From Karl Fischer, Sara Steffens:
We know you’ve had other things on your mind, but end of day MONDAY is
the deadline for our anonymous salary survey. We’ve had 70 responses so
far and we’re shooting for at least 100 so we can get a decent sense of the
range of pay. So head on over to the website and click SALARY SURVEY.
ROTTEN WEEK (By Karl):
I know it’s been a rotten week, with the fear of layoffs hanging over us and
buyout offers now due March 4. And it doesn’t help that our bosses don’t feel
inclined to share much about the size or depth of the staff reduction they
need to make — more on that below.
But take heart. No matter what happens, most of us know we will be OK,
eventually. You just have to plan a little, and develop some idea of what it
might be like to not work here, even if you think it won’t happen to you. We
need to look out for each other now more than ever; if you know someone
who is struggling to cope with the stress please take a little time to talk.
It’s natural to feel frightened but the more we communicate, the better.
We also want you to know there is help, and you are not alone. You have us,
for starters.
We on the guild organizing committee are committed to helping every
guild-eligible worker at BANG-EB who leaves in this reduction land on their
feet. Even though we’re not formally recognized at this point, the guild can
help in small ways — and sometimes a little goes a long way. At other Bay
Area newspapers, the guild has helped laid off workers search for new jobs,
file for unemployment insurance and other benefits, and even helped out a
little materially for those who are destitute or with extreme needs.
POST-BUYOUT/LAYOFF RESOURCES:
We haven’t nailed down the date, but later this week we plan to hold a talk
at Civic Arts Education (the building just around the corner from the Contra
Costa Times) to learn about resources out there to help people land on their
feet after buyouts or layoffs. Watch your e-mail for more details, probably
Monday afternoon.
At minimum we will have some guild folks who have helped journalists at
other newspapers in the region work through recent workforce reductions.
We also hope to have some journalists and former journalists who have
taken buyouts or been laid off to talk about their experiences and, in the
case of buyouts, talk about how they made their decisions and whether
they have any regrets.
JOB LISTINGS:
By the way, the San Jose Newspaper Guild has a pretty good job board
with links to journalism job web sites — and we soon hope to offer similar
listings at www.onebigbang.org.
Life does continue after the buyout, and after the layoffs that will likely
follow. So will our organizing efforts. I don’t know what will happen, but
it’s been an honor to work with all of you. I have learned so much about my
coworkers during the past three months. You have surprised me often with
your courage and gratified me with your interest — thank you so much for
caring enough to consider the guild.
I really think it can help us in the long run, and I’ve heard from a lot of
you who are starting to feel the same way. As of tonight, 103 of about 170
guild-eligible workers in the former CCN papers receive this email update.
If everyone on this list committed today to sign a union card and vote in
the guild, coupled with the support we expect from our colleagues at the
former ANG papers, we would handily win the election. That’s not to say this
would happen — there are a handful of non-supporters and a vast tract of
undecideds on my list — but it’s a fair indication of real progress. We’re
not ready to drop cards yet, because there are people out there who still
have questions. If you are one of those people, do not hesitate to chime in.
Don’t stay silent on something this important. Let’s talk.
LOOKING FOR MORE INFORMATION (By Sara):
At first, we were relieved — glad to see MediaNews offering buyouts, instead
of turning immediately layoffs.
Then we turned scared and sad — about who we stand to lose, and what the
losses will mean to our newspaper in the long run.
It took awhile to start getting mad.
The Bay Area News Group isn’t alone in cutting staff. These are lousy times
in the newspaper business, and lots of other companies are enduring waves of
buyouts and layoffs.
Still, ours is a particularly tough predicament — we’ll spend the next week
agonizing over whether to apply for a buyout, or risk getting laid off, and
ending up with a severance package worth half as much. Trouble is, we have
no idea how deep the cuts might go, and thus no way to assess our personal
risk.
Judging by the letter that circulated through the newsroom Friday, I’m not
the only one who’s frustrated. The brief note simply asked John Armstrong
for more details. In just a few hours, 32 folks in our newsrooms had signed
their names. It wasn’t a guild thing — but it was great to see coworkers
coming together and standing up for each other.
Betsy Mason and I went upstairs to deliver the note to John, who took some
time to talk about it. John believes that any range of possible job cuts will be
too broad to be useful, since numbers depend on the salaries of those who
apply for a buyout. Read: some of us make three or four times as much as
others.
We respectfully disagree that this information would not be of use — even a
broad range, or a dollar figure, would mean more than nothing at all.
John did say he’ll consider the matter further over the weekend, and see if
operating directors can share any more quantitative or qualitative information.
We’ll keep you updated if we hear anything.
WHAT WE KNOW: Not much.
There’s no good estimate for the depth of the job reduction. Repeated
questioning at various shops has gotten us into the ballpark, a little bit.
Based on revenue projections, the company has a dollar figure to carve, not
a body count. They don’t know exactly how many people will have to go — it
depends on who takes buyouts. At one meeting, Kevin said in response to a
question that he believed the cut would be much less than one-third of the
newsroom. John Armstrong later declined to confirm that number.
Another, sketchier report at another site suggested the volume would be
significantly less, perhaps half that. But we have no real way of knowing.
We know that our target is separate from the Merc’s target.
We know that reviews and raises will continue as scheduled, and that there
are no current plans to merge newsrooms, consolidate mastheads or to
eliminate publications. All that could change, of course. It sounds like there
is no reorganization plan yet to deal with the aftermath of buyouts or layoffs.
To clarify a few questions that have come up about buyouts:
* If you apply for a buyout, expect to get one. They will try to take every
application they can, so that people who want to stay aren’t laid off. In
other words: only file the form if you’re sure it’s what you want.
* Partial years of service will be pro-rated when calculating weeks of pay.
* They will not reject buyout offers, then turn around and lay off the
applicants.
If you have other questions, please send them, and we’ll try to find out
anything we can.
FAN MAIL (By Sara):
Our communities are taking notice of what’s going on. Every time I’m out
and about, someone asks how we’re doing, and passes along their sincere
condolences to the staff. This week, I got this note in my inbox from a
source I’d not heard from in awhile:
Hello, Sara. Saw the news about the buy-outs. Just wanted to send
along words of encouragement. You made the point very well about
the unfairness of the offer. This may be a rock-and-a-hard-place era
for the news business. But there’s absolutely no sound business or
moral reason to withhold from good and loyal employees sufficient
information about the full picture so they can make a decision that’s
wise for themselves, and, ultimately, the papers.
As a long-time reader of the various editions (online), I want to
demonstrate our continuing faith in the Contra Costa Times by
subscribing to the paper edition.
Wishing you, your colleagues, and our community paper(s) all the best.
YOU’RE INVITED (By Sara):
By Friday, March 7, we ought to know a lot more about who’s staying and
going. Mark your calendars and plan to join us that night in Oakland for
“One Big Bash,” a mixer for the entire newsroom staff of BANG-East Bay.
E-mail me for details at modernsara@gmail.com
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