Job losses as Daily Post group editorial is restructured

Nov 28 2008 by Mark Thomas, Liverpool Daily Post

LIVERPOOL Daily Post publisher Trinity Mirror North West has announced a major restructure of its Merseyside newsgathering operation, with the loss of some editorial jobs.

The organisation is to launch a revolutionary new editorial operating model, streamlining its production processes to create a centralised hub at its Old Hall Street, Liverpool, headquarters, providing up-to-the-minute online content for its websites and writing and producing all its Merseyside daily and weekly newspaper titles.

The Liverpool Daily Post is to stop publishing its Saturday edition next year, becoming a Monday to Friday morning newspaper, though its online companion site liverpooldaily post.co.uk will remain a seven-days-a-week operation.

The combined changes will lead to a reduction of 43 from the 175 editorial jobs in the company’s Merseyside operation.

The company is committed to achieving as many redundancies as possible on a voluntary basis.

While the recent world economic crisis has hit advertising revenues across the media industry, accentuating the need for change, the revolutionary editorial plan, conceived by the senior editors over several months, is designed to secure a strong, long-term future for the key newspaper brands, with a particular focus on providing rich, in-depth and absorbing content for the company’s steadily growing North West digital audience, already exceeding 1.7m unique users a month.

The focus is on protecting and strengthening the all-important front-line content gathering roles, ensuring that the Daily Post, its sister paper, the Liverpool Echo, and great Merseyside weekly titles will continue to provide readers with unparalleled coverage.

The plan will see a cut in editorial managers, and a streamlined newspaper production model that will reduce the requirement for production journalists.

Trinity Mirror NW2 managing director Sara Wilde said: “We are determined to carry on producing the vibrant, entertaining and informative newspaper brands which are at the heart of the communities they serve on Merseyside. We have been based here in the city of Liverpool for over 150 years, and these changes are designed to ensure that we will be here for another 150.

“To do that in the digital age, and in such difficult trading conditions, has entailed making some bold changes, which will revolutionise the way in which we produce our newspapers and websites. It is an unfortunate consequence that part of that process will see the number of required editorial roles reduce. However, we believe the changes we are introducing mean we can do that while maintaining the high-quality products our readers have come to expect.”

Liverpool Daily Post editor Mark Thomas said: “The big change our readers will notice is the end of Saturday production of the Liverpool Daily Post. This reflects the changing information needs of our business-led audience, who can also look forward to much stronger newspapers during the week, incorporating all their favourite weekend features. And, of course, all the breaking news and sport will still be there on our website liverpooldaily post.co.uk throughout the weekend.”

The company is now entering into a period of consultation with all affected staff, and with the NUJ.

Liverpool Daily Post and Echo union FOC Mike Chapple said: “We are gravely concerned about the implications of so many job losses: the number announced was far greater than we anticipated.

“Current staffing levels on a day-to-day basis were already a cause for concern in terms of producing the high quality of journalism that is so important to us and our readers. We acknowledge the company’s commitment to no compulsory redundancies, but rest assured the chapel will be working hard to ensure the best deal for those who stay and those who go.”