tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post5779530149137112212..comments2023-11-05T06:26:51.316-05:00Comments on Gannett Blog: Louisville | Document in age-discrimination case claims multi-year plan to 'get rid of the old guard'Jim Hopkinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-58092446840776318432013-10-18T09:44:03.677-04:002013-10-18T09:44:03.677-04:00I don't think it has to do with liking a perso...I don't think it has to do with liking a person as much as it does wanting that person to leave so Gannett doesn't have to give them a severance package. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-19541184272184440862013-10-17T07:57:14.597-04:002013-10-17T07:57:14.597-04:00You can't trust performance evaluations writte...You can't trust performance evaluations written by Gannett management. In Cincinnati, the process is so flawed and subjective that any jury or judge would hand a vault of money to a plaintiff. <br />Many hard-working people there have received completely bogus and unfair reviews by management who simply didn't like the person they were reviewing. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-34637150924799380732013-10-16T21:25:46.080-04:002013-10-16T21:25:46.080-04:00I'm not a reporter but the rule is "never...I'm not a reporter but the rule is "never put anything in writing you don't want held up in a court of law.” Kane is a marketing guy, apparently he didn't get the memo about sending out emails about someone you are going to fire. Yes, I too, have lost respect for him.<br /><br />Great reporting Jim. Keep us abreast to the situation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-40101344205069878862013-10-16T12:49:53.548-04:002013-10-16T12:49:53.548-04:00Even after Gannett chopped off nearly 20,000 jobs ...Even after Gannett chopped off nearly 20,000 jobs since 2006, there's still a very thick, fatty layer of upper-middle management within the company. These are the hundreds of jobs like Huot's, paying $200,000 to $300,000 a year.<br /><br />Remember, these are middle managers who've been the men and women choosing who gets laid off. The last ones they'll target will be each other; Jim Hopkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-67007382701639666802013-10-16T12:38:14.250-04:002013-10-16T12:38:14.250-04:008:30 touches on a few details I set aside because ...8:30 touches on a few details I set aside because my post was already running long.<br /><br />In addition to being C-J circulation director, Huot also was East Group circulation director for more than 20 other dailies -- until Kane told him to focus solely on Louisville in August 2011, a month before Huot was canned.<br /><br />Simmons, replacing Huot, wasn't given those East Group duties, Jim Hopkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-29795581616093681122013-10-16T11:43:47.151-04:002013-10-16T11:43:47.151-04:00Get a life - and stop being so arrogant. Circ peop...Get a life - and stop being so arrogant. Circ people deserve what they get paid and I would bet that the Editor there made a lot more than he did.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-73844748256342905642013-10-16T09:51:11.341-04:002013-10-16T09:51:11.341-04:00Am I the only journalist here who read that Huot e...Am I the only journalist here who read that Huot earned nearly $300,000 a year and nearly choked? Gannett can't keep good reporters or editors because it pays them miserable wages, yet it pays a circulation director nearly $300,000 a year? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-32057222658920958572013-10-16T09:29:29.140-04:002013-10-16T09:29:29.140-04:00A friend of mine talked about melting down her rin...A friend of mine talked about melting down her rings and getting the money for them. Even with all the ugliness of what has happened in this company, when those rings were given, they were well deserved and they meant something at the time. I wouldn't let the new guard take that away from you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-80870393060592122872013-10-16T09:26:37.943-04:002013-10-16T09:26:37.943-04:00Kane LOVES email. In fact, I'd argue he prefe...Kane LOVES email. In fact, I'd argue he prefers it over face-to-face communication so he doesn't have to deal with people directly. I'd imagine a read through his emails would uncover more than this nugget!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-9545743818286653142013-10-16T08:42:21.989-04:002013-10-16T08:42:21.989-04:00As an applicant, I was asked - over the phone, in ...As an applicant, I was asked - over the phone, in advance of the interview - how old I was. This was while the person was looking over my resume and after it came up that I hadn't attended college immediately after high school.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-4562330272764650162013-10-16T08:30:23.469-04:002013-10-16T08:30:23.469-04:00A couple of interesting timeline things from the f...A couple of interesting timeline things from the full filing: <br />- The initial termination discussions were May/June 2011<br />- In August 2011, two things happened - they decided not to terminate until the GPS reorganization and Kane sent the email removing the East Group responsibilities and telling Huot to focus on Louisville. <br />- The arguments in the filing all cite Huot's career, Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-18462284375802409212013-10-16T08:29:54.145-04:002013-10-16T08:29:54.145-04:00At my site a certain manager has repeatedly referr...At my site a certain manager has repeatedly referred to "good young" hires and makes "jokes" about people being too old to understand tech issues.