Publisher Laura Hollingsworth told a late-afternoon staff meeting that The Des Moines Register had laid off four employees, and delivered a message now familiar to many across Gannett: The economy is still weak, advertising is still soft, and changes are afoot.
"She was asked about furloughs,'' a reader tells me, "and said she did not know."
With perhaps 550-600 employees, the Register is one of GCI's biggest worksites, yet the status of any job cuts there during the current round of company-wide job reductions had not been reported until now. The paper is part of GCI's West Group of dailies, where some sites have missed revenue targets in recent months.
GCI launched the latest reductions last Wednesday. Today, readers have reported employees received notices at the Register, the Statesman Journal in Salem, Ore.; the Tallahassee Democrat; The Journal News in Westchester, N.Y., plus New Jersey's Daily Journal in Vineland and the Courier-Post in Cherry Hill.
Monday, November 08, 2010
Des Moines' Hollingsworth calls all-hands meeting; with Ore., Fla., N.Y., N.J., 200 job cuts reported; 57 of 81 U.S. community newspapers now counted
94 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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For Part 6 of this comment thread, please go here.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI am encouraged by the post suggesting someone find a lawyer or firm willing to explore a suit, using this site and other sources to gather names, ages, etc. That kind of approach would seemingly placate the corporate plants who criticize well-intentioned posters who can't seem to get over their GCI-induced trauma. "Stop whining and do something," they say. Well, let's do it.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, here's a little exercise that might ignite your imagination and kick off ideas on how to use high quality journalism, consistent standards and clearly defined goals to make money.
Let's say the Freep and News both close tomorrow, leaving Detroit without a newspaper. Do you think others would start a new publication? If so, what would they need to do to avoid repeating Gannett's poor performance? What should they avoid doing?
Compare the list you compile with what's being done now. Do the same in Indy, Cincinnati, Burlington and others. Or, you can forget it and leave the print markets to the independent weeklies, many of whom are prospering in the very same cities Gannett calls home.
GCI's big shots have blamed the economy and social changes for too long without taking responsibility for what their bad judgment has contributed. A lawsuit might find that GCI has fraudently used the economic crisis to jetison long lists of old, experienced journalists. Or, it might find that maintenance of 25 percent profit margins and higher stock prices justify whatever human carnage GCI wishes to inflict.
Hey, we're journalists. Let's find out what really happened.
Man, Jim, I googled "lawyer for class action lawsuit wrongful firing" and there's lots and lots out there. Would it matter what state the law firm was located in or should we pick one in Virginia where Gannett Corp. headquarters are? After we pick one (or a couple) we need to email them a contact name and plead our case to see if we have a case. If so, you could post the law firm who would try the case on this blog for each individual to contact said law firm on their own until they have established a list of folks who have been wrongly let go. Then we simply roll the dice to see if we can win the case.
ReplyDeletePlease refresh my memory. How does Gannett get by with not following the WARN provisions in these mass layoffs? I realize each site's losses might seem tiny, but it seems the RIF's are being dictated by a single unit at corporate.
ReplyDelete"Editor's Eye on Washington: Gannett - Never Say Never"
ReplyDeletehttp://dc.citybizlist.com/yourcitybiznews/detail.aspx?id=101502
http://www.indystar.com/article/20101107/OPINION06/11070337/
ReplyDeleteIndy has to do a national search for a journalist when Gannett is axing them everywhere. Just doesn't make sense to me.
7:49 p.m.: Here's the relevant language about the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN); it's from the U.S. Labor Department's website.
ReplyDeleteA covered mass layoff occurs when 50 to 499 employees are affected during any 30-day period at a single employment site (or for certain multiple related layoffs, during a 90-day period), if these employees represent at least 33 percent of the employer’s workforce where the layoff will occur, and the layoff results in an employment loss for more than six months. If the layoff affects 500 or more workers, the 33 percent rule does not apply.
The key language here when it comes to Gannett's layoffs is "a single employment site" and the number of employees must constitute 33% of the employer's workforce. So, for example, although The Cincinnati Enquirer laid off about 100 people at a single site in July 2009, those employees did not represent 33% of the paper's approximately 800-900 workers at the time.
