In what could be a grim precursor of things to come in the print publishing world, the editorial staff of gay lifestyle magazine Out has been laid off -- but the majority of the staff will continue to work on the magazine, albeit on a freelance basis and without benefits.
Out editor-in-chief Aaron Hicklin told Capital New York that he plans to hire back a certain amount of the staff to create magazine content for his new company, Grand Editorial, which will act as a contractor for Out's owner, Here Media.
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According to Hicklin, the magazine will continue to publish at its current frequency, and other changes are not planned for the title.
"This was not a cost-cutting measure," Hicklin told Capital.
The laid-off employees received one month's severance.
Hicklin said that he hopes to offer long-term contracts to the majority of Out's editorial employees. While benefits and full-time won't be part of the contracts, Hicklin said that the employees will enjoy flexible hours and the opportunity to work on other projects for Grand.
Whew -- what a relief.