PETALING JAYA, Nov 8 — More than 4,600 Media Prima Berhad employees have been offered to take up a mutual separation scheme (MSS) as part of the group's renationalisation and consolidation plan.
The group is targeting 10 per cent of its workforce to accept the offer which will remain open until the end of the month.
A Media Prima senior management officer said letters had been issued to its staff regardless of their years of service in the company.
“Everyone, including full-time and contractual staff, were offered to take up the MSS scheme yesterday regardless of their years of service,” said the officer, who requested anonymity.
He said the scheme was offered to staff from The New Straits Times Press group which includes the New Straits Times, Berita Harian and Harian Metro, its four commercial free-to-air television stations — TV3, ntv7, 8TV and TV9 — its radio stations, Media Prime digital as well as its outdoor advertising group Big Tree.
“The exercise is done to ensure we have a leaner workforce as we continue to enhance productivity.”
On Thursday, the group announced it recorded a revenue of RM1.1 billion and profit after tax of RM106.7 million for the first nine months of the financial year ending December 31, which was lower against its previous corresponding period by 12 per cent and 30 per cent last year.
Asked if the exercise was taken as the group had recorded a lower financial revenue for the first nine months of the year compared to 2013, the officer said the company had to take steps to ensure it remains resilient against intense industry competition and increasingly challenging operating environment.
Staff who choose to take up the offer will be paid compensation equivalent to one-and-a-half times their length of service in years multiplies by their last drawn base salary. The MSS scheme is expected to be completed by December 15.
