The (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) Daily Chief-Union hiring a sports/news writer

I usually do take a nap or two per week. Like I said, that evening time varies. It can be later than 9 when you get back from basketball or volleyball. But if you're covering softball or baseball or soccer, you're usually home by around 7. Of course, that takes away some of your afternoon time, but then again, you get to be a sports writer who actually gets an evening off every once in a while.

 

Each time the SJ hounds try to take a bite, Lonnie is there to swat them back.

 

Does the publisher know that the reporter agreeing to break the laws on overtime and salaried positions doesn't make it legal?

 

What is illegal about being paid a salary rather than hourly?

 

I don't know the laws in Ohio, but generally speaking, if someone doesn't have management responsibilities, you can't just put them on salary to avoid the potential to have to pay overtime.

 

Publishers don't mind salaried workers if they're working more than 40 hours a week, but if I'm sure a publisher would have a problem if a reporter worked 35 hours per week for a few weeks to make up for that.

 

I pretty routinely work 35 hours a week in the summer. It probably doesn't make up for the extra hours I work throughout the year, but our publisher is pretty flexible about things in that regard. And no one ever forces me to work extra. I choose to put in extra hours to do a good job. That's another aspect of the job that can be good and bad at times. There are times when there isn't a lot of direct supervision.

I know people in the field have a pretty negative view about management in newspapers, especially about those who own and operate the business, and I understand the skepticism, but it really is a pretty good place to work. It's not perfect, but I've liked it enough that I've stuck with it for eight years. I do know that for a lot of different reasons, this position would not work well for many people.

 

The employee choosing to work unpaid does not exempt the employer from being required to pay for that work.

 

Comp time is illegal as well.

 

I'm sure that is so for hourly employees, but I am on salary and I'm certain my being on salary is completely legal. I'm just pointing out that I'm not taken advantage of as a result.

Here is a link to the actual job posting: http://www.journalismjobs.com/Job_Listing.cfm?JobID=1391603

Anyone have any actual questions about the job?

 

Well, if I were interested, I'd want to know how much it actually pays.

 

I know nothing of this paper, but I once worked for a paper that was similar -- PM editions Monday through Friday with a Saturday AM edition. I found it brutal. Friday turns into one long day that never seems to end because you're on deadline twice.

We had a two-person sports staff and covered about eight or 10 high schools, with a few stringers. This was in the mid 1990s, so the news hole was bigger than it is now. If you've only got a couple of pages to do every day, or if there's a copy desk that handles the pagination, I suppose it wouldn't be terrible. But we had four, sometimes five pages. I ended up writing my game stories at night because I had layout duties first thing in the morning.

It does sound like the person managing this is doing a better job of scheduling things than my boss did. But it is very easy to wear yourself out when you're working both ends of the day, the way this job requires. I only stayed in that job 11 months before moving on.