Yes, Rochester laid off exactly 49, as I recall.
ReplyDeleteBut couldn't an argument be made that Gannett is a single employment site since corporate calls the shots by studying and approving the layoffs? To me, that would make these layoffs single site ones, and the single site is Gannett corporate.
ReplyDeleteA long time ago when my husband got an attorney for an age discrimination suit, we were told that the complaint needed to first be filed with the EEOC.
ReplyDeleteRe: Anon 8:09
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting but lacks any real information. I'd like to know why CNBC thinks Gannett shares could "pop." As a worker bee deep in the hive I don't see any sign of a resurgence that could bring the company back to what it once was. Continued cuts will restore short term profitability but not provide a long term path for growth.
USAT's online presence pales in comparison to serious news outlets like the NYT, BBC or CNN. It lacks the serious news of the sites and doesn't have the froth of EW.com. And the app looks great but there's no meat on them bones.
The local websites are a mess, cookie cutter templates with no serious news, riddled with typos and nothing but celebrity slideshows.
What's G gonna do to get its stock to "pop?"
10:49: No. It's where the layoffs occur, not where the decision is made.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to helping employees, the purpose of the WARN law is to help communities. The 60-day notice means, for example, that government can ramp up job assistance programs or notify schools about a disruption in students' lives.
The community of McLean is relatively unaffected by the fact that 100 employees are laid off in Cincinnati.
This one may be a stretch, but I think that Gracia's lie to analysts about no layoffs is possible turf for a suit under Sarbanes Oxley.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha-factsheet-sox-act.pdf
Thanks for that about WARN, Jim. Now it makes sense to me.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for all that you do for all of us.
Maybe some older someone in HR who finds himself or herself without a job next week will have inside knowledge and fill suit.
ReplyDeleteMy guess, though, is that Gannett is very, very careful to work within the letter of the law.
11:39 is right, which is why we need to talk to a lawyer and understand exactly what we need to have if we take this course. Also we need to know if it has to be state-specific or could be company-wide, and about some of this other obscure stuff.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to add to what someone said over on Part 6 of the comments, urging people to get their resumes in order now. If you've survived this round of layoffs, now is also the time to start thinking about what you want to do with your life.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to stay in journalism, prepare. Learn the new technology. Learn how to shoot and edit video. Learn what it takes to run a website. Get active in social media. Print has no future - I think we all know this. Build the skills now that you will need tomorrow.
If you don't want to stay in journalism, what is it you want to do? Don't let thoughts like "I'm too old" or "It's too hard" cloud you. I am in a master's program now and there are people in their 50s and even 60s taking classes with me because at their age, they want to do something new. You are NOT TOO OLD to learn a new trade. It is NOT TOO HARD to do. It may take a great amount of hard work and dedication but IT CAN BE DONE.
If you don't plan on staying in journalism but you don't know what else to do, check with the counseling department of a local college. Many of them have career counselors on-hand that will meet with non-students to help them figure out which careers would be a good fit.
If you need training to move into a second career, start getting it now. Because I promise you, it's going to feel much better if you're the one who gives Gannett the pink slip rather than the other way around.
I had a moment of epiphany back in 2006 about where this was all headed and I went back to grad school then. I've been taking weekend classes and it's not been easy, but I'm done with my classwork and finishing up my thesis. I'm no great genius. I'm not overly ambitious. If I can do it, you can, too.
It makes me sad to think that someday telling people I worked at a newspaper will have all the same connotations as someone 100 years ago telling a friend they used to work at a buggy whip manufacturer. But it is what it is. You must move forward.
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ReplyDelete11:47 -- Your points are well taken but I think journalists will do well to remember that its the entire industry that's in trouble, not just print. Except in rare instances, online news organizations make very little money. And most that do make respectable profits have few good-paying jobs.
ReplyDeleteI'm an older employee who knows how to shoot video, run a Web site, use HTML code, etc., etc., and in no way feel insulated because of that. Sure, if I got laid off I might be able to land a lower paying job somewhere else because of my skill set. The question is do you want to work for lower pay than you're making now for the rest of your life? If the answer is no, I think you should be looking outside the newspapers/Web industry altogether.
