Tension is high at Standard Media Group following the firing of several senior staff with reports that mass layoffs are looming.
According to a local publication, some of the station’s longest-serving staff members have been most affected with journalists from both KTN and the Newspaper targeted.
Some of those affected include Ellen Wanjiru, the KTN managing Editor, Standard Sub-editor Anthony Malesi and Kiswahili TV anchor Frank Otieno.
Others are Standard Newspaper reporters Moses Njagi and Protus Onyango, KTN News Editor Patrick Injendi and Former Kakamega Bureau Chief, John Atambo.
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In what the management is terming as a redundancy move, those affected reportedly received their letters yesterday, Sunday 29, 2020, and were directed to appear at the Human Resource Management office today, Monday.
“The affected journalists received email communication yesterday informing them that they have been declared redundant. They were to have a virtual meeting today, but that was dropped this morning. They were then asked to avail themselves at the HR office to pick their letters. It’s a purge,” the publication quotes.
“Some of those affected will attend a virtual meeting with the HR as they were on assignment and are currently on self-isolation,” the source added.
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Earlier in August, the Media house which owns KTN Home, Standard Newspaper, KTN News, KTN Burudani, the Nairobian paper, Radio Maisha, Spice FM as well as several digital platforms laid off staffers in a cost-cutting measure.
The employer notified the affected employees of the decision to send them home via text and emails.
Standard Group Management is in the process of setting up a modern newsroom where human resource assets will be leveraged to achieve synergy in line with the “convergence” dream.
Prior to that, the media house had revealed plans to let go at least 170 staffers across all departments in a new restructuring move.
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Through a notice dated March 18, 2020, the Company CEO Orlando Lyomu indicated that the redundancies would be effected in phases.
The CEO stated that the move was necessitated by various factors including the need to realign the organization structure to be better equipped to deal with emerging business challenges brought about by regulatory changes and difficult business environments.
Other factors cited were the shifting trends in media consumption due to technology changes and other efficiencies arising from automation of key internal processes.
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