New Journal Employees Forced to Take Second Week of Unpaid Furloughs

The New Journal's office on West Basin Road in New Castle.

Gannett Co., publisher of the News Journal, will freeze wages for one year and furlough nearly 41,500 employees as a way to avoid more layoffs, according to a memo obtained by the Bear-Glasgow Observer.

“We are about to begin the second quarter without any real relief in sight from this unprecedented economic downturn and its challenge to our company,” Chairman and CEO Craig Dubow said in the memo. “Despite all of your truly remarkable efforts to reverse the trend, our revenue numbers continue their downward slide and we have been faced with more difficult decisions.”

Hourly employees must take five days over the course of the three-month quarter, scheduled with the approval of their supervisor. Salaried employees must take one full week at one time.

In addition, employees who earn over $90,000 will take a second week of unpaid leave. The extra week applies to a group that includes Dubow, other top executives and newspaper Gannett spokeswoman Tara Connell said.

Employees posting anonymously on Jim Hopkin’s Gannett Blog were outraged about the new furloughs, made just five days after Gannett disclosed that the board of directors paid $2 million in all-cash 2008 bonuses to Dubow and four other top executives.

“I work at one of the smaller Gannett properties in middle management,” an employee told Hopkins. “Finally were given our year-end bonus last week — six weeks late, and when I got it, it was 33% less than last year. I was told due to no money. So I get $1,000 and work my ass off to cover for furloughs and not have any overtime in my department, and Dubow gets $875,000. That sucks.”

Gannett Chairman and CEO Craig Dubow received an $875,000 bonus in 2008, on top of his nearly $1.2 million salary.

The bonuses were:

Craig Dubow, Chairman, President and CEO: $875,000 ($1,166,667 salary)

Gracia Martore, Executive Vice President and CFO: $300,000 ($700,000 salary)

Robert Dickey, President/USCP: $360,000 ($588,000 salary)

David Lougee, President/Broadcast: $240,000 ($550,000 salary)

Christopher Saridakis, Senior Vice President and CDO: $260,000 ($500,000 salary)

The McLean, Va.-based company cut about 4,000 jobs, or about 10 percent of its work force, last year to combat an economic slump that has seen more than $1.1 billion in annual advertising revenue evaporate since 2006.

Back in December, the News Journal laid-off 31 employees, including sports columnist Kevin Noonan and writers and Chris Yasiejko, in a companywide effort by Gannett to reduce payroll costs by 10 percent. A total of 44 jobs were eliminated, thirteen of which were open at the time of the cuts. Three additional employees volunteered to leave.

Earlier in the year, Gannett required all of its employees to take a week of unpaid furloughs, which saved the company about $20 million. The company declined to estimate how much Gannett will save from the second-quarter furloughs.

Gannett publishes 85 daily newspapers across the country, including USA Today, as well as 900 non-daily publications.