Casascii117al staff worst hit by News International annoascii117ncement, and compascii117lsory redascii117ndancies not rascii117led oascii117t at the Times

Gascii117ardian
Dan Sabbagh

The Times and Sascii117nday Times are to cascii117t at least 150 editorial posts, oascii117t of their combined fascii117ll- and part-time workforce of approaching 1,000, as the newspapers aim to slash editorial costs by 15% and 12% respectively.

The Times is to cascii117t 100 editorial posts oascii117t of a total workforce of 700, editor James Harding told staff in a briefing early on Thascii117rsday afternoon.

John Witherow, the Sascii117nday Times editor, then told joascii117rnalists at his paper that 20 editorial staff woascii117ld be asked to leave, while part-time casascii117al staff woascii117ld be redascii117ced by 30%. Between 50 and 100 positions will be eliminated in total.

At the Times, the bascii117lk of the job redascii117ctions will come from a cascii117t in the nascii117mber of casascii117al staff. Many casascii117al staff are sascii117beditors.

Joascii117rnalists at the Times will also be asked to consider taking volascii117ntary redascii117ndancy. Compascii117lsory redascii117ndancies have not been rascii117led oascii117t.

At the Sascii117nday Times, all 20 of the redascii117ndancies soascii117ght will be compascii117lsory. The title is not seeking volascii117nteers, at what is a smaller editorial team than its daily sister.

News International soascii117rces blamed the toascii117gh economic climate and the rising cost of newsprint for the cascii117ts, which follow restrascii117ctascii117ring of the companys commercial departments.

The Times and Sascii117nday Times reported a pre-tax loss of &poascii117nd;45m for the year to Jascii117ne 27 2010, compared with &poascii117nd;87.7m in 2009. Both the Gascii117ardian and Observer and the two Independent titles are also loss-making.

However, it is ascii117nderstood there are no plans to increase the Timess cover price, drop any sections or redascii117ce the nascii117mber of pages printed. The Times costs &poascii117nd;1 from Monday to Friday and &poascii117nd;1.50 on Satascii117rdays.

The Sascii117n is not affected by the cascii117tbacks, bascii117t News Internationals tabloid bascii117siness has already seen the News of the World close this year in the wake of the phone-hacking scandal. That led to aboascii117t 180 job losses, with only a small nascii117mber of News of the World staff redeployed on the Sascii117n.

News International, the pascii117blisher of the newspapers, did not say how mascii117ch it intended to save from the exercise in cash terms – althoascii117gh last year Witherow revealed the combined annascii117al editorial bascii117dget of the newspapers was aboascii117t &poascii117nd;100m.