Subject: Layoffs and Downsizing

• The Magic School Bus Kicks Up a Storm

  January 15, 2009

• Register One Step From Layoffs

  To prevent layoffs on the heels of a sharp decline in advertising revenue, Freedom Communications--the parent company of The Orange County Register--today offered voluntary severance packages to employees, according to sources. "If not enough people opt out, then there will be layoffs," a veteran of the paper told the Weekly. The package under consideration includes two weeks of pay for every year of service, plus $50 for every $1,000 of base pay and 26 additional weeks of paid health insuranc

  September 29, 2006

• My Favorite Sex Offender

  The AP wires are humming today with news that Brian Doyle, former deputy press secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, has been sentenced. Doyle was caught sending sexually explicit messages to Sheriff's deputies posing as a 14-year-old girl named Ashlynne, for which he has been sentenced to five years in prison, ten years of probation, and a lifetime of sex-offender registration. Doyle apologized for his actions in court: "I am profoundly sorry for everything. How I feel inside can't

  November 20, 2006

• A SCOWL in the Night: Anonymous Poet Bemoans the Self-Inflicted Demise of the OC Register

  This week, an anonymous source sent the Weekly a poem called "Scowl," which appears to be a riff on Allen Ginsberg's famous and similarly-titled manifesto of 1950s beatnik angst, "Howl." The poem also appears to be written by someone intimately familiar with the inner workings of the Orange County Register, which has laid off dozens of staffers this year, destroying itself-- to paraphrase the Vietnam war scorched earth strategy of sweep and destroy--in order to save itself. The repeated referen

  December 7, 2007

• The future of journalism is now! And the future is sexy, illiterate and cost-cutting.

  Today came the announcement of two major developments in the world of Southland journalism. One announcement is superbad and the other superfresh awesome. So which do you want first? Well, the good's so good, you'll probably forget the bad so long as you hear the good last, so here's the bad. Deep breath: "Tribune Co., struggling with declining revenue, today said it would cut staff by 400 to 500 people companywide, or around 2% of the Chicago-based media company's workforce. At the Los Angeles

  February 13, 2008

• OC Register Death Watch Part Two

  Last week, I reported that the Orange County Register is in secret talks with Dean Singleton, owner of the Denver-based MediaNews Inc. and an all-around Darth Vader of daily news--he bought and all but killed the Long Beach Press Telegram, just as one example--to share content and lay off writers. I also wrote that Register publisher Terry Horne plans to give away free issues and depend on ad sales to save his failing paper. Horne wouldn't comment for my story, but confirmed the details in a p

  February 20, 2008

• OC Register Laying off Five Percent of Workforce

  It's never fun being right about this kind of thing, but apparently the OC Register is laying off 80 to 90 employees, according to a post today on the newspaper's website. Here's about half of the post (it's really short): "... [Publisher Terry] Horne cited Orange County’s sluggish economy, especially in real estate, as affecting the company’s revenues from local retail, automotive and classified advertising for jobs. The company provided no financial details about the decline in adverti

  April 28, 2008

• OC Reg Will Outsource to New Delhi

  Late yesterday the AP confirmed news that Nick Schou broke last week right here on our blog: the paper has taken the layoff model to another level and will now outsource some of its editing and layout duties to a "global media" company near New Delhi. With the last round of layoffs knocking 90 people out of their jobs, this information isn't so much surprising as it is kind of weird and a little shocking. When you compare the move to much of corporate America, then the paper is following suit

  June 25, 2008

• Times About to Lay Off 250 Employees

  Apparently trying to compete with the Orange County Register for worst place to work on the planet, the Los Angeles Times is about to lay off 250 people, including 150 newsroom employees, according to a source who, for the time being at least, still actually works at the paper. There's been rumors of imminent layoffs at the Times circulating for weeks, but this is the first time an actual number has surfaced. No word yet on how many of those soon-to-be-ex-employees work in Orange County, but

  July 2, 2008

• Times OC Loses Three More Vets

  LAobserved.com is reporting on the latest round of forced/voluntary retirements at the Los Angeles Times and noted that the Orange County bureau will lose Bill Lobdell. Lobdell has served the Times in numerous capacities, including as editor of the Daily Pilot, which covers Newport Beach and Costa Mesa. In recent years, he proved to be an excellent investigative reporter, uncovering a series of sensational church scandals plaguing Southern California. But we've learned that it's not just Lob

