Agreement with employee representatives on social plan following reallocation of printing order

Cologne, 24 November 2023 – Just one week after the announcement of the re-award of the printing contract for the newspapers of Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger Medien on 4 October 2023, negotiations began with the employee representatives regarding the planned closure of the Cologne printing centre. After almost a month of intensive talks between DuMont Druck, RZZ Versand and the respective works councils, a total package totalling 21.8 million euros was agreed.

The package includes severance pay, continued salary payments and an inflation compensation bonus. The exact distribution to the employees is now to be determined as soon as possible between the parties. The redundancies – both for the employees of DuMont Druck and RZZ Versand – will be announced in January 2024. The financing of the overall package has been made possible by voluntary contributions totalling almost 15 million euros from the shareholders.

The titles Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, Kölnische Rundschau and EXPRESS as well as various advertising papers have been printed by Mittelrhein Verlag in Koblenz since the beginning of October. The employees of the Cologne printing centre and RZZ Versand were released from their duties while continuing to receive their contractual remuneration, including individual bonuses and allowances, as there were no further employment opportunities.

“We are pleased that we were able to quickly reach an agreement with the works councils of DuMont Druck and RZZ Versand in the interests of all affected employees and draw up a redundancy programme. We are confident that many of the employees will be able to find new employment in the foreseeable future thanks to the extensive measures in the redundancy programme,” said Thomas Schultz-Homberg, CEO of Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger Medien.

With the leave of absence lasting until the end of their notice period, the companies DuMont Druck and RZZ Versand are giving employees the opportunity and time to plan their future career path. In addition, the companies are providing the affected employees with targeted support in their professional reorientation, in particular by setting up a transfer company. This transfer company is intended to offer protection against unemployment until the beginning of 2025 and also guarantees professional support in the search for a new job.

The new award of the printing contract creates the necessary flexibility for Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger Medien to produce its print products for its readers at a cost level in line with the market and to develop into a purely digital publisher in the long term.