME's in Shreveport and Jackson got a shot at a transfer there? If they didn't, I would conclude that Gannett screwed up royally.
ReplyDelete@8:02: Thanks for the nice imagery ... That's actually more "vision" from a GCI Brasser or GCI Brass enabler than you ever applied to actually leading the company.
ReplyDeleteBut just for the record: Nothing that's gettin' slung is coming from Jim. Jim simply provides the forum here. And bless him for doing so. When it comes to the GCI troops out there, you "lost the room," OK? It's obvious. You can't expect to dump pure garbage down people's throats for three years straight and honestly expect them to keep asking for "more," can you?
Ugh. 8:02's puerile comment is obnoxious AND offensive. Please delete it.
ReplyDeleteIf you have been swallowing garbage for three years and you have stayed for it, then you deserve what you get.
ReplyDeleteStop whining and do something.
7:27 It is not ageist to observe that older workers who are long veterans of Gannett's payroll are generally drawing higher paychecks than their younger collegues. It's now dog-eat-dog in the operating centers across the country, and every veteran that is persuaded to leave frees up salaries that would pay for two younger people. Rather than coasting into retirement, they should leave before the roof collapses on everybody. If they get healthcare until Medicare kicks in, it's a deal worth considering. They've done their bit. Their life is over.
ReplyDeleteThere seems to be some confusion from Wilmington.
ReplyDeleteThe VP of Production POSITION has been eliminated. It was replaced by an existing position. And Junior wasn't promoted to VP. He should be though. One very well compensated FTE gone.
VP of HR. Well. What is the story there?
Jim, please know your work is appreciated, despite a few negative comments here or there. You do valuable work, and you provide a valuable service. You are still a heck of a reporter.
ReplyDeleteThere must be a Gannett Corporate scab posting
ReplyDeleteall he can to knock Jim,maybe hoping the site will go away..............Go away scab !!!
Nobody wants you reading or posting here.
Certainly no one asks you to be here ,no one wants to read your crap, so get the hell out!
Your comments show your intelligence level
and that is one equal to a worm.
I think the reason we haven't heard anything from the AZ Republic is that it's merging with KPNX later this year and it's chaos in Phoenix. I wouldn't be surprised if the Republic survives this round but gets nailed big time in 2nd quarter 2011 after things shake out with the TV station moving in.
ReplyDeleteAnyone here anything about Fort Collins? Any layoffs/Rif's planned? If so when, how many and what positions?
ReplyDeleteMy dream is that somebody gathers the wherewithal to bring Gannett to justice for its mercilous mistreatment of thousands of senior staff members during the past few years. Being old and expensive puts you on the firing line. Use of sick days guarantees that your job will soon be "eliminated." Has anyone considered a class action lawsuit? I mean geez, even the mob treats its elders with more respect. Don't mean to stir the pot but man, this is one bad-ass company.
ReplyDeleteJim, you are doing the work of the gods. I monitored this blog this week, and it was incredible. There are some days when a newspaper works as well as you have got this blog working. Thanks. Sincerely.
ReplyDeleteSeveral people have referenced smaller sites having staff-wide pay cuts rather than lay offs (due to the staff being too small to cut more.) I heard that's the case in Battle Creek.
ReplyDeleteJim, you might add a column to your chart tracking sites with pay cuts instead of lay offs and noting percentages, where you can get them.
And thanks for your efforts.
I don't want to pour water on high expectations, but that Phoenix idea is doomed. The Chicago Tribune tried, and it ended up in an incredible food-fight over whether the newspaper or the TV was top dog. There were hurt feelings on both sides which continue today, even after they have been split apart. TV and newspapers are both in the news business, but they are cats and dogs when you put them together. I somehow get the feeling it's the same with digital and print.
ReplyDelete"There must be a Gannett Corporate scab posting
ReplyDeleteall he can to knock Jim,maybe hoping the site will go away.............."
I think you are giving the poster too much credit. He or she sounds more like a little kid trying to get attention, or someone who just enjoys stirring the pot. People like this feed off the attention their posts are given. Let him starve, please!
