Now They're Stealing Vacation Time!!!

[therealjm12]

Sounds like one of the beloved, caring mom & pop owners I once worked for. I think they "allowed" one roll of TP and one roll of paper towels a week. Once it was gone you were SOL (so to speak).

Sounds like a station I worked at back in the day -maybe the same one. Mom & Pop claimed someone (no not me) stole the tiolet paper if they put more out. My reasoning behind it was if they paid people a decent wage they wouldn't have to "steal" tiolet paper. Maybe, in retrospect, the good old days weren't so good either.

 

[Bakers_Bookstore]

http://www.oag.state.ny.us/bureaus/labor/employer.html

Payment Of Benefits Or Wage Supplements: New York State law does not require an employer to pay or provide fringe benefits or wage supplements unless he has promised to do so. No employee has a statutory right to vacation pay, paid sick leave or employer-provided health insurance.
Under New York state law, it is a crime for an employer to fail to furnish those benefits which he has agreed to pay as part of an employee's total compensation package. An agreement to provide fringe benefits need not be in writing. In agreeing to provide fringe benefits, an employer may establish the conditions under which they will be provided. For example, it is legal for an employer to have a vacation policy which requires that earned vacation not taken during a specified period be forfeited, as long as that condition is not imposed after the vacation was earned. A benefit accrued in accordance with all the conditions attached to it at the time it was offered, cannot thereafter be lost by the imposition of a subsequent condition. Nor may an employer deny earned benefits to an employee because he leaves his employment.
Fringe benefits or wage supplements must be paid or provided within thirty days after they are required by the agreement between the employer and the employee.

I am not an attorney and I don’t know the specifics of how Citiadel imposed their new policy, but in reading the NY law above it seems that they can change the vacation policy if they so choose. The only thing that they would be required to do is allow accrued vacation time to be used, or pay the employee for that time prior to the new policy taking effect.

This law may vary state to state so while the above is true in NY, it might not be true in other states where Citadel owns property. It is what it is.

 

[Kent]

I feel no sympathy for a company whose stock is selling for pennies a share, yet the top managers are paid millions of dollars, plus getting additional perks, while the latest company edict is to take away vacation time and continue to fire long-time employees just to save a buck.

I have to agree with you here. I don't think Farid and Judy care how much vacation time they have or how badly the stock is doing. After all, they're still getting compensated above and beyond what they do, and, if Citadel is like every other company I've worked for, the management can go anywhere at anytime without much regard to how much vacation they have. If they go to Hawaii, they find some business reason to be there. If they go anywhere they have a station, even if it's for their own personal pleasure, they stop by the station for a few minutes a day and call it a business trip.

Personally I wouldn’t shed a tear if these companies went bankrupt. Maybe then, at fire sales, someone who truly cares about broadcasting will buy up some of these radio properties and actually do something positive with them instead of the current philosophy of rape and pillage.

I disagree with you here simply because too many good people will suffer before the dead weight running the company get run off. Some people will write that off either as a cost of business, or they'll say there are no good people at these companies because they work for the same people running them into the ground and, by helping them, are giving up any redeeming qualities they have. However, those of us who have worked in any business for any length of time know better.

 

[Yeziknoradio]

deleted due to repeat.

 

[Yeziknoradio]

Perhaps the idea is to model after Canada, which dictates that wether you work in Radio, or any other business, the basic law is one week for every 6 months worked.

That's two weeks per year. No law to suggest any other time beyond that.

There must be some sort of cap on this. Work somewhere 13 years & get 6 months vacation? I don't think so.

There is. The same law supports a use it or lose it clause.

One week for every 6 months worked, but if you do not take that week off before year's end, all you get is an extra week's pay.(per 6 months)

Also, you *may not* let that week carry over into the next year.

In other words, it's ok to work all year and take two weeks off in December, but it is not ok to take the last week off in December and the first week off in January, for example (unless something is worked out)

This is also a basic rule. Much like how the minimum wage is just a guide.
Employers are not allowed to dictate a wage lower than the minimum, and they also may not dictate vacation time any less than the basic amount of time alloted.

