The Daily Maverick has announced that it will be retrenching five percent of its permanent employees and initiating a 15% reduction in operating costs saying the decision came after careful consideration and exhausting other options.
The announcement was made in a report published on its website on Thursday.
“The leadership team has worked hard to limit job losses, but this process will result in several retrenchments and the restructuring of some functions,” the publication said.
According to the Daily Maverick it had “tried to operate in a lean startup manner, while also trying to fill the void left by a disrupted industry”.
The publication’s founding CEO Styli Charalambous, said they were aware and understood that the retrenchments would be a very difficult period for the company especially to those who would be affected directly.
“We are committed to providing as much support as possible, including assistance for new work opportunities, and to get through this as quickly and with as much care as possible.
“Without legislative changes to incentivise and encourage support from philanthropic entities, corporates and the public, the sustainability of journalism will continue to be out of reach.
“An industry that creates so much value for the world shouldn’t be struggling this much. The market context is broken and we urgently need policy reform to fix it. Nothing else can,’’ Charalambous said.
In July, Media24, announced that it will no longer be retrenching some of its newspaper journalists from Beeld, following prior announcement that the publications will be shutting down.
In a report, News24 said of the four publications under its stable, only Bleed and 66 journalists will be retained while the company continues with consultation process with the rest of the staff affected by the proposed retrenchments.
It was reported that the Beeld was preserved to minimise job losses and keep the Afrikaans daily alive "as a brand that carries sentimental value".
The 66 journalists will now be incorporated into Netwerk24, News24, and at the Daily Sun website.
Even though it has been saved, the Beeld will now only be accessed digitally.
The economic pressures on the South African media landscape have also forced Independent Media to embark on a cost reduction process.
sinenhlanhla.masilela@iol.co.za
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