  July 15, 2008

• OC Register to Lay Off 30 Newsroom Employees

  Just received word from an anonymous but reliable source that the Register is going to announce the elimination of 30 newsroom positions tomorrow. The paper is hoping to avoid direct layoffs by getting volunteers. Stay tuned for updates on who jumps the ship(wreck).* *Update #1: Apparently, Freedom Communications hatchet men are waving carrots before sticks, offering sweet retirement deals to senior-level management before going to lowly reporters. The best deal yet: a payout through the end o

  October 9, 2008

• Monday Night Football at The Pelican Grill? Whaaa?

  The Pelican Grill at the Pelican Hill Resort is the last place I would think of when it comes to Monday Night Football. After all, this is a valet-parking, ocean-views, uniformed-waiter, white-table-cloth kind of establishment, where the customers are the country-club types, not the average Joe Six-Pack (to borrow a recently heard term). But that's not stopping Donald Bren and company. They've got two 9'x6' HDTVs that will be tuned to the game and a "Burger and Brews" menu to feed any deep-po

  October 13, 2008

• Moss Appeal

  March 15, 2001

• "Confusion" at Register over buyouts

  "Breaking" news in its "Newspaper Deathwatch" category: Media Bistro reports Orange County Register employees are unsure whether to take the buyout currently being offered or risk having future buyout offers lowered: Nervous staffers at the Orange County Register had been considered asking for voluntary layoffs this week, after news spread that future layoffs would include less generous severance packages. (Currently, staffers are offered to two weeks' pay per each year worked.) But when sta

  October 17, 2008

• Goodbye Tony D. ... and the Pilot, too?

  Sad news about a really good guy, Tony Dodero: the former editor-in-chief of the Newport Beach/Costa Mesa Daily Pilot is being let go as the director of news and online for L.A. Times Community News publications, which include the Pilot, Huntington Beach Independent and Laguna Beach Coastline Pilot. Following are Tony's letter to his staff and Bill Lobdell's take on the Pilot's demise. Lobdell, who recently left the Times where he wrote about religion, was the editor of the Pilot in the early

  October 21, 2008

• Times OC Takes Another Big Hit

  Los Angeles Times management has laid off two more veteran reporters in its already-decimated Orange County bureau, according to Times sources. The latest to leave will be Gil Reza and Christian Berthelsen, two outstanding veterans with long lists of accomplishments. Amazingly, the Times OC editorial staff of six reporters (including three relative rookies) and one columnist is now smaller than ours at OC Weekly. The bureau has lost veterans David Reyes, William Lobdell, Roy Rivenburg and D

  October 27, 2008

• Daily Grill Execs to Take 10% Pay Cut

  Here's somewhat encouraging news in discouraging times. Although "at least eight people were laid off this year from the company's office in Woodland Hills", according to an article in the LA Times, about a dozen Daily Grill executives -- whose annual salaries range from $100,000 to $350,000 -- are going to take a 10% pay cut, effective immediately, instead of resorting to more lay-offs.

  October 30, 2008

• Taco Bell Crime of the Week, Part V

  In a week where Taco Bell announced massive layoffs in its Irvine corporate headquarters, it's nice to know that our biggest food chain is still inspiring crimes of another sort. From Virginia" Two men wearing Halloween masks robbed the Taco Bell on Piney Forest Road in Danville on Tuesday. Lt. Mike Mondul of the Danville Police Department said the duo entered the business demanding to know where the safe was located. One of them men, who was wearing a clown mask, was armed with a handgun. Af

  November 13, 2008

• OC Weekly Not Alone; Village Voice Media Cuts Widespread

  As editor Ted B. Kissell's "A Bad Week at the Weekly" post about layoffs at OC Weekly continued (and is continuing) to generate comments, newsroom staffers received a memo about the matter this week from our Village Voice Media overlords. Now, before I reveal what was in the memo, let me iterate and now reiterate that I was directed it was okay to divulge this information, that other VVM papers have already posted the memo without fear of repercussions and that, man, I really need this job