Jim might be able to put more perspective on this. He has fairly impressive reach with this site, but it's my understanding that he struggles to make considerably less than he did as a print journalist. And he is the only employee at this sight, meaning he likely works as hard as he ever did.
There are other fields that pay respectably and will consider taking 40+ employees on.
If you just love journalism you may have to stay the course. Your plan then had better be to become an executive editor or publisher if you want to be paid. If, however, you've ever wanted to do anything else, I say this is the time.
@12:41 - 11:47 here and I certainly didn't mean to imply that older workers wouldn't have those skills. It's just that I'm fed up with Gannett telling us that this is the way of the future while refusing to teach us any of those skills at work - at least at my location. It kinda sends a message on what they have in store for us, you know?
ReplyDeletePersonally, I've come to terms with the fact that I'll be taking a pay cut to switch careers. But I don't think that cut will be permanent and my income will increase with experience. To put it another way, I'd rather be earning 85 percent of what I make now in another field and build on that, then see my income cut to 0 percent of what I have now and no idea of what to do next.
Ugh, than, not then. It's Sunday and there are no editors on the job ;-)
ReplyDelete12:41 p.m.: When I left USA Today in January 2008, I was getting paid about $52 an hour, or $105,000 a year. On top of that, I got medical coverage and Gannett's contributions to my retirement accounts worth perhaps another $15,000.
ReplyDeleteOn Gannett Blog, I'm now making about $9 an hour, or perhaps $10,000 a year. And that does not include any medical or retirement benefits. About 70% of that $10K is from advertising.
I could earn substantially more if technology existed to automatically charge readers, say, 5 cents per visit to this site -- $1.50 a month for a reader visiting once a day. But that technology isn't here yet.
About to be another mass exodus of workers who aren't willing to break their backs picking up the pieces.
ReplyDeleteAt my site, I know of at least three who have since resigned after the mass layoffs. And more are planning their escape.
ReplyDeleteNot a layoff post ... just pointing out that the Courier-Journal had three special sections with sports news plus their regular sports section. The three special sections included two college basketball preview sections, plus the Breeders' Cup wrap. That's a lot of sports stories by a not-very-big staff, with an even thinner copydesk.
ReplyDeleteWould those vulgar posts that keep popping up qualify as cyberstalking and is there any relief?
ReplyDeleteReaders have posted nearly 64,000 comments here, according to my Blogger software publishing program. Years ago, certain repetitive comments simply became very, very distant background noise.
ReplyDeleteDoes it seem odd to you that Salinas, despite the size of the newspaper and number od employees in other departments, has such a high number of employees in the newsroom? uh, I mean Information center?
ReplyDeleteThe Salinas Californian's Monday-Friday circulation is 9,790; Saturday's is 12,533, as of Sept. 30. (It doesn't publish on Sundays.)
ReplyDeleteWhat's the size of its newsroom, 2:51 p.m.?
I've said this before and will say it again. To paraphrase a former president, "It's the business model, stupid!"
ReplyDeleteIt is not just a Gannett problem, it's industry wide. Someone, be it shareholders board of directors, Wall Street or a beam of light from the sky, should give the current crop of newspaper, excuse me, media executives one year to come up with a business model that works or they are gone. Period.
This industry has been jackassing around with the Internet for almost 20 years and they still can't come up with a business model that pays off? Fire the incompetents in the glass offices and recruit new talent and give them the mandate.
I am sick to death of watching these morons subject a once great media company to the death of a thousand cuts. And yet somehow, they keep their jobs.
Despite company policy, I've offered to give any of my subordinates a recommendation for any new position they seek, either inside or outside GCI. They do great work and I'm proud to have them on my team. Why wouldn't I help them find something better?
ReplyDelete3:26 The new media seems thriving. Look at Politico, which is coining money on what used to be the turf of newspapers -- political news. The Daily Beast is hiring reporters at what I think are excessive salaries, then there is Gawker, which is another financial success. Even the old Drudgereport is making out well. Why didn't anyone in the industry see Drudge and realize there was money there to be made? By the time they woke up, it's been too little, too late. The train has left, and we weren't on it.
