Canada’s largest newspaper chain is expected to take the scalpel to B.C.’s biggest newsroom after the holidays wrap this year.
The union representing workers at The Province and The Vancouver Sun informed members this week that Postmedia would likely begin laying off reporters and editors sometime in January.
“In terms of numbers of people, we don’t really know,” Unifor Local 2000 president Mike Bocking said.
Postmedia did not respond to an interview request but sources tell Business In Vancouver as many as two-dozen workers could lose their jobs.
Under the union’s contract, members would be given advance notice before losing their positions.
For some, that could come at the same time the newspapers make a move to new offices in East Vancouver in June 2017.
There are about 220 editorial, advertising, ad production and information technology workers at Postmedia’s downtown Vancouver office.
Bocking said just over 100 of those workers are in the editorial department.
Earlier this year Postmedia cut 90 jobs and merged newsrooms across the country as part of a cost-savings effort.
In October the newspaper giant announced it would reduce staffing costs by 20% nationwide through voluntary buyouts.
But Postmedia said layoffs remained on the table if it couldn’t meet its goals to reduce costs through buyouts.
Sources tell BIV it's doubtful enough editorial staff members would take buyouts to reach Postmedia's targets after roughly 20 reporters and editors already left the combined Sun-Province newsroom earlier this year.
Bocking said it comes down to a case of “buyout fatigue” among workers.
“People’s situations are unlikely to have changed so dramatically since the last buyout. If they didn’t apply for it two years ago or a year ago, would their circumstances have changed so much to want to apply for it now?” he said.
“Having said that, there’s a lot of despondency over the fact that Postmedia seems to lack direction in terms of a business plan.”
Postmedia completed a debt-restructuring plan in September — the same month it eliminated the entire newsroom staff at the daily 24 hours Vancouver newspaper. The commuter paper now runs re-purposed stories from other Postmedia publications.
Postmedia’s latest financial results show revenue fell to $198.7 million in its fiscal fourth quarter, down from $230.2 million during the same period a year ago.
Meanwhile, its net loss grew to $99.4 million from $54 million a year prior.
Financial documents filed last month revealed Postmedia executives, including CEO Paul Godfrey, accepted bonuses totalling $2.275 million beginning this past summer. The final bonuses are expected to be paid out in July 2017.
“How do you turn around a business where everybody seems to be grabbing what you can as they go out the door?” Bocking said.
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