CEP condemns job losses at Sun Media

OTTAWA, Nov. 13, 2012 /CNW/ - The 500 job losses at Sun Media newspaper division underline the short-sighted strategies of a giant media company, says the largest media union in the country.

"Dramatic downsizing is not the tool to use if newspapers want to transition into the local or national multimedia powerhouses they need to become." said Paul Morse, president of CEP Local 87-M, Southern Ontario News Media Guild. "This is a terrible day for quality journalism and good paying media jobs in Canada".

Today, Sun Media announced downsizing in Québec and the closure of two production facilities in Ottawa and Kingston.

"Once you kill what makes a newspaper valuable to its community by getting rid of too many of those people who produce quality content, you lose your audience, possibly forever." said CEP Vice-President Media, Peter Murdoch. "We recognize that newspapers face some economic challenges, but wholesale gutting of news organizations is not the way to position themselves for the future".

The Southern Ontario News Media Guild (SONG) represents over 600 members at 13 Sun Media newspapers across Ontario, including The Toronto Sun, Belleville Intelligencer, Chatham DailyNews, Brantford Expositor, London Free Press, Niagara Falls Review, Ottawa Sun, Owen Sound Sun Times, Pembroke Observer, St. Catharines Standard, Sarnia Observer, Simcoe Reformer and Stratford Beacon-Herald.

The Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada is the largest union in several key sectors of Canada's economy, including forestry, energy, telecommunications and media. The union's 120,000 members work at a wide variety of jobs in hundreds of different workplaces across the country.

SOURCE: COMMUNICATIONS, ENERGY AND PAPERWORKERS UNION OF CANADA

Paul Morse, Southern Ontario News Media Guild, CEP Local 87-M: [phone]

Peter Murdoch, CEP Vice-President Media: [phone]