  January 6, 2009

• LA Times Cuts California Section

  The Los Angeles Times plans to lay off even more employees with the recent decision to rid the local news section. California news will now be folded in the front section alongside national and foreign news.Quoted from a memo sent by publisher Eddy Hartenstein:"In the coming weeks, we will introduce a number of changes to the way we do business, including a new sectional line-up for the paper. These are necessary to facilitate greater efficiencies in how we approach our operations, production an

  January 30, 2009

• Pissed-Off Teachers Can Really Stop Traffic

  California law mandates that school districts notify teachers and administrators about possible layoffs for the following school year by a certain date. This year's deadline is Sunday and, facing uncertain financial futures, many districts are issuing pink slips. Once the numbers are crunched, many who get them will likely be rehired in June, but who wants to get a stupid pink slip in the first place?The California Teachers Association (CTA) certainly does not wish them on its membership. With t

  March 10, 2009

• Entrepreneur Magazine Editorial Staff "Decimated"

  If you believe it is the entrepreneurs who are going to save this shitty economy, close your eyes. Fishbowl LA has the scoop on Irvine-based Entrepreneur Magazine and Entrepreneur.com "decimating" their editorial staff this week. We hear from former employees that the layoffs include the executive editor, the managing editor, the online editor, an associate editor, the special projects editor, a staff writer and two editorial assistants. Who' left?This apparently comes after layoffs the busin

  March 31, 2009

• Santa Ana School Employees Steaming at Sneaky District Turning Full-Time Jobs Into Part-Time Ones

  July 3, 2008

• The Content-Sharing Deal Between the OC Register and MediaNews Hasn't Led to Cuts at the Reg (Yet)

  March 20, 2008

• The Register in talks with MediaNews about sharing content

  February 14, 2008

• Mouse Chow

  December 20, 2001

• These Jeans Are a Steal

  January 22, 2004

• [Trendzilla] Dainty June Swoon

  April 16, 2009

• Million-Dollar Munchikins

  October 16, 2003

• Involuntary Separation

  February 7, 2002

• Out In the Cold

  March 15, 2001

• A Big Disaster

  September 28, 2000

• Death Pool

  August 17, 2000

• Cop Union To Sue OC Prosecutor Tony Rackauckas

  Union Boss Quint Unhappy With Rackauckas​The union representing investigators in the district attorney's office, notified county officials this morning that it will file a lawsuit tomorrow in federal court to block District Attorney Tony Rackauckas' plan to implement a temporary layoff plan as a way to help solve a $3.1 million budget shortfall.Officials at the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs (AOCDS), the politically powerful law enforcement union, say they believe that Rackauckas

  August 13, 2009

• Layoffs and Furloughs Soon To Hit OC Prosecutors & Investigators

  Tight times at the DA's office​Folks aren't buying products and services like they used to and the impact of dwindling government sales tax revenues is about to be felt hard inside the local agency charged with putting criminals in prison. In an interview this morning, District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said that a $3.1 million budget gap in the current fiscal year is forcing him this month to begin furloughing his deputy prosecutors and laying off investigators. Under the plan, prosecu

  August 7, 2009

• Healthcare Workers to Protest Job Cuts at Kaiser Orange County

  Coming to Anaheim Thursday.​Kaiser Permanente employees will picket outside the Kaiser Orange County facility Thursday to protest the health behemoth's plans to slash 1,350 jobs in coming months.Kaiser workers in purple shirts are scheduled to chant, carry signs and speak with patients about the effects of job cuts on patient care from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at 411 North Lakeview Ave., Anaheim. The picketing is part of five weeks of events held by SEIU-UHW members, who have scheduled simultan

  September 30, 2009

• Criminal Defense of the Day: "I'm An Unemployed Wine Taster"

  Lil Erna / Flickr / Creative Commons​Imagine you're a vagrant wino (in these times, not hard to imagine). You get picked up by Newport Beach police. How to explain the stink on the breath... the unwashed clothes... the sad look in your eyes?From Corona Del Mar Today:Two transient men were arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct and public intoxication at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, according to police reports.The men, who were arrested at Begonia Avenue and East Coast Highway, both had bail set a

  October 29, 2009

• Workers Rally to Save Jobs of Live Emergency Dispatchers

  ​Before this evening's Santa Ana City Council meeting, union workers will stage a rally in front of City Hall to draw attention to layoffs they claim will lead to 9-1-1 emergency calls being answered by an electronic menu rather than a live dispatcher.

  November 2, 2009