BANG Executive Editor Kevin Keane sent an e-mail to employees this afternoon saying the company will be cutting 10 jobs by Nov. 14, the SF Weekly reports. Eight are union members (who were not identified in the e-mail) and two are managers, Jon Kawamoto and Mike Wolcott. Keane said in the e-mail:
- “I wish circumstances were different, but as you know the newspaper industry remains on unstable ground at the moment. While I can offer no guarantees about any further staff changes, I’m cautiously optimistic that the industry will regain its footing soon. In the meantime, we wish nothing but the best to our departing colleagues.”
The Guild reached a contract with the company over the summer that prevented any layoffs until this month. At the first opportunity, the ax fell. A month earlier, the company cut the pay of most employees. Earlier this year, 57 newsroom employees took buyouts and another 38 were laid off. BANG-EB includes the Oakland Tribune, Contra Costa Times, San Mateo County Times and other papers owned by MediaNews Group.