Reach to cut over 190 editorial roles
The union has learned of new plans by the publisher to place 420 jobs at risk of redundancy as part of company efforts to cut costs.
The National Union of Journalists has been informed of new proposals to place over 420 roles at risk of redundancy at Reach. The union has learned 192 editorial roles will be cut from the workforce, in a major blow to staff at the publisher of titles across the UK and Ireland.
Proposed cuts come only two weeks after the conclusion of a redundancy process announced in January this year resulting in the loss of over 80 jobs, and a week after the publication of the company’s 2022 annual results.
Laura Davison, NUJ national organiser, said:
“Plans will come as a major blow to our members hard on the heels of recent redundancies. As the company seeks to make good on its commitment to cut costs by £30 million this year it is our members who are yet again feeling the pain. Our objective in this process will be to support our members who have been buffeted every which way by the business since the new year. They have had enough of words and will be looking for tangible ways the company can mitigate the impacts of this announcement.
"Reach's focus has switched to launching a US operation, but it remains to be seen what this will deliver in reality and in the meantime more core jobs are being lost. While the cost-of-living crisis is impacting everyone, including Reach staff, it is the leadership that decides the strategy.
"We are a far, far cry from the period when Reach was investing in new local sites and expanding its footprint across the country, claiming to have created a sustainable model for digital-only local journalism."