Newspapers Cut Jobs In Raleigh, Albany, Tacoma, Olympia

 

RALEIGH, NC (March 16, 2009) – More job cuts were announced at newspapers around the country today, including at least 65 jobs at the Times Union in upstate New York and nearly 30 jobs at the News & Observer in North Carolina. Out west in Washington state, 45 jobs were cut at two McClatchy newspapers.

The Hearst-owned Times Union will cut 65 to 70 jobs and they have served notice to workers that they intend to cancel their union contract with employees on April 9. The contract expired in August and negotiations have continued, but now the contract will just be killed, the union said.

In Raleigh, News & Observer workers learned that the equivalent of 27 full-time jobs will be cut, 78 positions will be axed from their community papers (The Cary News and The Herald in Smithfield), and N&O workers who remain will have to take a week off without pay between May 1 and October 31. Remaining workers will also experience pay cuts, from 2.5 percent for lower-paid employees to 10 percent for higher paid staff.

In Washington state, both the Tacoma and Olympia newspapers announced layoffs today. The News Tribune in Tacoma cut the staff by 30, and the Olympian cut 15. Both papers are owned by McClatchy. Those who remain at the papers get pay cuts ranging from 5 to 10 percent.

McClatchy, owner of the N&O, News Tribune, and Olympian, is saddled with $2 billion in debt from the 2006 $4 billion purchase of Knight Ridder accompanied by a severe reduction in revenue due to decreased advertising, increased costs, and reduced readership. In response they've laid off workers at The Miami Herald (175 jobs cut last week alone) and the Sacramento Bee.

Hearst, which is slashing staff across the company at several of its newspapers, today pulled the plug on another of its daily publications, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, ceasing publication of the 146-year-old newspaper with tomorrow's final edition and turning the operation into a Web site-only effort with a handful of employees. Hearst has also said that if they don't get to eliminate a sufficient number of employees at the San Francisco Chronicle, they may sell or close that newspaper too.

Union members in Albany were not at all pleased about reports that the newspaper's managers were planning two expensive parties at two high-dollar area restaurants to recognize advertising staff while at the same time planning to lay off employees. The events were to include limo free limo rides and an open bar. The advertising workers being recognized are guild members, the union president said, but they would rather the parties be given in a "less expensive" fashion, The Albany Business Review reported.

 

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