GateHouse Media cuts 130 jobs at Quincy newspaper

GateHouse Media eliminated 130 jobs at the recently purchased Quincy Patriot-Ledger in Massachusetts, according to an article in today's Boston Globe:

GateHouse Media Inc., which owns the Quincy newspaper, said in late July it had entered into a multiyear agreement with The Boston Globe to print the Ledger and its Brockton daily, The Enterprise.

Last month, as the printing arrangement launched, the Ledger laid off 21 full-time workers - nine pressmen and a dozen other production workers. The other 109 workers were part timers, most of whom worked as few as four hours per week, stuffing inserts into papers.

Nine of the laid-off full-time employees had 234 years of cumulative experience handling printing presses, said Martin Callaghan, president of the local Pressmen's Union. The union negotiated severance pay for the pressmen based on years of service, Callaghan said.

"It's been very difficult for us," Callaghan said of placing workers with such specialized skills. "We weren't able to find jobs for these nine guys."

Linnea Walsh, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, said state workers have connected with affected workers at both newspapers, offering assistance in finding replacement jobs.

The article indicates GateHouse officials would not answer questions abour the cuts.

GateHouse Media owns The Carthage Press, Neosho Daily News, and numerous other publications in southwest Missouri.