I have to laugh about that post regarding older workers and how their "lives are over" and they should fall on their swords so the younger folks can live to be laid off another day.
ReplyDeleteWhy should an older employee (how exactly is that defined anyway? Over 50? Over 60?) quit, until he or she is ready? People have different lives, different responsibilities. Not everyone is ready to retire at 60 or 62, especially after putting a few kids through college!
AND....THIS IS A BIG AND....The most recent layoffs HAVE NOT INCLUDED A MEDICAL BENEFIT BRIDGE TO MEDICARE. Keep that in mind before urging "the old folks" to get out of the way.
The Republic has had some reporters depart recently, including the reporter in Mexico City and a statehouse reporter. Perhaps that's a reason for no news. We've also been proactive in reducing the size of the paper. I doubt the KPNX move has any sway over layoffs. If anything, because the two newsrooms are going to be working side by side and sharing resources, I could see layoffs happening now to set up for it.
ReplyDeleteCouple of thoughts based on what people have been discussing earlier. Martore doesn't have to worry about the SEC doing anything. She's smart enough to know that speaking out of both sides of her mouth won't cost her. Unfortunately, Wall Street sees through the b.s. and nonsensical rah-rah efforts she and Dubow try to shovel every quarter. That's part of the reason Gannett stock has performed so badly and has little upside near or long term. Of course,earnings matter. But Wall Street also prices in expectations of performance. Analysts know management has no coherent, consistent plan to attract readers, and more important, advertisers. Particularly at the flagship USAT, which is flailing under a lack of leadership and vision.
ReplyDeleteCriminal? No. Immorale? Yes. Morale sapping? Most definitely. I don't see how some of these people look at themselves in the mirror every morning, considering the money they've raked in and the damage they've done to countless lives.
I was going to let this go but its crying out for a response so forgive me fellow blog readers but someone needs a spanking.
ReplyDeleteTo the 9:49pm little piss-ant who said to GCI veterans, "They've done their bit. Their life is over." Now hear this, I'm one of those veterans and you couldn't sit in my chair for one hour without breaking into a cold-sweat. Youthful arrogance is one thing but you're just plain ignorant. Are you some creature who doesn't age? That's rhetorical, or do you even know the definition of that word? Someday if you're really smart and work really hard to sustain a career (highly doubtful given your comments but let's go with this line of thought anyway) your sorry ass is going to be one of those veterans making more money than the people coming behind you. Maybe they'll be more enlightened than you and keep you around, openly valuing your experience, knowledge and wisdom. Or maybe they'll be JUST as vapid and useless as you and toss your sorry ass out since "you've done your bit, and your life is over". Among the many obvious things you have yet to learn, try to recognize that competence doesn't discriminate. Now, go wipe your nose, lol!
In an e-mail, a reader tells me: "Five layoffs in Binghamton; two are from news. Ithaca and Elmira take 5 percent pay cuts, effective Monday. Everyone."
ReplyDeleteI'm now noting pay cuts in a third column of the spreadsheet (link, above) listing site-by-site numbers.
You're doing a great job Jim, thank you!
ReplyDeleteI think some people are missing the point, as usual.
ReplyDeleteThe real point is that Jim has no life. And a bunch of people here are stupid enough to emulate him by spending their days whining.
"I would make a reasonable dumb guess that there will be no layoffs in Ft Myers this round.
ReplyDelete11/05/2010 2:12 PM"
WRONG
At least 5 let go over several departments (none news) PLUS a bunch of exempt positions (ALL news) were kicked down to non-exempt status.
1:02 AM
ReplyDeleteGreat response.
I think the colleges are telling the kids that shit about baby boomers needing to be replaced. At least that's the way it was with my niece who recently graduated. She told me that the boomers were all used up and that she could slide right in and take one of the jobs once they pushed a boomer out.
I asked her one question. "What if that boomer is doing a good job and doesn't want to leave yet?" thinking maybe she'd wake up. (Afterall she graduated from some kind of Christain place that supposedly emphasized kindness and fairness.)
Just more of the "ME FIRST" generation. Gotta have it right now, ready for the challenge or not. Sad thing is, we created this monster. A great many of them will flame out, quickly.
ReplyDelete