The Guardian job cuts 'worrying for journalism'

Guardian News and Media, which owns The Guardian and The Observer newspapers, is to cut another 250 jobs in its latest effort to erase losses that came in at nearly £60m last year.

In total, the group will slash its workforce by 310 jobs, with 60 current vacancies not being filled, The Guardian itself reports. There will be 100 positions cut from editorial, which hope will be executed through voluntary redundancies, although they have not ruled out compulsory cuts if not enough staff come forward.

The company made a loss of £58.6m for the year to the end of March, while the Scott Trust fund that finances the group's activities burned through £80m in cash. It was actually £100m down overall for the year to January at around £740m, the Daily Telegraph notes, but has since been bolstered by the proceeds from its latest disposal of a stake in an events joint venture.

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Cuts are being made across the sector as newspapers struggle to replace lucrative print advertising revenue amid a continuing shift online by readers and increasing competition for news delivery from the likes of Facebook and Google.

The Independent newspapers will print their last issues next week, with the loss of 100 jobs, while News UK, which publishes The Sun and The Times, is also shedding 100 roles.

Michelle Stanistreet, the general secretary of the National Union of Journalists, said: "We will oppose any compulsory redundancies [at the Guardian]. This news, together with the loss of jobs as the Independent newspapers fold, presents a very worrying situation for the future of newspapers."

The Guardian staff endured a previous round of redundancies four years ago, when, The Times notes, 70 jobs were axed after the papers racked up losses of close to £76m. Since then, it has expanded overseas and added around 476 roles to take its global headcount to 1,960. The new cuts will be exclusively from the UK workforce, which currently stands at 1,750.

The group has also abandoned plans to transform a former train depot opposite The Guardian's head office in Kings Cross into a bespoke events space. The company says it hopes the changes, combined with a new membership proposition, will see it reverse annual losses within the next three years,