Fairfax Media to axe 125 editorial jobs as part of $30m restructure
Fairfax Media is set to axe 125 editorial jobs – more than a quarter of the newsroom – as part of its restructure announced a month ago.
An email to staff from Sean Aylmer, Fairfax Media’s Australian Metro Media editorial director, announced the cuts, revealing 125 full-time equivalent roles will be axed with a voluntary redundancy program looking to achieve the reduction in staff. The company will also readically scale back its use of freelancers.
Staff have been given a deadline of next Tuesday to volunteer for redundancy.
“We will shortly open a voluntary redundancy program to achieve a reduction in staff of up to 125 FTEs, which includes the approximate 10 FTEs that have left the newsroom since this process began last month. While we will be looking across all parts of the newsroom, at the end of the redundancy program we expect there will be significantly fewer editorial management, video, presentation and section writer roles,” the email said.
Fairfax Media is also set create a news director position while it replaces the AM and PM editors with news editors. The digital editor “is being refocused” while new roles for national head of video, a national creative director and a new head of travel and food are being created.
“We propose to call for expressions of interest in the altered roles from tomorrow. Subject to applicants being available, we would like interested staff to nominate themselves by Tuesday next week (9 May 2017). If needed, an interview process will take place next week with all appointments made by close of business, 12 May 2017,” the email from Aylmer said.
Fairfax Media is set to cap its rate for all contributors to The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and The Australian Financial Review, while all third-party deals will be reviewed.
“Initially we will undertake an audit of all contributors, and subject to contractual arrangements, shift all contributors to a pay rate based on per article, rather than per word. There has been general consensus on this change,” Aylmer’s note said.
“All third-party deals are being reviewed, and we expect to make significant savings from our third-party arrangements including syndication deals.”
The email also revealed Fairfax will be “significantly” reducing the use of the casual workforce across The SMH, The Age and The AFR which will provide an estimated saving of around $3m a year.
The details of the job cuts follow on from Fairfax Media announcing a restructure early last month, with the publisher proposing major structural editorial changes which will help it achieve $30m in annual savings.
The union representing journalists the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance has said it is appalled at the decision.
On #WorldPressFreedomDay, the contribution of the management of @FairfaxMedia is to sack 125 editorial staff. #pressfreedom #fairgofairfax
— MEAA (@withMEAA) May 3, 2017
MEAA CEO Paul Murphy said: “None of the other parts of the Fairfax business are worth anything without the journalism and yet it is the journalism that Fairfax always cuts.
“This will only undermine and damage its mastheads further, alienating its audience and leaving the editorial staff remain have to work harder and harder to fill the gaps. This is a dumb decision.”
News Corp is set to also make a number of redundancies in coming weeks, having revealed plans early last month to slash jobs across its editorial operations in a move which will see most photographers and many subs made redundant.
The email from Sean Aylmer in full:
Broadly, we will achieve the nominated $30 million in savings in four ways:
Contributors – We will move to a capped rate model for all contributors to the SMH, Age and AFR. Initially we will undertake an audit of all contributors, and subject to contractual arrangements, shift all contributors to a pay rate based on per article, rather than per word. There has been general consensus on this change.
Third-party deals – All third-party deals are being reviewed, and we expect to make significant savings from our third party arrangements including syndication deals.
Casuals – We will significantly reduce the use of the casual workforce in the three main mastheads and estimate savings of around $3 million per year.
Reduction in full-time and part-time staff – We will shortly open a voluntary redundancy program to achieve a reduction in staff of up to 125 FTEs, which includes the approximate 10 FTEs that have left the newsroom since this process began last month. While we will be looking across all parts of the newsroom, at the end of the redundancy program we expect there will be significantly fewer editorial management, video, presentation and section writer roles. Further, we note that the voluntary redundancy process will provide a procedure for employees in these areas to potentially be redeployed if available and suitable positions open up elsewhere. One outcome of the consultation process is that we have changed the top-level management structure.
