Nation Media Group (NMG) has continued to plough through its workforce in effort to trim its payroll and position itself in the digital space.
Two people with firsthand knowledge of the matter informed Kenyans.co.ke, under the condition of anonymity, that a total of 20 correspondents received termination letters on Tuesday.
Unlike in previous instances where the termination letters were sent by the Human Resource Department, the source indicated that the affected individuals received their letters directly from NMG's legal office with the subject line "Notice of Termination of Agreement."
As per the termination letter obtained by Kenyans.co.ke, the correspondents were granted a one-month notice, with their final day at the Twin Towers scheduled for September 15.
"This is to give notice that Nation Media Group PLC intends to terminate the agreement. The Notice shall take effect on the date of this letter (August 15). Consequently, you shall not be obligated under the agreement by submitting stories for publication after 15th September, 2023," read the notice in part.
One of the impacted individuals read malice in the termination procedure, highlighting that it singled out correspondents based on their comparatively lower financial impact on the employer throughout the entire process.
"Usually, correspondents are the easiest to sack because no payment is due to them. They have been given a one month notice meaning they will not be given anything," the source stated.
The dismissals occurred approximately two weeks following a tense quarter 3 meeting held by the media house on August 2. The meeting was attended both physically by its Kimathi Street staff and virtually by its correspondents and reporters stationed at bureaus nationwide.
During that period, there was a notable sense of tension among correspondents who harboured concerns about the security of their positions. This apprehension stemmed from the Wednesday meeting, which aimed to implement substantial changes to the media house's brands.
For instance, some of the journalists attached to Taifa Leo were sent packing. The retained staff consisted exclusively of translators, who will be responsible for translating content from the Daily Nation for the Swahili-language publication.
On August 10, the media house sent out a notice to its staff announcing its intention to restore a paywall for its prime stories. Nation will also introduce a gaming division aimed at keeping its paying subscribers engaged.
"We are implementing a hard paywall that will require customers visiting our site to subscribe and pay to access exclusive and premium content. Access to non-prime content will remain free. We have various membership plans; weekly, monthly or annually," read the statement in part.
"To ensure we deliver a superior experience and reward our premium members we shall offer them additional benefits, during their subscription period, which include advert-free reading experience, free breaking news SMS alerts, and free access to exciting gaming."
The outlet implemented the paywall on August 10 to collect emails from its visitors who will be allowed to access the content for free before a fee is implemented in a month's time.
In 2022, Nation toyed with the idea of shunning overreliance on advertising by launching a paywall that netted Ksh5 million in its first year. The media house, however, later removed it and put the project on hold.