ReplyDeleteStill not a real comment from Des Moines.
ReplyDeleteI bet they think they are safe.
Many thought they were safe in 09 ,in off Des Moines sites.A good friend was one of them.
Profits ,although small were being made.
The early lay-offs were finished.
Then another round was announced.
And then the Iowa City Press Citizen which is part of the D.M. Register, was gutted,the almost new building was put on the
Sale block,a lot of the fine emplyees were gone.The presses were sold,and they determined
that they would be printed by their other major
competitor ,a daily, 16 miles away,and save money.Another Gannett property ,a small community paper just miles away,
was also gutted with another layoff in the fall
of 09.The presses were sold,mailroom layed off,
and printing and labor consolidated.Really great for that community,and they probably wonder why advertisers no longer support them.
This was happening in a time of revenue in the black.Those locations now have seen revenue
drop,budgets slashed,profit gone.All this for
what purpose ? No logical sense behind it.
So,knowing that scenario, is anyone safe,
in Iowa or anywhere?
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeletePeggy Phelps, 60, director of human resources at The Courier-Journal, died in a two-car crash Saturday night on U.S. 150 in Floyd County, Ind. Her husband, Harry Phelps, 62, and granddaughter, Ashley Fears, 12, also of Georgetown, were injured in the crash.
ReplyDeleteArnold Garson, publisher of The Courier-Journal, said the Phelpses were returning from a family wedding when the crash occurred.
In the past 24 hours, I've received two, related notes via e-mail from readers in different parts of the country. They both describe a divide in the U.S. community newspapers of (approximately) top-33 papers and not-top 33; I assume those groups are based on circulation.
ReplyDeleteOne reader says the top group is taking the brunt of the current round of layoffs, while the smaller papers are imposing pay cuts or layoffs.
The second reader says across-the-board pay cuts are scheduled for papers in Hattiesburg, Miss., and Jackson, Tenn. Also, Jackson's publisher reportedly is assuming advertising director responsibilities, the reader says.
The Jackson publisher's situation would be intriguing, given recent speculation about a big change in job descriptions for community newspaper publishers. Can anyone else comment on this?
I've read with interest the debate over journalism having a future and separately, old vs. young workers. There are valid opinions on both. What I want to say as this: Gannett has done a terrible job training young journalists as to any craft. At USA Today in particular, editors have failed to mentor young hires, many who come in with little or no actual reporting experience. They don't know how to lift the phone or make a call or who to call, except for the flak pitching the story. There are exceptions, so youngsters, don't over-react. Overall, it just ain't so. What kind of legacy is anyone leaving regarding the training and development of the next generation?
ReplyDeleteWell Jim, regarding the question you posted at 5:27 p.m. regarding publishers, you must remember that many sites no longer have publishers. Several of the smaller sites in Gannett's Wisconsin group lost their publishers in the purge of July 2009. Sheboygan, Fond du Lac and Oshkosh all lost the person and the position, and the executive editors were then also given the title (and former publisher duties) of general manager. Not quite sure how it works in the central group, but I believe those four sites share one publisher.
ReplyDelete6:12 This is a problem as old as the medieval guilds. They don't train because they don't want to give away secrets of the trade that ensure they will continue to have jobs in the future.
ReplyDeleteI had difficulty mentoring the younger reporters at Gannett because we approached stories with two different philosophies. I wrote with the reader first and foremost in mind. They wrote with the editor in mind.
ReplyDeleteIt was not that way at all when I worked for a non-Gannett place. We were all on the same page. There, editors insisted we write for readers, and if that didn't sink in to the new hire quickly, they were strongly encouraged to find employment elsewhere.
@12:52 -- 12:41 here. Thanks for your reply. I didn't think you were indicating that older employees couldn't have modern skills. I just wanted to chime in and say that I don't know that those skills would make much of a difference.
ReplyDeleteThere's no doubt that you are a better modern journalist if you can work on the Web, shoot video, etc. But those skills don't seem to be translating into more secure jobs ... at least where I'm sitting.
