Standard Group has announced plans to declare redundancies owing to the harsh economic times affecting the media industry.
In a notice served to all the employees and published on its online platforms, the media house based along Mombasa Road revealed that over 300 employees would be affected.
The media house explained that the move was necessitated owing to the strained generation of revenue while taking into consideration a sizable workforce.
Therefore, the media house noted it was forced to undertake organisation restructuring by letting some of the workers go.
As detailed by the group, the communication was a one-month notice and the layoffs will commence on August 31.
"As part of its compliance procedures, the Standard Group PLC issued a notice of intention to declare redundancy as stipulated in section 40 (1) of the Employment Act, 2007.
"In reaching this decision, we took into consideration, the difficult operating environment and its long-drawn effect on revenue generation," read the notice in part.
The relevant offices will inform employees affected by the redundancies in writing in the coming days.
However, despite being laid off, the media house detailed that the employees would be entitled to some benefits as they exit the company.
Some of the benefits include payment for days worked until the date of exit. The over 300 employees who had pending leave days will also be getting payment for the leave days accrued.
The group also reiterated that it would be paying the pending pension dues to the affected employees.
Meanwhile, more changes are expected to be undertaken within the media house and its products as the company integrates digital media into their operations.
Some of the platforms run by the media house include KTN Home, KTN News, The Standard, Radio Maisha, Spice FM and The Nairobian.
"Coupled with the new leadership that is coming on board, we consider the reorganization of our business as a necessary step intended to ensure business stability and continuity in the coming months as the Group strives to sustain and enhance the quality of journalism it offers.
"Additionally, we shall rationalize our products to ensure that they remain aligned with the media landscape," read the statement in part.
Notably, Standard Group is not the only media house to have done mass layoffs of employees. A similar scenario was witnessed at Nation Media Group in June.
Similar to Standard, NMG explained that the decision to declare redundancies was necessitated by the tough economic times that have affected their revenues and the need to transition to digital media which is rapidly evolving.
