NUJ condemns 'panic' cuts by Trinity Mirror in Newcastle

The National Union of Journalists has condemned plans for seven jobs cuts at Trinity Mirror's North East division ncjMedia, announced just weeks after eight editorial redundancies at the Newcastle Evening Chronicle.

Following a review and editorial restructure at ncjMedia titles, the company will also close loss-making newspaper the Blyth and Cramlington Extra.

According to the union, the company is proposing to axe two multi-media journalists, one specialist correspondent role, one photographer, one multimedia desk editor and two chief desk editors. Trinity Mirror, which has begun a consultation period with affected staff, has blamed the proposed cuts on "continuing economic challenges".

A statement added that the company intends to introduce "new production workflows" and a reduction in commercial features output.

According to the NUJ, staff have been given until the 22 August to volunteer for redundancy. The union has said it will investigate whether procedural rules on redundancies have been breached by the company.

NUJ Northern and Midlands organiser Chris Morley accused Trinity Mirror of "running at such a panic that they were wanting to get rid of more people before they'd dealt with the previous lot".

An member of the NUJ chapel told the union: "Those journalists who were in the first round of redundancies have not even left yet and now the company has announced another fresh round of cuts. They are watching the same thing happening with incredulity."

Morley added in a statement: "Sacrificing jobs on the altar of the City of London is no way to run a media company and what possible explanation can the company give to the city of Newcastle about what it is doing?

"This is a strategy that leads nowhere and at a time when newspaper companies need to show the public they have standards and responsibility to the people, Trinity Mirror is failing badly.

"We will do all we can to support our members whose jobs have been put at risk by these proposals."

Trinity Mirror, which publishes the Daily and Sunday Mirror, the People, and more than a hundred regional titles, announced last week that it was increasing its savings target for the coming year from £15 million to £25 million in the wake of declining revenues.

The company saw a 17 per cent drop in adjusted pre-tax profits to £41.9 million for the first half of this year, with total revenue for the group fell 3 per cent to £371 million.

Operating profit at Trinity Mirror's regional publishing arm was down 36 per cent to £18.4 million, with total revenue for the division down 2 per cent to £149.1 million.

The NUJ is demanding urgent talks with the company in the wake of its recent half-yearly financial report. Martin Shipton, father of the NUJ's Trinity Mirror chapel, said the union was "concerned that deep cuts of the kind already being imposed at Trinity Mirror centres like Cardiff and Newcastle will contribute to a downward spiral".

"We are aware that the group has a high level of debts and that the board is seeking to reduce the level of borrowing. We fear it may be cutting too far, too quickly. Decisions are being taken at corporate headquarters in Canary Wharf that affect our members' livelihoods and the newspapers we work for.

Shipton called on Trinity Mirror to "discuss the group's future strategy with the NUJ at a national level".

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