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Sing Tao News Corporation sacks staff after earlier cutting or freezing salaries amid the economic downturn and intense media competition
Sing Tao News Corporation laid off about 20 employees on Wednesday, weeks after it cut or froze their wages in a bid to cut costs.
The move to cut staff has not been officially announced, but employees said individual colleagues had received notices from the group’s human resources department, which had received a list of staff members who were being asked to leave.
The affected staff members come from various departments including the group’s flagship Chinese-language daily Sing Tao Daily and its free English tabloid The Standard, as well as its profitable free Chinese-language tabloid Headline Daily and the weekly magazine East Touch.
Sing Tao Daily’s crime and entertainment sections were worst hit, with about six staff being axed. One or two journalists in each of the other sections of the daily also had to leave.
A journalist who has worked for Sing Tao Daily for almost two decades and did not want to be named said they had learned that another round of lay-offs might come in three months if there was no sign of improvement in advertising revenue.
He said his colleagues were angry about the group because this was already its second round of cost-cutting since April.
On April 1, the group announced a pay cut for its senior news executives of up to 20 per cent, while the salaries of other journalists were frozen. The firm cited the economic downturn and intense competition from other media outlets.
The journalist said each section of the daily was asked to cut 15 per cent of operational costs, but management later yielded and scaled back the move.
“Colleagues were demoralised seeing the second round of action in just two months when the group is still making money,” he said.
He said senior managers were not willing to share the burden as they were still enjoying good financial rewards.
Journalists Association chairwoman Sham Yee-lan said it was a huge blow to Sing Tao’s staff because the group was cutting back even though it was still making money. She hoped the affected workers could be compensated better than the legal minimum.
A group spokesman said the move was a normal manpower adjustment according to operational needs.
The group’s chief executive, Siu Sai-wo, did not respond to calls from the Post on Wednesday night.
(SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST)
