Sacked Mediamax Employees Come Face to Face With Their Managers

Mediamax Networks Ltd has called the 160 workers earmarked for sacking for a meeting at a Nairobi hotel. Employees, drawn from various departments, are expected to get their letters at the meeting, which spell out the terms of termination. [ see updated list of those sacked at the end ]

They were informed of the meeting yesterday through personal phone calls by the human resources office.

The management has also invited counselors and financial experts to give talks to those affected as they prepare to face life outside.

The meeting, being held at Emory Hotel in Kileleshwa from 8am today, is expected to be emotional, as sacked employees try to come to terms with their employer’s decision.

The management may have decided to hold the meeting outside the office to minimise work disruptions and away from the CBD to avoid public limelight.

Losing a job is not easy, and moving on afterwards even harder.

Insiders at Mediamax, where 10 K24 TV journalists have been sacked, say the counseling session should have come earlier and not at the exit point. The lay-off has mainly focused on radio and TV, as the company seeks to reduce operational costs.

Meanwhile, the sackings at Mediamax remain the talk of town, with the unprecedented move of sacking all editors from K24. The station has been left in the hands of Eric Njoka and a number of reporters. The company is expected to reorganize the team.

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At Kameme TV the whole newsroom was sent home after management decided to change strategy by scrapping news gathering to concentrate on entertainment.

People Daily has so far not suffered major casualty apart from three journalists who left last week ahead of the lay-off. Oscar Obonyo, who had joined from Standard, left even earlier barely a month after reporting to rejoin Nation Media Group.

Instead, the People Daily has hired former Daily Nation journalist Emeka Mayaka who reported on Monday on the features desk.

K24 Staff Sacked

1. Fred Njiri – Managing Editor K24

2. Tony Timase – Head of Business k24

3. Torome Tirike – Head of Sports

4. Franklin Wambugu – Managing Editor, Swahili

5. Boniface Mutakha – Managing Editor, English

6. Frankilin Macharia – Senior Reporter 

7. Anders Ihaji – Political reporter

8. Ali Mtenzi- Deputy Managing Editor

9. Mwanaisha Chidzuga – Swahili anchor

10. Juma Bhalo – Swahili Anchor. 

Emoo FM

1. Erick Rono of News

2. Sir-Eliud Eliud (Kiprotich Eliud) of News

3. Abraham Kiplimo of Business News

4. Kiplagat Kwambai (Ng’ombe Hamsini ) 

5. Benwaa Cheruiyot of Sports 6.

6. Edwin Arap Tanui

7. Julius Kibet

Kameme FM

Moses Kanyira –  reporter and continuity announcer

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