Nine stars ‘ticked off’ after 60 Minutes forces staff to fly economy as network tightens the belt – but these celebrities are exempt from the new rule

Channel Nine has further tightened its belt following the network’s recent bloodbath of layoffs.

Staff at the network’s flagship news program, 60 Minutes, have been told they will only be allowed to fly economy class during work trips, according to The Australian.

According to the publication’s sources, staffers at the show are “angry” about the new mandate.

“The news was not well received,” the report said.

However, two well-known names from the weekly news program are said to be exempt from the new rule. Liz Hayes and Tara Brown do not have to fly economy class.

Hayes, Brown, Tom Steinfort, Nick McKenize and Amelia Adams are the current presenters of the program.

Ny Breaking Australia has reached out to Nine for comment.

The latest blow to Nine staff comes less than a week after the network launched a new round of layoffs.

Nine Entertainment’s publishing arm has accepted 85 voluntary redundancies at the Australian Financial Review, Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, WAtoday and Brisbane Times, just weeks after hundreds of job cuts.

A number of experienced journalists and editors are among those voluntarily laid off.

They include AFR chief correspondent Aaron Patrick, SMH chief sports writer Andrew Webster, former Herald gossip columnist Andrew Hornery and The Age culture editor Osman Faruqi. The Australian reported.

However, two well-known names on the weekly news programme are said to be exempt from the new ‘economy only’ rule, with Liz Hayes and Tara Brown not being asked to fly economy. Both pictured this month

The company has also announced plans to cut about 40 jobs at Pedestrian, about half its workforce.

The Sydney Morning Herald has learned that the company’s more niche publications are not expected to survive the cuts and that most, if not all, of their staff will be laid off.

A spokesperson for the network said that the affected employees from newsrooms, print departments and audience and commercial growth departments will leave in the coming months.

‘As announced in June, we have been working with our people to reshape the publishing industry to ensure a sustainable future in response to the challenging advertising market and the collapse of the Meta “Deal,” the spokesperson said.

The latest blow to Nine’s staff comes less than a week after the network began a new round of layoffs (pictured at its Melbourne headquarters)

‘We offer support to all employees who make the transition to our company.

“Each of these people leaves with our gratitude and appreciation for their contribution to Nine’s industry-leading mastheads.”

The layoffs are part of a $30 million cost-cutting plan for the media giant that will see about 200 of its 5,000 jobs eliminated.

The decision led to the Pedestrian Group boss announcing his departure, as well as plans to sever deals with Vice, Refinery29, Gizmodo, Lifehacker and Kotaku.

About 500 journalists across the country went on a five-day strike on the eve of the Paris Olympics to demand better pay and working conditions.

Tory Maguire, managing director of Nine Publishing and head of The Australian Financial Review, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, Brisbane Times and WAtoday, said in June that the end of the Meta deal also had implications for the publishing sector.

“This week … the Meta deal ended and the significant revenue from that deal has stopped,” she said.

‘While we are encouraged by our constructive discussions with the federal government about enforcing the code, the only thing that is certain at this time is that we do not have an ongoing agreement with Meta.

“The advertising market remains challenging and while publisher and sales teams are working together on a range of new initiatives, our FY25 forecast reflects the market outlook.”

The earlier staff cuts and a proposed 10.5 percent pay increase over three years led to the Nine’s heavily unionized staff going on strike during the first five days of the Olympics.

Editors returned to newsrooms across the country after top executives agreed to an additional one percent pay raise and demands were made.

These included the ethical use of artificial intelligence, a commitment to reporting on diversity in the workplace and agreeing to negotiate a fair deal for freelancers.

The announcement of restructuring at Nine came in the same week that Seven West Media laid off 150 staff in a major round of job cuts, with three senior managers leaving the company.