Buffalo News publisher Stan Lipsey

On Friday I read with some foreboding that Denver’s venerable daily, the Rocky Mountain News (est. April 23, 1859) had folded. That same day, Buffalo News publisher Stan Lipsey sent this memo to Buffalo News staffer:

From: News Publisher Stan Lipsey
To: All News Employees
Re: Reducing expenses at The News

I’m sorry to report that, since our meetings with employees last month,  the economic picture at The News has worsened. And now, with large metropolitan papers around the nation declaring bankruptcy or going out of business, we feel we need to act quickly.

In an effort to stabilize The News’ economics, the executive team has been working diligently to reduce costs. This is absolutely necessary in order to balance the significant reduction in advertising and circulation revenue we are experiencing.  February will be the fourth consecutive month in which the company has struggled with profitability.

Those cost reductions will take many forms, but one of them, unfortunately, is the likelihood of layoffs. Today we have detailed 52 layoffs among Buffalo Newspaper Guild employees – 33 in circulation, eight in editorial, eight in classified advertising, two in accounting and one in marketing/NIE.  These layoffs may be mitigated by successful discussions between the company and the Guild, which are expected to begin Monday.  In addition, approximately 26 News employees (not all in the Guild) have accepted the current buyout offer, which has been extended until next Friday for the Guild.

Among other cost-cutting measures are a wage freeze among non-union employees, reductions in newsprint usage through the redesign of such products as TV Topics and NeXt, and the moving of Niagara Bureau personnel in to the main newsroom.  All of these new measures, and others, follow several years of efforts to reduce costs; unfortunately, those efforts have fallen short of what is necessary.

We know that we share with you the crucial aim of keeping The Buffalo News and its mission viable as we reinvent the company amidst changing times. We ask for your help, understanding and cooperation in the weeks ahead. We will be successful if we all work together.

Last fall, about a dozen of 110 employees offered buyouts (none of them in editorial) accepted them, according to a Buffalo News report last month on its own troubles. In January, the News approached 300 more employees with buyout offers of $60,000 or more. The News has about 820 employees, according to the same report.

UPDATE: The Guild has just released a response to Lipsey’s memo:

The Buffalo Newspaper Guild is extremely disappointed that Publisher Stan Lipsey would send out a memo regarding potential layoffs before the Guild has had the opportunity to work with managers to avoid these losses.

News executives would be better served working together with the union on cost-cutting alternatives that could reduce, if not eliminate, the layoff numbers. Our bargaining agreement requires both sides to discuss feasible alternatives before staff reductions are implemented.

The Guild has had a long history of saving The News money over the years. We will be working tirelessly in the coming days to do everything possible to secure both the future of The News and the livelihood of employees who have given so much to this company and this community.

The Buffalo Newspaper Guild is the largest union at The News, representing nearly 300 employees, including the newsroom, classified advertising, circulation, customer service and accounting and bookkeeping.

Here’s UB President John Simpson stumping for his UB2020 plan to “over 600 community leaders” last September at Babeville. Looks like a healthy cross-section of our community, huh? You can read the press release from the UB News Center here.

Now, the plan is coming under criticism from United University Professions, NYSUT, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the AFL-CIO and several other labor unions, expressing grave concerns about the plan’s impact on workers, and the potential for it to radically change the public nature—not only of UB, but of the entire SUNY system.

Here’s a link to the story as reported on the University Heights Answer Lady blog, and below, as reported on Monday by Tom Campbell at WNY Labor Today:

The University At Buffalo’s A-S/2020 Bill Runs Into Trouble With
Organized Labor/Union Officials Say Present Draft Is Anti-Labor (more…)

Tonight Citizen Action hosts a town hall meeting at Allen Hall on UB’s South Campus to encourage the governor and the state legislator to implement a progressive tax to address the state’s budget gap rather than across-the-board budget cuts. It begins at 7pm.

It’s called the “Progressive Income Tax – Fair Share Town Hall Meeting.”

There’s currently a bill in the State Senate that would increase by two percent income taxes on those who earn more than $250,000. The bill’s sponsors say it will raise more than $6 billion in new revenue. Right now New Yorkers who earn more than $40,000 pay the same marginal tax rate of 6.85 percent.

Erie County owns and maintains more than 1,000 electric typewriters.

