Redundancies loom as Trinity closes five North East offices

by Maisie McCabe, Media Week 10-Nov-08, 11:15

LONDON - Trinity Mirror has announced the closure of five of its North East offices, and the loss of 10 to 15 commercial jobs and 28 editorial jobs in its North East division.

Trinity Mirror said the advertising department in the North East will operate with a leaner management structure and a number of telesales functions will be brought together into one team.

The offices earmarked for closure are Guisborough, Stockton, Redcar, Durham and North Shields. Their work will be transferred the four main offices in Newcastle, Teeside, Hexham and Bedlington. Consultation with affected staff started on Friday.

Steve Brown, regional managing director of Trinity Mirror North East, said the proposed measures would ensure that Trinity Mirror’s companies in the region ride out the economic downturn and put itself in the best position for when conditions improve.

Brown said the proposals reflect the senior management team’s determination to do the best thing for the business overall and to respond pragmatically to the exceptional economic circumstances it was now facing.