The much-awaited massive staff lay-off at Standard Media Group, which seeks to trim personnel by 30%, appears inevitable. A 10-minute meeting held today morning at the firm’s headquarters sealed the fate of employees targeted in what will be one of the biggest retrenchments in the media industry in Kenya.
The meeting heightened tension among staff, most of whom are not sure about their stay the Standard Group Centre on Mombasa Road and I&M Building in the city centre.
“You will start receiving your dismissal letters from Monday next week,” said the company’s chief executive Sam Shollei, visibly not in his best moods, while addressing staff.
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High-profile sources at the country’s oldest media house but second in market share and profitability after Nation Media Group, have told Business Today that the processing of the ‘voluntary and early retirement’ that was announced last month will be finalised this Thursday.
There has been low morale among staff, with the company’s main outfit, the Standard Newspaper, fighting for survival in the market. The firm seems to be focused on squeezing more from less staff. Even the recently launched TV news channel KTN News is already recycling staff from the parent KTN newsroom, something which analysts say will water down the new outfit’s impact in the market.
The Kenya Union of Journalists has already hired a lawyer, who is poised to fight for its members in case they are affected. This could complicate the Standard Group’s survival plan as its balance sheet is already strained with huge legal costs ranging from the cases involving the sacking of senior editors including Chaacha Mwita and Jenny Luesby as well as legal head Ronald Lubya, whose total sum is about Ksh100 million.
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