Landmark follows Gannett's lead: Furloughs

But will you take it quarter after quarter?

 

If you mean they'll cut two percent from my previous year's salary every year, then no, I'd give up on that after a while. On the other hand, I would have taken that two percent with a song in my heart and a spring in my step two months ago.

 

Being a former Landmark employee myself, I am not surprised at all by this. I once was told by one of my former higher-ups, "Can't you cover these games over the phone?"

 

Even this isn't apparently enough. Just got this from the IJAG Pipeline (I gotta come up with another name for it):

The Capital-Gazette Communications -- which includes the Annapolis Capital and a twice-weekly, the Maryland Gazette -- cut 29 positions today; 27 full-time and two part-time. In all, 25 people lost their jobs, including nine from editorial. That's 28 percent of the staff. No one in the sports department, which includes six full-time positions, was cut. We lost some good, good people today.

 

A former co-worker and classmate was one of those shanked in Annapolis. What crap.

 

What else do the suits do all day?

At the 10 a.m. Meeting

CEO: "Well, we need to increase our profit margin. What can we do?"

Random suit: "I know. Let's lay people off/enforce furloughs/eliminate all travel."

CEO: "Sounds good. That's a good long-term solution. What a relief. Let's call it a day and hit the golf course."

 

That would be 7.6 percent in that first year, not 1.9.

But, yes, I would still make that choice.

 

Except it's not in a year. It's through June.

Care to do your math again?

 

OK.

 

But if it's only through June, and there's no other furloughs/forced unpaid leave/whatever instituted the rest of the year, then the 1.9 percent number stands. Of course, we likely should assume that come June, they'll force people to take five days off between July and December. But maybe they won't! OK, they will.

 

It amazes me that a company like Landmark, which IIRC had little debt compared to some of the others, a company which raked in $3 billion by selling The Weather Channel, couldn't have spared a few jobs in Annapolis. Or Roanoke. Or Norfolk. Or wherever else this is gonna happen.

 

Another key difference between the Landmark and Gannett furloughs: Landmark is scheduling the dates for its employees. Anyone want to guess how thin the paper will be on Feb. 17?