Heavy downsizing for majour news radio station of Athens

Heavy downsizing has been taking place the last hours in SKAI radio station (also affecting the related TV station) which is expected to be completed by next month. The news, sports and road-traffic editorial departments are being stooped. Former news chief of Star Channer takes over as a Director of News for the whole media group, whereas music is being played again after 3 years suspension due to failure of loyalty agreements. 4 more layoffs occured at two other radio stations of the same media group, Melodia and Red, which will have to operate with only one sound engineer each.

The announcement of the layoffs was slow and tortuous, and the names of the 18 out of total 45 employees were being announced gradually during the day, after all holiday leaves had been revoked. Among others, layoffs included employees in single parent families and ones with partners who had also just got unemployed.  It is also worth noting that workers in SKAI were asked a year ago to accept lower pay with the promise that they will avoid being layoff.

The Board of Athens Journalists' Union, given the unspecified number of redundancies in the radio station "Skai 100.3" and the television channel 'Skai', announced a strike from 17.00 Wednesday, 31/07/13 until 13.00 Thursday, the 1st August 2013, for all journalists working in both stations. On Thursday, 1 August 2013, at 10am, there was be meeting of journalists of the radio staion in Athens Journalists' Union offices. The  Panhellenic Association of Sports Journalists also issued a complaint.

Many employees  have reacted negatively to the notice of dismissal, while they are concerned by the fact that the number of layoffs is exceeding the legal limit of 5% per month. Union spokesman Leonidas Saklampanis noted: "For the record: I did not sign my dismissal which is considered illegal. And will take legal action. "Zenobia Sapouna noted:" The time has come! I was fired from Skai radio. And it is not just that I was fired, but that I had an opinion. And make of fits, wear it. "

Satyrical blogger Pitsirikos, who left Skai on his own few years ago, threw a nail in the matter of certain glee: "Fortunately I do not have a job, so that I can get fired and there are people who would be happy about it."I just heard from a radio in the adjacent courtyard, the song "this silence is making me sad".