Nick Piccone
We learned last week that a bevy of layoffs were coming to the Philadelphia Media Network: The Inquirer, Daily News and Philly.com. Today, the layoffs began, and it wasn’t pretty.
Unfortunately, this made business sense on the surface. The company needed to save money. However, keeping the people around that your audience has outgrown and getting rid of some of the most respectable and well-liked people wasn’t exactly the way many thought they’d go about it. Case in point:
It's been real, twitter. Thanks for following.
— Ryan Lawrence (@ryanlawrence21) November 4, 2015
https://twitter.com/ryanlawrence21/status/662006805413793792
Proud as all hell to have worked for the Daily News. The Best Sports in Town. Will be proud to do it for another month.
— Jeff Neiburg (@Jeff_Neiburg) November 4, 2015
Excited to begin the next chapter in my career! Weighing lots of opps. If u know of a pub/site that can benefit from my talent, reach out!
— Allie Volpe (@allieevolpe) November 4, 2015
Hey y'all, I just got laid off from day job at @phillydotcom. Hire me. I'm really good at the Internet.
— Colin Kerrigan (@colinkerrigan) November 4, 2015
2.5 years and out at @PHLmedianetwork. It's been real @phillydotcom. Editors, I'm available for freelance. pic.twitter.com/E633yit2Vy
— Steph Aaronson (@stephaaronson) November 4, 2015
Nov. 2012 – Dec. 2015. I love this city, and it loved me back. To everyone I met along the way: Thank you. VV pic.twitter.com/A0XyhVcf0G
— Vinny Vella (@Vellastrations) November 4, 2015
Lots of tears in this place. But I’m pretty sure you’re having a great day.
— Jonathan Tannenwald (@jtannenwald) November 4, 2015
To people who have asked how I am doing: It doesn’t matter. My colleagues who busted their asses for a cause greater than themselves matter.
— Jonathan Tannenwald (@jtannenwald) November 4, 2015
It sickens me. It truly sickens me. At this point, that’s all I can say.
— Jonathan Tannenwald (@jtannenwald) November 4, 2015
It was fun while it lasted, but life goes on…
— Jerry Gaul (@jerry_gaul) November 4, 2015
You will not be seeing any more sports video content shot by me on @phillysport
4.5 years busting my ass, but who's counting? ✌🏼️— Sami Corrado (@SamiCorrado) November 4, 2015
Lost my job today. So, sooo painful. So proud, though, of my 15 years at the best paper ever. Hopeful about what may come.
— Dana DiFilippo (@DanaDiFilippo) November 4, 2015
Why does it seem like the PMN is getting rid of their best and brightest? Because of this:
Earlier, Gensler explained to Billy Penn the process under which Philadelphia Media Network management must work with the Newspaper Guild on layoffs. It’s complicated.
“If there are open jobs in the company, the company is supposed to place people who are to be laid off in jobs they can perform. We have to go through a seniority list with the company so people can bounce back to jobs they previously had,” Gensler said. “It means if there’s going to be a layoff in reporters, and one of those reporters used to be a graphic artist or a photographer, and that reporter has more seniority than others, then the company is supposed to place them back in those positions.”
That results in confusion.
“When there’s a layoff, there’s a rolling tidal wave of bounces… You lay off people over here, and you lose people over here,” Gensler said. “The whole thing is set up to make it difficult to lay people off, to try to keep people in the company who have given or have spent a lot of time to make the company better.”
The layoffs are expected to take effect by Dec. 4.
Good going. Guys like Marcus Hayes are still employed.
UPDATE: Hmmm.
https://twitter.com/joelmmathis/status/662372619417731072