Five editorial jobs are at risk as part of cuts being made by a regional daily, the National Union of Journalists has claimed.
The planned cull would represent one sixth of the workforce at the Newsquest-owned Bradford Telegraph & Argus leaving the newspaper by the end of this month.
Under proposals announced by Telegraph & Argus editor Perry Austin-Clarke, the NUJ says two sports writers will have to vie for one role and the business reporter’s job will go.
The union further reports the crime and court reporters are taking voluntary redundancy, while the vacant role of the Aire Valley reporter will not be replaced.
An NUJ Bradford Newsquest chapel spokesperson said: “It’s grim for our colleagues facing redundancy but also bleak for those left behind who will have to pick up an ever-increasing workload to get other people’s jobs done.
“More is being expected of less. Management has exploited the stoical work ethic of its newsroom for far too long without offering reward or recognition, but the pot of goodwill is running almost as low as the staffing level.”
Chris Morley, pictured above left, NUJ Northern & Midlands organiser, added: “In the week that Newsquest’s American bosses announced they were ordering a 2pc reduction of staff across Gannett’s operations, we have confirmation that jobs are going at a key UK daily.
“Five jobs may not sound a lot, but it is in the context of such a low number in the Bradford newsroom. Even the loss of a handful will have a huge impact on those remaining and their ability to produce quality journalism.
“It is clear that the new incarnation of Gannett, following its demerger this year, cannot see beyond a strategy of cut and then cut again.
“What is needed instead is a dynamic programme of investment to breathe fresh life into titles that have an incredibly important role to play in their local communities.”
HTFP has asked Perry for a comment.
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Scroogequest’s usual round of redundancies, just in time for Christmas. What an inept and awful ‘organisation’ they are; fronted by grey suits posing as journalists.
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Yet more skilled and experienced staff jettisoned in the headlong pursuit of ever-vanishing profits. As an ex-journalist (and one-time Newsquest employee) now doing PR work for a West Yorkshire firm, I often deal with the T&A’s business reporter Chris Holland. He is a credit to his profession and the paper would be crazy to let him go. I’m confident the same is true of the other four staff now facing an uncertain future.
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Just what you’d expect from a company in American, where voters have the choice of putting an alleged sex pest or an alleged criminal into office….
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This is the price of Brexit. Gannett said that it was planning action following the plunge of the pound against the dollar. Every £100 in profit sent to the US pre-Brexit is now only worth £84. While I feel very sorry for those who will lose their jobs, I do wonder if those who voted for Brexit thought there would not be a price to pay. Nigel Farage made it sound as simple as ending an AA membership.
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I’ve seen it all now. Brexit blamed for Newsquest editorial redundancies.
Because they never made anyone redundant before June 23, 2016, did they?
Jeez.
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Brexit? I don’t think so.
There’s no real news here, it’s one of the big three doing what the big three have been doing for the last 10 years.
It’s simply a case of a declining industry having its decline badly managed by top brass who mostly have no experience of, or love for, journalism, but are just trying to turn a quick profit out of the dying embers so they can get a six figure future with Home Bargains or TalkTalk or whatever.
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Ha ha brexit to blame?
talk about psssing the buck and not having the courage of their convictions ,beggars belief
As for “….“What is needed instead is a dynamic programme of investment to breathe fresh life into titles that have an incredibly important role to play”
Time to face facts,that horse has long since bolted and it isn’t going to happen,underfunded papers have lost their markets and local papers, whether we like it or not no longer have an important role to play, hard to say as my whole career has been in the regionals but time to accept those days are gone …. and no brexit isn’t to blame for that either Perry
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