Australia: major publisher cuts newsroom jobs

Australian publisher John Fairfax has announced that it will eliminate 55 journalists' jobs.  The cuts will amount to about a 7.5% loss in editorial staff between its main papers, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age. 

Last year, the publisher accepted the voluntary redundancy of 36 journalists.  The most recent cuts are blamed on "laclustre revenue performance." 

The cuts come only ten days after a popular former rugby coach took over as CEO of Fairfax.  His sign on bonus was $A1.2 million, a sum that many journalists feel contributed to their job losses.

Source: The Guardian