Posted on 08/14/2008 9:18:12 PM PDT by mdittmar
Gannett, the largest newspaper chain in the country, is preparing to trim 3% of its workforce -- or 1,000 employees -- through cuts and attrition.
Gannett Vice President of Corporate Communications Tara Connell confirmed the reductions to E&P Thursday afternoon, adding that decisions on staff cuts would be made at each property based on financial targets and performances. The McLean, Va.-based company publishes more than 80 dailies, including USA Today, and 900 non-dailies.
Gannett corporate is expected to review and approve the decisions.
The Gannett Blog, run by former Gannett editor and reporter Jim Hopkins from Ibiza, Spain reported Wednesday that he obtained a memo from a staffer at The Daily Times in Salisbury, Md., about the move.
Daily Times Publisher Rick Jensen wrote in a memo: "Across Gannett's Community Publishing division, about 1,000 positions will be eliminated -- about 3% of the workforce. Of the 1,000 positions, about 600 employees will be laid off."
A call placed to Jensen was not immediately returned.
Jensen wrote in the memo: "Gannett has set payroll expense reduction targets for us and all other newspapers in the U.S. Community Publishing division, necessitating the reduction in positions. The targets were set based on our financial performance and previous reductions."
Gannett reportedly plans to offer severance: one week of pay for each year of service (capped at 52 weeks) and medical benefits during the period.
Gannett, long considered the bellwether of the newspaper industry, has been hammered by sinking advertising revenue and a dropping stock price despite its low debt. In August, the company took a $2.8 billion goodwill impairment charge due to the "softening business conditions and a decline in the company's stock price," the company said.
Extra Extra read all about it in today’s paper !! 10 cents..
OOps, that’s our stock price...
Indeed, the working people, the ones who actually make the paper work are being dumped, but the (Fifth) Columnists who drive mainstream America from reading the thing are retained.
I do declare, no other business in the world operates like a Media one does, keep the losers, punish the winners and then watch the enterprise lose value for stockholders......
One week a year?! That’s pretty awful.
Sad that the press just has not figured it out. The paper here just keeps getting thinner every year. Pretty soon their gonna have to load it with rocks just to get it to stay on the driveway without blowing away.
Hehehe, that is good news for Thursday.
Dinosaur Media Death Watch
That’s gonna leave a mark!
3% had to go.
They decided to get rid of their unbiased reporters.
One week/year severance is typical.
ping
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2061835/posts
Gannett said laying off 600 newspaper employees (Dinosaur Media DeathWatch™)
Gannett is truly an evil empire and deserves to fade into the sands of time. Neuharth was/is a lib toady. Paper getting thinner and thinner with little local content. Tin horn “publishers” lording themselves over communities, while they live detestable personal lives. Good riddance.
McNews is crap.
Let’s see if the liberal columnists object.
Hello?
Hello?
Anyone?
I didn’t think so...
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