| Country | Job Losses | Context and number of journalists |
| Austria | 1000 | ORF:
restructuring plan between 2009 and 2012 concerns mostly non editorial
staff (live performance, technicians
and administration) |
| Belgium (Flandern) | 284 | VRT:
reducing of workforce in 2009 - no compulsory redundancy according to
the management TM, 5 journalists Corelio (De Standaard/Het Nieuwsblad; 16 journalists dismissed + at least 35 "false" freelances put aside and unknown number of contracts not renewed De Morgen, 16 journalists (1/4th of newsroom!) Salomoa/magazine Milo: stopped, because advertisement target was no more met, dismissals of 6 desk journalists and many freelances |
| Finland | 100-200 7-9 35 20-30 9 7-8 Up to 70 15-17 9 5-7 | Sanoma
News (part of the
Sanoma company) costcutting. Seeking 100-200 voluntary redundancies (out of 2
400 employed) in the division which contains Helsingin Sanomat (the biggest
Finnish daily), Ilta-Sanomat (the biggest tabloid) and the business daily
Taloussanomat (which already turned into a webpaper). - the photo agency Lehtikuva, which is also owned by Sanoma, lost two big customers from the beginning of the year and is losing out to new picture retailers. Cutting 7-9 jobs. Sanoma Entertainment - also part of Sanoma company - is reducing 35 jobs (almost half of the regular staff) from TV4, which is the second largest commercial TV channel in Finland. Alma Media: - Iltalehti (the second tabloid) is cutting 20-jobs. Lehdentekijät (publishing several company papers) is cutting up to 9 jobs. Keskisuomalainen: - costcutting, at chain of regional newspapers. intends to save 5 Meur. May lead to jobcuts. KSF Media: - intends to save 850 000 euro at Hufvudstadsbladet, the largest Swedish-language newspaper. May mean some 7-8 job losses. Suomen Lehtiyhtymä:Media group that publishes about 20 local newspapers and some magazines - 70 jobs (out of 630) are in danger. TS-Yhtymä:- family-owned company, which publishes the regional daily Turun Sanomat ios terminating 15-17 jobs.. Etelä-Suomen Sanomat:- regional newspaper, costcutting, 9 dismissals. Länsi-Suomi yhtymä: Länsi-Suomi newspaper is cutting 5-7 jobs Expectations of more to come: advertising and confidence are in rapid decline. Also, a heated discussion about the remit of public service, as the expansion of the national public broadcaster into new areas is giving the private media cold feet. |
| France | 206 300 | Radio France
Internationale: restructuring, concerns 206 journalists France Télévisions: "modernisation" between 2009 and 2011 (about 300 journalists concerned) Le Figaro: voluntary redundancies Le Monde: voluntary redundancies and lay-offs Restructuring at "'Milan" magazine publishers announced a total wage freeze in 2009 |
| Germany | 260 50-60 | WAZ media group in North-Rhine-Westphalia to
centralise four newspapers to one news desk, about 140 journalists are
threatened to be dismissed Gruner+Jahr economia medias (centralisiation into one unit; 50-60 dismissed) Announced by Burda and other media companies Announced by ProSieben Sat.1 (SBS) (strike by unions) (NOTE: In Germany between 2003 and 2007, there has been a loss of 800 journalists -from 15000 to 14200 in newspapers and from 7355 to 6965 in magazines. This process continues.) |
| Italy | | |
| The Nether-lands | 2+ 8 6 (2+4) 14+125 20 in coming years 500 30 8-9 80 20 | Press Agency Novum Nieuws: 2editors are dismissed and
temporary journalists of unknown nr. Of journalist were not renewed
(30.01.2009). TV Limburg: 8 (out of 45) people dismissed. Photo Agency Hollandse Hoogte: 2 employees dismissed, 4 contracts not renewed. PCM, owner of newspapers de Volkskrant, NRC Handelsblad and Trouw, will cut 5 % of full-time jobs (staff: 2500). In February the newspaper Algemeen Dagblad already announced the removal of 14 full-time jobs. The Erdee Media Groep (EMG), the publisher of Reformatorisch Dagblad, cuts twenty jobs (staff: 240) in the next two years. The focus will be on journalistic functions. Telegraaf Media Groep (TMG) announced 500 redundancies including 150 journalists: Under the redundancies are 30 job losses at Basis Media, where free newspaper Sp!Ts and magazine Carp are made, and 30 journalists at HDC Media where last years already 170 journalists (40%) were fired. Also an increase of 350 redundancies was announced, as a result of the sale of Telegraaf Tijdschriften Groep, The edition of the free newspaperDAG stopped. 