 

[Radknowski]

From what I've read and heard, Citadel's problems aren't the result of their medium market radio stations, but their major market clusters which are under-performing and the extreme weight of debt service. Judy Ellis and Farid Suleman may be living on borrowed time, but it's not likely they worry about it because each is said to have a platinum parachute.

The guy to watch is Ted Forstmann who owns the largest block of Citadel stock, outside of the 52% Reverse Morris Trust block owned by Disney shareholders. Technically speaking, Disney shareholders own Citadel. Forstmann is a dynamic and mercurial personality whose patience may be running out as he looks at a share price under 20 cents.

As to suggestions of the whole business going bust, this is not a good scenario and I wouldn't like to see it happen for many reasons. Too many of my friends' lives would be disrupted, mostly men and women on the bottom end of the food chain. Think Jack is an uninteresting format because it's mostly unstaffed? If the business goes bust, we'll see more Jacks, Freds, Mikes and Fickles than could ever be imagined. Stations would automate middays and nights, and the only live daypart(s) would be morning drive (and possibly p.m. drive.)

As of this writing, credit is ridiculously tight. Banks aren't lending to enterpreneurs who want to re-create the good old days of the radio business, especially at a time when radio may have a lower start-up lending score than bars and restaurants. Like it or not, lenders, banks and Wall Street perceive of the economics of radio to be highly unfavorable. Also, it's not likely that Entercom, Citadel, Cumulus, Emmis, etc. are going to spin off clusters for less than what they believe to be fair market value. The worm turns (to quote Willem Dafoe in "Platoon.")

The business was "sold" to Wall Street and venture capital investors as a way to make lots of fast money: Buy, sell, swap, trade up, get big and get out. Consolidation looked very good on paper and for a while it worked, then reality set in and we all know what happened. The chickens have come home to roost.

 

[The Voice of Reason]

Think Jack is an uninteresting format because it's mostly unstaffed? If the business goes bust, we'll see more Jacks, Freds, Mikes and Fickles than could ever be imagined. Stations would automate middays and nights, and the only live daypart(s) would be morning drive (and possibly p.m. drive.)

Your prediction is right on target. What's going to happen is that after morning drive AM stations will feature syndicated talk shows, while FM stations will use voice tracking.
Mid-day and overnight jobs will soon become of thing of the past.
Some stations might still keep afternoon drive, only to placate motorists driving home who desire to hear traffic reports. (Traffic reporters however will be located in another city so I suggest getting a GPU device for Christmas).

 

[cee]

Yes, voicetracking will dominate in due time. Live morning show and then the computer takes over and then perhaps in the evening, a satellite show. Who's going to be doing the all the voicetracking with hardly any staff left? Not to worry, those voice automated systems that repeat what you type in our your phone keypad - they will be perfected in due time and then even the voicetracking will be done with fake voices. Boy, will be a cost saver. And it will be even more boring.

 

[Steven21]

Your prediction is right on target. What's going to happen is that after morning drive AM stations will feature syndicated talk shows, while FM stations will use voice tracking.
Mid-day and overnight jobs will soon become of thing of the past.
Some stations might still keep afternoon drive, only to placate motorists driving home who desire to hear traffic reports. (Traffic reporters however will be located in another city so I suggest getting a GPU device for Christmas).

And less and less and less talent will be developed---until the pool to draw from (even for VTing and syndie talk shows) will have all but dried up.

Listeners are given less and less and less reason to bother tuning in radio every year.

The powers that be are creating an environment that will cause the radio business to eventually obliterate itself.

Wanna know how bad things are going to get for the listener down the road? Most poeople I know who haven't already gotten out of the business, are either preparing to, or looking for any opportunity to change careers.

I wish the management of these companies would think about that a bit, as they continue to aid in the permanent destruction of what was once a golden goose.

These SOB's could've made money without devastating the product's quality---but they instead chose to make that much more profit by salting the Earth after each harvest.

Quite the fine mixture of greed and stupidity.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

With all this would you believe..... Someone actually posted a question on the Charlotte board asking what broadcasting school they should go to! I had to be putting us on!

 

[cee]

And less and less and less talent will be developed---until the pool to draw from (even for VTing and syndie talk shows) will have all but dried up.

Listeners are given less and less and less reason to bother tuning in radio every year.

