Perhaps it was only a matter of time before The Oregonian got sued over which employees were allowed to take last year’s buyout offers.
It was generous of the paper’s New Jersey-based owners to offer two years’ salary and benefits to most employees who had worked at the paper more than 10 years and agreed to walk away. Employees who had between five and 10 years’ tenure were offered one year’s salary and bennies.
But given the increasingly desperate state of the newspaper business, the sheer number of workers involved, and the paper’s decision to extend the buyout to some employees but not to others, it comes as little surprise that some workers would feel burned watching colleagues floating away in a comfy raft while they were left behind on the ship.
Hat tip: email
.
4 comments:
Wow, that was a massive buyout offer.
There are lots of us newspaper folks stuck in the same position, though (albeit with smaller buyout offers than two years' salary). You try to take the buyout the paper offers you, but the paper says no and slashes your salary instead, then makes you do extra work to make up for the people who got to take the buyout.
Do the guilds play any part in negotiating buyout packages??
Maybe worker lawsuits should go their direction.
I know of several workers at the Sac Bee that stayed behind after being promised all sorts of things just to be thrown out after they where no longer needed. These loyal long time employees got NO buyout or any type of severance.
I know of several workers at the Sac Bee that stayed behind after being promised all sorts of things just to be thrown out after they where no longer needed.
It wasn't just the Sac Bee. It happened in a lot of places. I tried to take the buyout but they made a big production out of refusing my bid because, "I was in a critical position."
A little over two weeks later I laid off with a 2 week pity package and an escort to the door.
I never would have dreamed that they were actually doing me a favor, but they did. Getting out of that poisonous atmosphere with all those schemers and scammers probably added years to my life and dollars in my pocket.
Post a Comment