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11:44 am, February 9, 2010
MEN Media staff moving to Oldham

MEN Media, publisher of the Manchester Evening News is set to move its operations from Manchester's Spinningfields to Oldham.

The move, announced to staff this morning, will be the second in less than a year.

Only last September, almost all of the company's staff were moved into the Scott Place headquarters after all but one of the company's satellite offices in Greater Manchester were closed down. The move coincided with 150 job losses.

Trinity Mirror, which today said it was buying parent group GMG Regional Media for £44.8m, prints MEN Media's 22 newspaper titles at its plant on Hollinwood Avenue, Chadderton.

Staff were told about the move to Oldham at a mass meeting held at the Scott Place offices this morning which was timed to coincide with the announcement of the sale to Trinity.

Some staff at GMG Regional Media reacted angrily when told that the business was being sold, with some of those present saying they felt management had let them down to be “cut adrift” after years of supporting its loss-making national titles, The Guardian and The Observer.

Channel M was excluded from the sale to Trinity and GMG has yet to make any announcement about the future of the TV station, which has racked up accumulated losses of £14.4m for MEN Media since it was launched in 2000.

Chris Wade, director of communications at Guardian Media Group, said the move to Oldham would be discussed with staff and their representatives.

He added: "On Channel M, we are considering a range of options and will update staff in due course."

MEN Media occupies around 40,000 sq ft in Scott Place, which is owned by German investment fund Hansa Invest. It is also paying for another 42,000 sq ft of vacant space which it has been unable to sublet.

Law firm DWF, currently based nearby at Centurion House, has held talks with MEN Media about taking its space in Scott Place but no deal has been agreed.

Comments?manchesternews@crain.com

One Response

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1. Oh Dear
   February 9, 2010 12:02 pm

   So "no city centre" police station and now "no city centre" newspaper. (Not to mention the imminent loss of Granada & the BBC too!) Yes, er, Manchester an international class city - DOH!Over to you Messrs Leese, Stringer & Bernstein!

   2370883

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