Nissan NV200

Nissan will be introducing a new, small van at the 79th International Motor Show, which opens next week in Geneva, Switzerland. They’re calling it a “move into the global small van market,” but they aren’t saying whether or not it will ever come to North America. The NV200 is just over 173 inches long. Compare that to the new Ford Transit Connect (which we’ll see here soon) at just over 179 inches, and for comparison’s sake, the 2005 Chevy Astro Van which was a hair over 189 inches, and the 1997 Ford Aerostar at 175 inches. So it’s not too small for our market, unlike many micro-vans on the streets of Japan.  The NV200 is scheduled to hit the home (Japanese) market before this summer; Europe should see it by autumn, followed by China and “other markets.”

Here it is, hot off the presses. Funny, we never used to get this kind of stuff from the last Presidential administration, and we still don’t get this kind of stuff from our own city hall.

Thanks once again to everyone who came out to Mardi Gras 2009! To our Queens of Mardi Gras, bands and performers, parade participants, bars and clubs, and everyone else involved – thank you for making this year another great success.

We’ve put together a photo gallery so you can either reminisce, or see what you missed. This first group of photos are care of Artvoice photographer Rose Mattrey. We’ll be adding some more Mardi Gras 2009 media soon.

Start the slide show!

2009 Ford Fiesta (built to Chinese spec)

Ford announced that last week it built 100 Ford Fiestas to U.S. specifications at its plant in Cologne, Germany. The cars will be shipped here and given to 100 “millennials” (those born between 1979 and 1995) to drive and give feedback to Ford product planners before the car’s official launch in North America next year. “It’s all part of a plan to build excitement and spread the word about the arrival of the new Ford Fiesta to the next generation of customers,” said Sam De La Garza, Ford’s small car marketing manager. “These 100 socially-vibrant Fiesta Movement ‘Agents’ will then relate their driving experiences through social media sites such as Facebook, FlickR and YouTube.”

Pretty cool, if you happen to be one of the lucky “Agents.” Guys like me, who missed being a millennial by a couple of decades or so, patiently await a call from Buick for input on upcoming orthopedic seat designs and special night vision windshields.

Senator Chuck Schumer has just released this letter to OMB Director Peter Orszag, asking the Obama administration to tell governors that they must accept all the stimulus money offered their states or none at all. No cherry-picking allowed:

February 24, 2009

Dear Director Orszag:

In recent days, a small minority of governors, mostly Republicans, have publicly weighed the possibility of foregoing certain emergency provisions provided under the American Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act signed last week by President Obama. I believe this prospect not only would undercut the stimulative effect of the recovery package, but also is inconsistent with a key provision included in the law passed by Congress. To protect the integrity of the recovery program, I urge the administration to issue implementation guidance clarifying that while any Governor may exercise his or her discretion to accept or reject the federal funds provided in the stimulus, no Governor should have the authority to arbitrarily adopt a select subset of the overall package.

Senator Chuck Schumer

As you know, Section 1607(a) of the economic recovery legislation provides that the Governor of each state must certify a request for stimulus funds before any money can flow. No language in this provision, however, permits the governor to selectively adopt some components of the bill while rejecting others. To allow such picking and choosing would, in effect, empower the governors with a line-item veto authority that President Obama himself did not possess at the time he signed the legislation. It would also undermine the overall success of the bill, as the components most singled out for criticism by these governors are among the most productive measures in terms of stimulating the economy.

For instance, at least two governors have proposed rejecting a program to expand unemployment insurance for laid-off workers. Economists consistently rank unemployment insurance among the most efficient and cost-effective fiscal stimulus measures; by one frequently cited estimate, it provides an economic return of as high as $1.73 for every dollar invested. Thus, by denying this provision for their residents, these governors are not just depriving some of the neediest Americans of relief in a dire economy; they are undermining the overall stimulative impact of the package.

No one would dispute that these governors should be given the choice as to whether to accept the funds or not. But it should not be multiple choice. The composition of the package was rightly dictated by economic considerations; we should not let the implementation of the package be dictated by political considerations.

Sincerely,

Charles E. Schumer
United States Senator

As a host of Republican governors said they would turn up their noses at stimulus money, a friend sent me the chart below to remind me which states receive the most federal spending per dollar they pay in federal taxes:

Via the Tax Foundation.