Updated: 10:56 a.m., Tuesday, March 10, 2020.
The Plain Dealer will lay off 22 staffers later this month, including 18 members of the Cleveland newspaper’s union, Local 1 of the Northeast Ohio Newspaper Guild.
The layoffs are “strictly financial,” Editor-in-Chief Tim Warsinskey said in a statement published on cleveland.com, news website that is also owned by the paper’s sister company, Advance Local.
“The industry revenue model has changed and print newspapers have struggled to overcome deep losses in subscriptions and advertising,” Warsinskey wrote.
In 2019, the paper lost 36 of staff members in two layoffs early in the year.
Totally gutted. Staff cuts in The Plain Dealer newsroom announced as industry financial pressures grow https://t.co/88HGiapCYd pic.twitter.com/IMQ3a5YFW1 — Brie Zeltner (@BrieZeltner) March 9, 2020
“In my 30 years at The Plain Dealer, some as a union leader, I have experienced firsthand the changes, both good and bad, in our profession,” Warsinskey wrote. “I have stood side-by-side with respected colleagues, fighting for their jobs and the ideals of journalism we all strive to represent. I am empathetic, but do not pretend to fully realize their anguish.”
Warsinskey began his term as editor-in-chief this month, after George Rodrigue stepped down from that position to take a different job with Advance.
The newsroom - and Guild - was notified of impending layoffs at the same time as the public. We are all still processing this news. — Ginger Christ (@GChristCLE) March 9, 2020
The decision brings the union staff at The Plain Dealer down to 14, according to a statement from the PD News Guild.
“Despite tough times in the journalism industry, our newsroom has held its own,” the statement reads. “To this day, the print product still supports both The Plain Dealer and the online operation. We owe our readers who have remained loyal our heartfelt thanks for that.”
The layoffs were announced to staff less than half an hour before Warsinskey’s announcement was published, the statement said. Some staff members could not make the meeting, according to the statement, and were alerted to the layoffs “by sources or spouses as they filed stories or conducted interviews.”
Staff were still being notified Monday afternoon, said Rachel Dissell, Plain Dealer reporter and union vice chair.
“We understand the challenges of this industry as much as any newsroom,” Dissell said. “What we can’t fathom is why our newsroom of outstanding and experienced journalists is the one being pillaged, repeatedly, when we have continued to contribute to both the paper and digital platforms – and our newspaper is the source of revenue-supporting journalism here.”
Would have been nice if they could have told the staff before telling the public. SMH. https://t.co/QwYVq0v36n — Rachel Dissell (@RachelDissell) March 9, 2020
The Plain Dealer and will have a combined staff of 77 journalists, including reporters based in Akron, Columbus and Washington, D.C., after the layoffs, Warsinskey said.
The union contends combining Plain Dealer staff numbers with cleveland.com's is an attempt to hide the impact of the layoffs.
“This highlights the obvious union-busting aspect of this move,” the statement reads. “Union jobs and years of experience are being replaced by lower-paid, non-union workers – not to mention wire and non-local syndicated stories.”
The layoffs are slated for March 23.
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