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-58174723322154942162013-10-15T22:28:26.164-04:002013-10-15T22:28:26.164-04:0010:15 apparently missed this paragraph in my post:...10:15 apparently missed this paragraph in my post:<br /><br />Corporate might have dodged Huot's lawsuit if it had just paid him more generous severance benefits. Instead, it gave him one week's pay for every year of service, a total of just 25 weeks -- the same benefit offered to the company's hoi polloi.Jim Hopkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-29165382233239344432013-10-15T22:23:46.862-04:002013-10-15T22:23:46.862-04:00Read the complaint. They only offered 1 week per ...Read the complaint. They only offered 1 week per year of service.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-62537771584870753952013-10-15T22:21:10.542-04:002013-10-15T22:21:10.542-04:00i've contacted Huot's attorney's offic...i've contacted Huot's attorney's office to see if i can help of file my own suit. i'm sure there's many more of us in the same situation. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-21841387569979350882013-10-15T22:15:18.210-04:002013-10-15T22:15:18.210-04:00Is there a statute of limitations deadline on fili...Is there a statute of limitations deadline on filing an age discrimination claim? Huot's two-weeks-a-year award is much more than many experienced loyalists received. That alone might move some of us to consider our own claims. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-76949059146193077112013-10-15T21:48:45.370-04:002013-10-15T21:48:45.370-04:00will follow this case ! i was a VP for the compan...will follow this case ! i was a VP for the company for 37 years (11 years under gannett ownership) i was 62 1/2 the day i was told my position was eliminated because of the GPS structure. will be following this case, and may file my own. my number 2 got the corporate job, and my #3 became the GM at the production center. both younger than me. i also have rings, (thinking about selling them Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-3238573772291353912013-10-15T21:46:09.716-04:002013-10-15T21:46:09.716-04:00Reporters are told to never write anything -- in a...Reporters are told to never write anything -- in a paper notebook, an e-mail, a story, a Facebook posting -- they wouldn't want to see in print on the front page. That's how you avoid libel suits.<br /><br />Kane has a B.A. in communications/journalism from Virginia Tech in 1981. I don't see anything in his careeer history showing whether he ever worked in a newsroom.<br /><br />Jim Hopkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-91106967516467097622013-10-15T21:25:06.441-04:002013-10-15T21:25:06.441-04:00The hubris of Kane and Austin is stunning. How is...The hubris of Kane and Austin is stunning. How is it that senior executives with that much experience are writing emails detailing the ins and outs of termination discussions? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-70016577237463854652013-10-15T20:45:45.683-04:002013-10-15T20:45:45.683-04:00Rand-I Austin is a snake and is not to be trusted....Rand-I Austin is a snake and is not to be trusted.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-13926265591499448822013-10-15T20:43:22.384-04:002013-10-15T20:43:22.384-04:00Chardonnay Kane. Heh.Chardonnay Kane. Heh.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-71079645071550184592013-10-15T20:24:47.136-04:002013-10-15T20:24:47.136-04:00"these issues need to be tried and heard by a...<i>"these issues need to be tried and heard by a jury of his peers"</i><br /><br />A jury is comprised of the <i>defendant's</i> peers, not the plaintiff's.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-29537997348506518762013-10-15T19:18:04.104-04:002013-10-15T19:18:04.104-04:00Then Simmons is brought in to absolutely decimate ...Then Simmons is brought in to absolutely decimate and destroy what's left, letting more damn good circulators hit the road with no real reason why. I believe those let go to cover the Huot removal should band together and file suit also. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-51801068492216919792013-10-15T19:15:01.591-04:002013-10-15T19:15:01.591-04:00Straight up Gannett embarked on age discrimination...Straight up Gannett embarked on age discrimination. However, Gannett legal counsel aren't stupid. A smattering of younger people, albeit a far lower percentage compared against "the old guard," were jettisoned as well as indeed cover. Starting about eight years ago, Gannett turned into an ageist company. You can see plenty of evidence for that by some of the posts on this blog that Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8099437767970534324.post-74742274063678219862013-10-15T18:18:03.690-04:002013-10-15T18:18:03.690-04:00Here's Gannett's worst nightmare: The comp...Here's Gannett's worst nightmare: The company offers a big financial settlement, and Huot and his attorney turn it down -- insisting that they want to take it to the court on principal.<br /><br />Then, a sympathetic jury, distrustful of a big Eastern media conglomerate, hands Huot a victory -- and a financial award far in excess of what he asked for.<br /><br />In other words: the plot Jim Hopkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16712746705871119746noreply@blogger.com