Frankly, I tell most people -- young and old -- that I think they should get out of this business altogether. I hate to say it, but I don't see a bright future, which is sad not only for journalists but the general public.
I'm over 40 and my skill set is as broad as that of anyone at my paper -- including all the upper-level editors -- but I'm training for another field. During past layoffs, our paper let some of the most up to date people go, so I just don't think it matters (from a job security or job seeking standpoint). Gaining a skill set that will allow you to work in an industry that isn't dying will make a difference.
Good luck to all of us!
11:47 A.M. -- that's the paranoia talking. Journalists do not need to shoot and edit video, or learn what it takes to run a website, or "get active" with social media. They need to find and write good stories. Those who do that will survive.
ReplyDelete8 p.m.: I think you meant "writers," rather than "journalists." After all, photographers, videographers, website builders and social media editors are journalists, too.
ReplyDeleteI would add this, as well: Writers should understand the principles of video, photo slideshows, interactive databases and so on -- to know when a story is best told through those formats. The writers don't necessarily have to know HOW to shoot and edit a video. But they should know when to alert a visual colleague.
At the same time, videographers/photographers need to know what makes a good (text) story.
And everyone should understand the principles of social media: How to promote stories via Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, etc., and to use those networks to gather feedback and information through crowdsourcing.
So are we still thinking that tomorrow's the day for the NJ group? Yes, APP will be a hub but there are 5 other papers here.
ReplyDeleteAs a first step in the direction of a class action lawsuit, we might want to gather names, ages and experience levels of all GCI layoffs since 2008, if that hasn't already been done. Maybe we could convince former Gannettoids to help put a list together. If that compilation yields prima face evidence of age discrimination, we would have a better chance of recruiting some high-powered lawyers to take up our cause. A comparison of staff lists from 2008 to 2009 to 2010.
ReplyDeleteIf we find that 60-70% of those let go were considered older employees, though their group only represented 30-40% of total information center employees, we might have "a matter that appears to be self-evident from the facts."
There might be some former HR folks out there who saw and heard things that supports our age discrimination claim. Ya never know unless you ask.
Pardon me, by the way, if this discussion bothers the bigshots. But they should know by now that good journalists are trained to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. I know former Gannettoids who cannot afford health insurance and it breaks my heart to think they were sacrificed to further enrich GCI's inept leadership.
Let's do some reporting and see what we can find out.
8:51 PM
ReplyDeleteYou might want to check with the EEOC offices to see how many age discrimination complaints have been filed against Gannett too.
If I still worked there, I'd keep a running log of ageist comments and actions. (Things like "I wish he would retire. He's too old to do the job," and "We need a young and energetic reporter to do this assignment"). I look back and remember how terrible I felt when I had to hear that crap almost daily.
Even if nothing comes of this, maybe Gannett will wake up and do some training in the area of age discrimnation. That would be a start.
Are EEOC complaints public documents under open-records laws?
ReplyDeleteJim, we need to return to basic bread and butter journalism, and forget about video, tweeting, Facebook, etc. It is time-consuming putting videos together and we are so short-staffed we need all hands for traditional writing and editing of stories. This is not the time for trendy luxuries. We just don't have the staff.
ReplyDeleteSo do we have to file separately or as groups from our own states or do we file in Virginia where Gannett headquarters are located?
ReplyDelete9:34 That is why you need to consult a lawyer. I assume from the recent comments that we are considering a class action suit. So it really doesn't matter where it is filed, since it will cover GCI all over the country. I think we need an aggrevied class of workers to do this -- i.e. some of the older workers who got dumped.
ReplyDeleteNo layoffs yet in Palm Springs, but our new publisher has called a building-wide staff meeting Tuesday. There are a lot of nervous people. No one is saying anything definite, but our EE seems quite calm and not flustered by all the talk of layoffs throughout the company. In fact, he's filling an open position or two. I'm hoping the Newsroom can dodge another bullet. How can you continue to do really good work with fewer and fewer people? (Guess everyone is asking that these days, huh?) Perhaps our biggest worry in PS should be the editor's departure. We hear he's headed back to his native Ohio to "visit colleges" with his daughter this week. The real buzz is he's in contention for a job outside of Gannett back there, maybe in Columbus or Cleavland. What a huge loss for us if it happens. Jim, know anything? Stay tuned.
