Daily Monitor has come down hard on deadlines, with management telling staff that waiting for newspapers was costing the company millions of shillings in tea and flushing of toilets, the UG Bulletin has learnt.
In a communication to staff, the newspaper said it spends over shs263,000 daily on water bills, electricity, sugar, tear leaves and even toilet paper when newspaper delays to go to press – which translates to shs6.85 million a month and shs82.26 million a year.
According to the communication, water used in flushing toilets and hand washing in the evenings alone has been taking Daily Monitor’s coffers back by shs154,000 per month, translating into shs1.9 million a year.
“Someone is obviously exaggerating our ‘pushing’ talents or finding excuses to balance some accounts books,” said a Monitor staffer in confidence.
“We don’t download southwards that much, I’m very sure of that.”
The staffer said it would have instead made a little more sense to claim that money is spent on internet downloads like watching YouTube and TikTok but not flushing toilets.
The independent media company also says it spends shs7.4 million per year on mineral dispenser for cold and hot tea drinking, and shs14.5 million on beverages.
Daily Monitor also says it spends sh3.6 million per month, translating into shs43.3 million for power on lighting, press and auxiliary whereas shs15.2 million is spent annually on transporting staff back home very late.
In total, the company says it spends shs6.8 million per month and shs82.3 million annually in costs accruing due to missed deadlines due to waiting for pages.
The Namuwongo-based publisher is serious on cutting down these huge costs. And the solution is for staff to go home early and use own toilets.
The development comes on the heels of efforts by media houses to cut costs amid tougher markets defined by shrinking copy sales and advert revenues.
In the past, several media houses have laid off workers in a move aimed at cutting costs.