The powers that be are creating an environment that will cause the radio business to eventually obliterate itself.

Wanna know how bad things are going to get for the listener down the road? Most poeople I know who haven't already gotten out of the business, are either preparing to, or looking for any opportunity to change careers.

I wish the management of these companies would think about that a bit, as they continue to aid in the permanent destruction of what was once a golden goose.

These SOB's could've made money without devastating the product's quality---but they instead chose to make that much more profit by salting the Earth after each harvest.

Quite the fine mixture of greed and stupidity.

As Ed McMahon might say: "You are correct, sir"

 

[oldiesfan6479]

...Someone actually posted a question on the Charlotte board asking what
broadcasting school they should go to!

Why the Columbia School of Broadcasting, of course!

Not affiliated with CBS.

One could derisively respond to the above disclaimer with either "aren't we lucky"
or "aw, I was hoping that Dan Mason's head bean counter would be my instructor." :

 

[Steven21]

Anyone interested in a career in radio really SHOULD get a degree in accounting. That's apparently more important than understanding the medium.

 

[The Voice of Reason]

Anyone interested in a career in radio really SHOULD get a degree in accounting. That's apparently more important than understanding the medium.

I would be curious to find out just how many young people are interested in a career in radio anymore? From what I've learned personally, and here on this board, one seems better off trying to get a job in a Buffalo steel mill than finding gainful employment in radio. As many have already stated, including yours truly, after morning drive, there are little if any jobs left in radio. AM stations tend to run syndicated talk shows while FM stations go with voice tracking.
It's a shame to see this business go down the toilet just because of incompetent management and owners.

 

[Yeziknoradio]

It costs alot of money to run a radio station and nothing to turn on the radio.

Times have changed alot, but I still don't understand the difference between trying to get the attention of the ipod user today, and getting my attention back in the day...back when I used to enjoy listening to casette tapes.

WKSE & others got my ear somehow then, and therefore shouldn't have any trouble today.

 

[Radknowski]

Interesting observation, Yezi:

Everybody had mix tapes - cassettes back in the day, featuring songs gleaned from their favorite FM radio stations because the sound was so good (minus the jocks and commercials) or songs from LPs. Usually the tapes featured new music. It was a very primative tribal thing. What's happening today is much the same but with improved technology, better clarity and more importantly, immediacy. Like a song or video? You can connect with your friends all over the world witha few keystrokes. It's viral and it's potent. This is what's having a critical impact on the radio and television business today. How many commercials do you bother watching when you DVR a program? Just as I thought.

 

[shiftless]

I feel no sympathy for a company whose stock is selling for pennies a share, yet the top managers are paid millions of dollars, plus getting additional perks, while the latest company edict is to take away vacation time and continue to fire long-time employees just to save a buck.
Personally I wouldn’t shed a tear if these companies went bankrupt. Maybe then, at fire sales, someone who truly cares about broadcasting will buy up some of these radio properties and actually do something positive with them instead of the current philosophy of rape and pillage.

Question for you.Do you think that this is due to Corporate America and deregulation? What about the at will clause, I think that is an unfair law,the company will always win.

 

[The Voice of Reason]

I feel no sympathy for a company whose stock is selling for pennies a share, yet the top managers are paid millions of dollars, plus getting additional perks, while the latest company edict is to take away vacation time and continue to fire long-time employees just to save a buck.
Personally I wouldn’t shed a tear if these companies went bankrupt. Maybe then, at fire sales, someone who truly cares about broadcasting will buy up some of these radio properties and actually do something positive with them instead of the current philosophy of rape and pillage.

Question for you.Do you think that this is due to Corporate America and deregulation? What about the at will clause, I think that is an unfair law,the company will always win.

One word will answer your question: Greed! That's the driving force behind the demise of broadcasting today. There is no need for one company to own several stations in a market except for their attempts to bleed what ever they can out of these operations.
How many stations have reverted to being nothing but automated jukeboxes just because corporations have eliminated live announcers to save a buck?
I wish someone could do an in-depth study of just how many radio jobs have been eliminated during the past 20 years. Then compare what the average announcer/newsperson makes to that of a CEO or station manager. It would be interesting reading.