ReplyDeleteI've been told that Palm Springs may dodge layoffs because you guys have so many open positions. Of course, you might lose those: After all, cutting jobs includes eliminating those that are open.
ReplyDeleteCherry hill courierpost getting hit now
ReplyDeleteCherry Hill Courier-Post lost 12 people.There are also three people resigning whose positions will not be filled.
ReplyDeleteWestchester is getting hit hard. How the hell is that newsroom not already cut to the bone?
ReplyDeleteCuts in courier post are more evidence that advertising sales does crappy job. And with circulation now down to 58,000, its only matter of time.
ReplyDeleteJim asked: Are EEOC complaints public documents under open-records laws?
ReplyDeleteI don't know. But I know that the Wisconsin equivalent, ERD complaints, are public because I've successfully requested them under the state's Public Records Law. (ERD = Equal Rights Division)
Speaking of New Jersey -- back before Jim ran off to Ibiza last summer, there was some tiresome back-and-forth where some people were claiming there was some huge malfeasance not being reported about one of the N.J. sites. I stopped paying attention eventually because it became pointless, but those claims were followed with questions about why people here had not pursued the details.
ReplyDeleteAt the risk of bringing all of that back, what ever happened there? Did anyone ever check that, or are those posters still waiting for an unnamed party to review their claims?
It wasn't about the people shitting on the floor in Cherry Hill, either, so the children who want to revive those tales don't need to bother answering.
DM publisher Laura Hollingsworth has called an all-staff meeting for 4 p.m. today.
ReplyDeleteI'm in the TV news business elsewhere and follow this site regularly. So sorry to hear about all the layoffs but especially the Register's. Worked closely with their staff during the lead-up to the 2008 election and despite already being understaffed back then due to cutbacks, they did a great job. My thoughts are with everyone but particularly my pals in Des Moines.
ReplyDeleteI don't have any details, but the Poughkeepsie Journal is being affected in IT and circulation. I was told a county reporter vacancy will not be filled.
ReplyDeleteHello 11:43 a.m....Westchester (It's The Journal News, not The News Journal) has room for plenty of cuts to be made in the top editorships. There are still a lot of chiefs there despite the paucity of indians, and a lot of duplicity among the higher ranks.
ReplyDeleteThanks, 4:04 p.m.; I've now fixed that.
ReplyDeleteRepeating from the Real Time Comments open thread:
ReplyDeleteGannett shares closed moments ago at $12.84, up 38 cents, or 3%.
Since the start of GCI's nationwide newspaper layoffs last Wednesday, shares are up 6.7% vs. a smaller 2.1% gain in the S&P 500 index, a broad measure of overall stock market activity.
Someone quite legitimate (look it up) tried to start a daily delivered newspaper in Detroit over a year ago when the two papers went to 3 day deliveries. They made a big anncmt, got the bigwigs involved, and then poof, it fizzled. They couldn't get the advertising. Goes back to the same old reason that most of you refuse to accept....it's the economy stupid!
ReplyDeleteNo one in Westchester got notice this morning. They were shown the door. We lost some dead wood and at least one really good person - someone who was both a good manager and a good journalist all at the same time. a rare thing in this company. meanwhile, there are still a lot of do nothing big shots walking around, acting as if everything was normal. maybe some of them will have do some actual work in the news room now.
ReplyDeleteWhat was the total number of Westchester layoffs? Was news the only editorial department affected?
ReplyDelete@6:13: No, news was not the only editorial department affected. Opinion lost an associate editor and a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist. DME news, DME digital/visuals, a photo editor and both Express editors round out today's take. No news on features or sports. Bureaus appear to have made it, too.
ReplyDeleteWestchester got hit with about 18 layoffs in editorial, advertising, production and circulation. Funny thing is that those needing to get the boot didn't and those who did were simply not popular enough to stay. It really seems to be a popularity contest, particularly in the adv. dept.
