Union statement and Publisher’s response

Dear Metro readers,

We want to update you on the situation of the newspaper. Last January, at the end of a tough negotiation, we signed an agreement with further sacrifices borne by the editorial team to keep alive – in the face of a very difficult economic-editorial situation – this historic freepress newspaper: therefore a drastic reduction in staff (with early retirements and resignations), in addition to the extension of the heavy social safety nets.

Three months later we find ourselves with the company paying salaries seriously late and only partially. An unsustainable situation, while we continue to navigate by sight, without long-term strategies, with printing and distribution reduced to a minimum, without any technological investment and with an inconsistent online presence.

A dangerous and unacceptable drift that cannot leave us in silence. For this reason, the journalists of Metro – a pioneer newspaper of the revolutionary freepress phenomenon in Italy – will fight with every means to prevent the agony and the distortion of that precious informative authority that they have built in over twenty years of serious and constant commitment daily.

Metro Cdr

PUBLISHER’S STATEMENT

We acknowledge the press release from METRO’s CDR and share the concern of all journalists in the face of a negative economic situation which, as underlined, particularly affects the editorial segment.

This situation was recently also highlighted in the FIEG press release of 12 April 2024, highlighted on our website which, through the mouth of President Andrea Riffeser Monti, reports a 13.7% drop in press advertising turnover in the first months of 2024. and even a collapse of 53.6% for legal advertising in newspapers.

As far as we are concerned, the situation is all the more worrying, given that at the end of December 2023, our historic concessionaire Manzoni, of the Gedi Group, after a long association lasting more than ten years, left us without valid advertising collection alternatives.

This decision follows the resolutions of the Elkan-Agnelli Family Group to want to demobilize its investments in Italy and, in particular, in publishing, with the planned sale of all local publishing titles and even the production of motor vehicles abroad ( the new Alfa Romeo, which until yesterday was called Milano and now Junior, will be produced in Poland).

Our historic newspaper lives only and exclusively on advertising and does not receive, like other newspapers, direct and/or indirect editorial contributions and is facing this contingent situation head on, without ever giving up its authority, competence, dignity, autonomy and independence.

We appreciate the pugnacious spirit of journalists and reiterate the Publisher’s firm intention to fight to maintain the constituent values ​​of METRO unchanged, also in the interest of the vast reading public.