A restructure at a Scottish regional newspaper publisher is seeing editor roles at five weekly titles scrapped in favour of content editor positions.
However it is understood that new editorial roles are also being created as a result of the changes being carried out by Clyde Weekly Press, a division of Clyde and Forth Press.
Titles affected include the Helensburgh Advertiser, Dumbarton Reporter, Clydebank Post, Barrhead News and Renfrewshire Gazette series.
Union representatives say the editor roles on each of the five titles are being replaced by content editor positions to which the existing editors have been invited to apply.
The company’s managing editor Craig Jackson, who is overseeing the changes, was unavailable for comment.
However Paul Holleran, Scottish organiser for the National Union of Journalists in Scotland said: “Editor roles are being scrapped and content editor positions will be created.”
Paul added that no job losses were involved in the restructure as new positions had been created, while some reporters are being put back on patch after offices in Helensburgh, Dumbarton and Paisley were closed and centralised at the company’s Clydebank office.
Added Paul: “They also realised that moving the reporters has led to a loss of identity so they are going to try and get reporters back in offices. We understand that they are looking at taking one or two people on.”
Sign up for our free daily email bulletin
Follow HTFP on Twitter
Got a story? Email the Editor at
I’m not sure which depresses me the most about this article – the NUJ’s apparent gullibility in seeming to accept cost-cutting which will mean loss of income and job satisfaction for its members, as well as ultimately putting their jobs at risk because of the damaging effect on the company, or the reporter’s failure to question the information. if no jobs are being lost, why are they doing it? Are new jobs really being created? For actual reporters rather than students? And how exactly will staff ‘get back into offices’? This company is now running with only half the staff numbers that it had a few years ago, and has ‘community reporters’ (students) who have a ‘target’ of 40 stories a day. And the union and the trade press thinks it’s fine.
Report this comment
I fail to see what the point your making is regarding ‘students’ in this – of the four community reporters who were hired at CWP, only two of them were actually still enrolled in accredited journalism courses, if you wanted to question the facts.
Is it perhaps that people feel threatened that someone younger has the ability to do the job?
CWP if anything should have been praised for giving the opportunity to ‘students’ such as myself who have their full set of NCTJs and had undertaken extensive work experience within the company – of course you may not consider me to be an ‘actual’ reporter but you have to start somewhere.
I’m not saying that there were not flaws in the system, however in the current situation it is expected that some cost cutting measures are needed and it should be seen as some sort of positive that there have been no job losses for full time staff.
Report this comment
*you’re, sorry wrote this in such rage!
Report this comment
The point Former Staffer is making regarding the continual erosion of pay and conditions is a good one.
Report this comment
I hope a content editor can tell the difference between
your and you’re
Report this comment
As do I – hence why I corrected myself.
Report this comment