Philadelphia Newspapers Lays off 68

Philadephia Newspapers laid off 68 Guild members Feburry 27 from the advertising, circulation, customer service, finance, marketing and systems departments, a Newspaper Guild news release announced,

This amounts to almost 10 percent of the union’s membership. Company officials said that a very small number of managers would be laid off.

“If the revenue is not there, then we have to cut expenses,” Michael Lorenca, executive vice president of Human Resources, told Guild officers. He said he did not know how much savings would result from the layoffs.

The layoff is effective March 28. However, the Company has told members to leave today and plans to reassign their work to surviving staff.

The Guild will begin working with the company to establish which of the laid off have bumping rights into other positions.

Under our contract, employees may volunteer to be laid off. The company has said it will consider such offers.