Postmedia laying off 15 people at Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette

A media union says it’s been told by Postmedia that the company plans to cut 15 positions at the Ottawa Citizen and Montreal Gazette newspapers.

CWA Canada says the cuts, combined with recent buyouts, will reduce Postmedia’s workforce by about 20 per cent on top of a 50 per cent cut in previous years.

The company has slashed more than 3,000 jobs in the last six years.

CWA Canada President Martin O’Hanlon says the $2.3 million in retention bonuses paid to company CEO Paul Godfrey and other executives could have saved as many as 40 jobs.

“Where do you think the money is better spent?” O’Hanlon said in a statement. “On bonuses for overpaid, under-performing executives or on hard-working employees who actually produce something and contribute to the economy?”

Postmedia has long struggled to stem copious amounts of red ink — partly the result of the widespread malaise facing newspapers across North America.

In its latest quarter, Toronto-based Postmedia Networks Corp. reported a profit of $17.8 million —largely attributable to debt restructuring — compared with a $4.2-million loss in the same period the previous year. Revenues fell almost 15 per cent.

CWA Canada, which represents about 6,000 media workers, also urged the federal government to take action to prevent Postmedia from “destroying” the country’s major daily newspapers.

The union wants the government to implement legislation or regulations to limit concentration of media ownership and prevent leveraged purchases of important national companies.

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