ReplyDelete@3:21: The Salinas newsroom is currently made up of four city reporters. They also have two sports writers, three photographers and one features writers. that's a total of 10 staffers, not including editors. To me, they're pretty shorthanded considering they're competing with the Monterey paper that has twice the size of a newsroom.
ReplyDeleteA couple of the editoral cuts in Westchester were a long time coming, and at least one was a shame.
ReplyDeleteThere are others left standing who could have gone, too, but at least they're likely to have some work to do now.
It's nice to see that the reporters were untouched. Of course they still have their furloghs and pay freezes to look forward to.
Does anyone know if corporate wants Westchester's pay cut across the board? I sure hope not.
Everyone in the newsroom in Westchester who was laid off today was over 40 and most over 50. Are they inviting a lawsuit?
ReplyDeleteWith the plummeting profit margins in Westchester - even worse than the Gannett average among community papers - I'm afraid the "fun" has just begun. What a shame. Fasten your seatbelts to those unfortunate few who remain among the ashes.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteReno had lay offs, not sure of the count. Question was the publisher's wife one of them?
ReplyDeleteI've now seen to figures on layoffs at Westchester: six and, now, "about 18."
ReplyDeleteCan someone clarify, please?
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ReplyDeleteFollowing is an edited version of a comment posted at 10:03 p.m.:
ReplyDeletethe mess at westchester is deeper than the people fired today. there are bosses making big money with no real jobs. [XXXXX]
there was an editor fired today that the reporters all seem to respect and others who will not be missed. but the mood in there was very bad today and the feeling was that the cuts were political and not good for the future of the company. the people making the decision saved themselves and their friends and cut some who were still trying to make it work.
jim, the cuts in westchester were at least seven in news department but more total in the company and that could be the 18 number
ReplyDelete2 in Salem Oregon
ReplyDeleteI suppose it's too much to hope that Westchester reports its own layoffs in a story tomorrow. That would clear up the question of how many jobs were eliminated.
ReplyDeleteRegarding an ageist class action suit - is it people who are being let go, or is it specific jobs that are being eliminated? If it's jobs, then it becomes murky.
ReplyDeleteBut you've got to wonder why people with years of experience aren't being given the opportunity to drop lower on the food chain and not be laid off. If you're an news editor, weren't you probably once a reporter? Couldn't you do that job again? Someone would still be laid off but the newspaper would be keeping it's most experienced workers.
Jim - Believe me, with the backstabbing that has gone on in Westchester the last few years it's every man and woman for himself. Doubt they will draw attention to this travesty by publishing a story about it - though that would be the ethical thing to do. Under this regime, and more specifically the two remaining senior managers in editorial, ethics takes a backseat, and it's not about the truth, but protecting themselves.
ReplyDeleteRe 11:22 p.m....The sad fact is that most editors have little reporting experience. They get on the editing track early and stay there.
ReplyDeleteMost reporters like being reporters and never want to be editors. They like finding stories, digging out the facts and writing the results.
I saw a story some years back, a survey it was, of members of the AP's Managing Editors Association. The typical managing editor in the U.S. had between two and three years' reporting experience.
Quite frankly, most editors couldn't report their way out of a paper sack.
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ReplyDelete10:22, Westchester upper management thinks a "Mighty Pen Award" is a bigger deal than a Pulitzer
ReplyDeleteToo bad they killed the Mighty Pen when there were too few entries to keep the awards rolling.
ReplyDeleteLet's face it, enterprise is basically dead in Westchester unless it feeds off some bloody breaking news event.
"What can I have today to fill the paper?" is where Westchester Gannett stands today and has stood for quite some time.
9:53 you are up a little early today aren't you? You don't usually write your dribble until nightfall.
ReplyDeleteIt's 9:53 P.M....Same poster?
ReplyDeleteActually, from what I've been told by a close observer, 9:53's question is a worthy one.
ReplyDeleteIs there anything to report from Tallahassee? You mentioned it at the top, but I couldn't find any details.
ReplyDelete9:33 a.m.: That information is in the site-by-site spreadsheet.
ReplyDelete