A major restructuring exercise was announced today (19/08), under which journalists at the company's Birmingham and Coventry titles are having to reapply for their own jobs. A consultation period on redundancies has begun, with reports saying that up to 65 editorial jobs could be lost.

The NUJ believes that the cuts will have a serious impact on the ability of journalists to serve their local communities.

Responding to the announcement, NUJ General Secretary Jeremy Dear said:

“Despite the gloss put on it by Trinity Mirror, today’s announcement represents a massive blow to journalism in the Midlands.

“The NUJ condemns these cuts, which will inevitably hit these papers – and the communities they serve – hard.

“Let’s be clear: Trinity Mirror is cutting back on quality at its newspapers in pursuit of short-term, share price driven goals. It just goes to show how little the company values its readers in comparison to the demands of the City.

“Whatever the company may claim, you simply can’t take dozens of journalists out of your local operations and continue to report news to the same standard. Bosses at the company are sacrificing quality journalism to appease the short-term whims of the financial markets.

“This is a deeply uncertain time for journalists working across all the titles affected. It’s also a very bad day for people in the Midlands who genuinely care about their community.”

The titles affected include the Birmingham Post, Birmingham Mail, Coventry Telegraph and Sunday Mercury.

19 August 2008