The first official word from the Arizona Republic came out tonight about how many people were cut from its ranks this week. Roughly 100 people were laid off, with 20 of them coming from the newsroom, according to an article posted on the newspaper’s website.
The 100-person figure is significantly higher than what was rumored earlier in the day by other news outlets, and appears to fit more closely with the company’s announcement last week that 7 percent of the staff would be gone by today.
A source told Heat City on Wednesday night that the bulk of the layoffs began in the evening with journalists and other Republic employees learning their fates by way of phone calls at home.
The layoffs are part of a larger effort by the Republic‘s parent, Gannett Co., to trim its expenses before it has to report to investors next week about how the Virginia-based company did financially during the second quarter of this year. The company was expected to layoff at least 1,400 workers nationwide this week.
Wednesday marked the first time this year that the state’s largest newspaper has resorted to pink slips to trim its budget. Twice this year, the company forced its employees to take at least a week off without pay so it could slim down. December was the last time the Republic instituted layoffs.
In a statement published on the newspaper’s website tonight, Bob Dickey, the head of Gannett’s newspaper division, said the company continues to struggle with a decline in the economy. “There have been some promising signs of a recovery,” he said, “but the reality is the improvements are not broad-based and the economy continues to be
fragile.”
Earlier this year, Dickey cited financial difficulties as he announced Gannett would be shutting down Arizona’s oldest newspaper, the Tucson Citizen. However, it was later revealed that the company made more than $8 million in profit on the paper last year.
Elsewhere: Adam Klawonn did a fantastic job of confirming the names of newsroom layoffs from three different sources today over on his website The Zonie Report. His list appears to be the most-thoroughly reported of several that have appeared today. According to Klawonn, there were a large number of copy editors and artists on the list, but few reporters.