More bad news at Miami Herald

"In other words, it's a huge sh*t sandwich, and we're all gonna have to take a bite." -Lt. Lockhart in Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket"

via Romenesko:

"Publishers at McClatchy newspapers [which includes the Miami Herald] told their staffs Thursday: "We are implementing an across-the-board, one-year wage freeze effective September 1, 2008. This means that if you are scheduled to receive a merit or salary review between September 1, 2008 and August 31, 2009, your review will occur one year later than scheduled. ...This freeze is being instituted across all of McClatchy, including at corporate and McClatchy Interactive."

A source at the Miami Herald tells me that they've received a memo similar to this which was sent to employees at the McClatchy-owned Herald in Rock Hill SC.

My source also says that raises at the Herald in recent years really haven't kept up with inflation anyway and adds that some young reporters are being paid as little as $15 hour so this freeze just pours salt on open wounds.