The new or substantially altered roles are: Creation of a news director Reduction in state based topics The AM and PM editors are being replaced by news editors The digital editor role is being refocused Creation of a national creative director and a national head of video Creation of a new head of travel and food We propose to call for expressions of interest in the altered roles from tomorrow. Subject to applicants being available, we would like interested staff to nominate themselves by Tuesday next week (9 May 2017). If needed, an interview process will take place next week with all appointments made by close of business, 12 May 2017.
Is this a fake news peice?
Queue comments offering uninformed advice…
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The MEAA has a point: based on Sean Aylmer’s note to staff, the $30m in cuts is coming entirely from editorial. Surely there are other parts of the business that could also be “streamlined” to help address Fairfax’s hemorrhaging revenues? Instead, the consultants and management masterminds behind this “plan” opt to cut more than a quarter of an already-severely depleted newsroom. And still, Fairfax continues to parrot the absurdity that they are all about quality, independent journalism. Now, that is the definition of Fake News….
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Coming on the back of its attempt to pose to the right (“pro investor, pro consumer”) management and board decide to kill the very purpose that consumers and investors have valued. Let’s see how the grand Domain float goes!
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Fairfax – and indeed all private-enterprise media – would do well to start a campaign urging the Federal Government to cut funding to the ABC.
Fairfax in particular surely can’t exist along the ABC – they’re essentially selling the same message, but one of them gets free money from taxpayers to do so.
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It is like voluntary redundancies in the public sector, those who have talents that others want will take the redundancy payment and the remainder will be those that are less employable. It is reverse Darwinism with survival of the weakest (in this case least read).
If anything it shows a weakwilled management team who cannot make a hard decision and so instead opt for medi(a)ocraty.
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As a subscriber, not because I have to but because I believe in what Fairfax represents, I’m increasingly concerned that the very thing I support is being cut at the knees. This announcement is not helping, even though I understand the harsh realities that exist.
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Investors in Fairfax need to start holding the board and Hywood’s leadership team cronies and their remuneration to account. Fairfax’s performance shouldn’t just be about total shareholder return, because lets face it, you chop out $30M of costs and next years NPAT gets a tidy boost.
How about the Fairfax Board introduce Culture as a performance indicator or reader feedback score mechanisms for a portion of their bonuses? Rather than kick 125 FTEs out the door, why not shaft a couple of executive directors, a couple of board members and ditch their generous long term share incentives in favour of keeping 15 or 20 journalists. Its funny how you never read about board members and executive leadership getting axed, the blood bath is always in the news rooms… a shame really.
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For clarity, I should point out that “ROBBO” is not me, Alan Robertson but some other “Robbo”. If I’m going to comment, I always do so with full identity, not hiding behind nick-names.
On this Fairfax matter, I have no comment.
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For anyone with a keen sense of humour, here’s an excerpt from Fairfax’s statement about its corporate responsibility:
Fairfax Media’s commercial success and financial performance is vitally important to the company’s ability to provide meaningful benefits to the communities we serve throughout Australia and New Zealand.
Across our business operations, we maintain a strong focus on environment and corporate social responsibility (CSR).
We play an active role in supporting local communities; and we utilise our position as a community leader to support and amplify initiatives and causes which are aligned with our business objectives. We do this through sponsorships, partnerships, fundraising campaigns as well as providing exposure across our extensive network of media assets.
By driving conversations that matter and creating connections that count in the communities we serve, Fairfax uses its trusted voice to deliver powerful public good.
Our journalism makes communities stronger – more civil, more open and transparent. We hold governments and the powerful up to public scrutiny and to account.
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@robbo – do any of those bleating for cuts to the ABC seriously think that fairfax or any other struggling media business , would be saved – or even in better shape – if the ABC didn’t exist ? The media’s problems run far deeper and are far more structural than competition from ABC
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Fact: the important folks at Domain don’t like this one bit.
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Fact: if the “important folks” at Domain give a shit it’s because their business relies on the perception of value in the news product, including very clearly, print. No one who knows him thinks the Cat cares a jot fir anything beyond his lifestyle.
By the way, what do the unimportant people think?
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