Jobs under threat as Guardian moves to 24/7 news

by James Livesley, Media Week 07-Mar-07, 12:45

LONDON - Staff at Guardian News & Media have today been warned that there may be job cuts at the company as it moves towards a "24/7" digital news operation.

Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger and managing director Tim Brooks told employees at The Guardian, The Observer and Guardian Unlimited that the company must restructure for 24 hour publishing in a digital age.

An emailed statement sent to Guardian staff explained that the website, Guardian Unlimited, must strive to replicate the quality of the newspapers.

It read: "We will continue to use news wires for breaking news but will seek to use our full editorial resources to add ‘Guardian/Observer' value as soon as possible. This means adding context, analysis and opinion - and sometimes, colour."

The statement also said: "24/7 means we will publish material around the clock across seven days, rather than (as at present) for 16 hours a day across five days. It means publishing more of our news according to the demands of the web rather than the rhythms and expectations of a newspaper."

GNM will undergo an organisational review over the next 18 months that could see staff numbers reduced in some areas, according to MD Brooks. However 100 new jobs in its digital media operations will be created over the next 12 months.

Rusbridger is in talks with the National Union of Journalists regarding the agreement with the paper's editorial staff that prevents compulsory redundancies and guarantees a nine-day working fortnight. The editor said the company was being held back by an "old media mentality" and that it could no longer work in the silos of the two newspaper brands and the website.