PIPs

At 67, it was time for me to leave Reuters. A buyout in ’05 was a perfect opportunity for a mutually beneficial parting of ways. A dinosaur leaves, clearing the way for a young hard-charger. When the company was taken over, I anticipated senior editors would be targets because they were paid well and were the strongest guild members. However, I anticipated that the process would be civil. This PIP process is a mean and hateful attack on employees. The nature of news agency work does not lend itself to perfect copy. I have been made aware of the newsroom situation from the inside, and I suspect dozens of employees would use voluntary buyouts to sprint for the exits. ■