30 journalists and freelancers got a half year's severance. Press agency GPD announced over one million Euros cut. Its is not clear how many jobs will be lost. Weekly magazine HP / De Tijd, cuts one third cut of its journalists. Currently 25 journalists work for HP / De Tijd. Wegener Uitgeverij has prepared a reorganization plan involving a redundancy of 400 jobs including 80 full-time journalists Reed Elsevier intends to cut more than a thousand jobs worldwide. (19-2-2008) The RTL 4 news section of the daily program '4 in 't Land' stopped. 20 journalists were dismissed. RTL Nieuws will be cross-media integrated with fewer people. |
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| Spain | 513 400 91 27 80-90 40 300 4000 over several years | GRUPO ZETA (editors of "El Periódico" (Barcelona), magazine "Interviú" and others
plan to sack 513 journalists (most part) and other employees. -"El Mundo", "Marca", "Expansión", from the group UNEDISA linked to "Corriera della Sera", negotiate around 400 redundancies. -Free newspapers: "Qué", grupo VOCENTO, 91 jobs lost in December (done). "Metro", same as other same title in Europe, 27 jobs lost (dec.). "20 minutos", in different stages, between 80 and 90 jobs. -PRISA ("El País") around 40 already individually negotiated sack jobs. A lot of rumours about next new round of redundancies. -"LOCALIA TV" (also from PRISA group). They closed in December with the result of 300 jobs lost, journalists and other. ***-RTVE. The plan (two years) called ERE ended on December. No official final figures until now. It was believed that over 4000 people, radio and national television together, were included. They made, negotiated by the unions, a plan for more than 1000 new contracts. To see the final figures...if they finally publish it. |
| Switzerland | 50 20 20 30 6.4 22 8 22.5 | - Edipresse announced in September 2008 that they would
start massive savings with about 50 redundancies of Edipresse in Switzerland.
Negotiations about a social plan are taking place for editorial jobs and
print. - NZZ (Neue Zürcher Zeitung) plans to reduce 20 jobs in news room. There is no social plan but individual negotiations. - French medai company Philippe Hersant announced to dismiss 20 workers both journalists and technical personal at two newspapers of L'Express und L'Impartial. After a strike the original number was reduced. Short time work was refused. A social plan is being negotiated. - Company AZ-Medien (Aargauer Zeitung) announced to cut ca. 30 jobs. Social plans were refused to negotiate. - Company Gassmann announced to cut 6,4 jobs. No social plan. - The media company Ringier announced to cut 22 jobs, of those 16 through dismissals. A social plan is being negotiated. - Weltwoche announced to cut 8 jobs (6 journalists; 2 technical) No social plan. - Tamedia considers future of Berne newspaper "Der Bund": either merger with other Bern newspaper or cooperation with „Tgaes -anzeiger. Both scenarios involve several jobs. BAZ (Basler Zeitung) will cut 22,5 jobs. A social plan was negotiated. |
| UK | 429 2380 80 60 40 | ITV : restructurings and outsourcing Reed Elsevier: restructuring covering mostly technical and administrative staff Financial Times: 20 journalists redundant (and 60 other technical staff) Johnston Press: 12% job cuts in 2009 The Independent Herald/Times in Glasgow Daily Mirror In General: massive redundancies in local papers See more on http://www.nuj.org.uk/innerPagenuj.html?docid=1035 |
| Other (Europe) | | |
| United States Canada | 5000
Loss in past 12 months | Gannet
group: one-week
unpaid rest for most U.S.
employees USA Today (also Gannet group): unpaid rest, one-year wage freeze at USA Today and 10% jobs cuts Globe and Mail (Canada): 10% jobs cuts Los Angeles Times (close to bankruptcy) |
| Other
(World) | 400 140 | AP: redundancies worldwide, including "about
75% of journalists" Thomson - Reuters: redundancies following the merger in 2008 |
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