I should probably keep my mouth shut about this, but why start second-guessing myself now?
I don’t think laying off employees by telephone is necessarily a cowardly or indecent act. At least not on Courant Editor Cliff Teutsch’s part.
I know I would be pretty upset if my boss called me into his office, sat me down, and told me to my face that my job was being eliminated.
I would be pissing myself on the long walk to his office, and feeling ashamed, even while knowing I had done nothing to deserve what was about to happen to me. I would not want to walk back to my desk and have to cope with the looks or questions from my co-workers. (Nor would I know what to say to comfort others in my same position.) I would need some time to compose myself, and talk to my wife and family.
I think, in that respect, Cliff did his co-workers a favor in giving them the bad news in the privacy of their own homes… or, unfortunately, while they were away on vacation. (That kind of sucks, I admit.)
Also, I give credit to Cliff for making so many, if not all, of those calls himself. He could have easily asked his department heads to do it. More cowardly bosses would have. So at least each person got the word from the top himself.
I think Cliff Teutsch is a decent man who has chosen to undertake a terrible job. Part of his reason for that choice, I believe, is his respect for the rest of us. The rest? I have no idea.
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You are a better man than I am, Paul. And you have a lot more time for those people than I do. A lot more.
I heard of one reporter who got the news and broke down in front of the children, who had never seen their mother cry. How often did that happen? I’m sorry that the bosses had the burden of laying off people but I’m a hell of a lot sorrier that the people got dumped for no doing of their own.
They didn’t have this sudden burst of compassion for the poor employees in the hundreds of other staff reductions. I think it was unprofessional, coupled with the hanging-in-the-wind element and speaks very badly of them. One and all.
You’re right, probably, but I still disagree, strongly.
denis
Yes, they’re decent people who did this, but what they did wasn’t decent: It was unconscionable. Decent people make poor decisions under pressure, and informing people by phone was wrong. Longtime, dedicated editors and reporters were left hanging in the wind for weeks, worried about their jobs, their careers, their futures, their homes, their families — everything — and the managing editors didn’t have the decency to finally give people the news face to face. A meeting leaves people with at least one last shred of dignity, and a sense that at least the managers had the courage to face people; a curt phone call doesn’t. There was a time when some managers at other companies — perhaps even at the Courant — would have quit before they were forced to make such calls to their staff. There are ways to hold the meetings so that people wouldn’t be forced to walk back through the newsroom in shock or in tears. With the phone calls, the managing editors were spared the unforgettable sight of seeing their former colleagues break down in tears.
The way the layoffs were announced was just another bad decision among many. Everyone’s scared in the newsroom, afraid to speak out about anything. No one gets any straight answers anymore — about circulation, readers’ responses to changes, further restructuring plans, further redesigns (done without input from the staff or readers). The phone calls were just another way of telling people: We make the decisions, behind closed doors.
As if there is a good way to do this.
One thing I am learning, though, from the Great Recession: Talking about acting out of principle — as in resigning rather than laying someone off — is far and away easier than actually doing it and risking an uncertain future. Peoples’ principles tend to weaken when their asses are on the line, and I wouldn’t want mine to be tested in that way, for fear I wouldn’t live up to my words.
It seems that phoning the layoff notice is a common thing these days.
People that worked for Bank of America in Hartford told me that they were laid off by a boss via phone as well but in the office.
What bothers me most is some employees these day don’t know what there Boss looks like .
Good Luck to you all recently laid off
I got the layoff news at work last July. Of course, before I took the long walk from Features to Cliff’s office, I already knew: just seeing his name on my phone was enough of a clue. My feeling was and still is that work, not home, is the appropriate place to hear you are being let go. I think it is essential that the person delivering the news should look the recipient in the eye.
Sure, I cried in the office (Features, not Cliff’s) after I heard. So what? So did my editors and friends when I stumbled back to Features. The response was real, kind and loving. We held a short impromptu meeting, people got a chance to offer their condolences and outrage on my behalf, spontaneously and with genuine feeling.
I don’t believe that kind of emotional outpouring would have happened if we had all waited till the next day….it would have happened, but not with the same immediacy and power. Looking back, I treasure those moments…. and am glad that if I had to hear bad news, I got to hear it at my Hartford Courant home with my Hartford Courant family.
I would not want to be fired in front of my co-workers. It’s embarrassing. And given the advance notice, everyone is watching and waiting. You’re on stage for possibly the worst moment of your life.
I’d honestly prefer a phone call, e-mail, text message or Tweet. It least there’s some privacy.
But I’m also in my 20s — perhaps this is new-school thinking. I don’t know. Us Generation [Whatever-ers] aren’t as face-to-face as generations past.
But yeah. Here’s to hoping I still have a job come Monday!
And you thought being laid off by telephone was bad. Keep reading.
I heard one Courant employee found out via computer. He went to TribLink to change how much money was to be taken out for taxes from his paycheck every two weeks. Under a column that indicates paycheck status, it said “Final Paycheck.”