Wikia meltdown: layoffs, ...the numbers don't look promising either.... Options

[EricBarbour]

If you punch a timeclock, or you're any kind of consultant, you're not a salaried employee.

That crap has been pulled by Silicon Valley companies for many years. Mostly, they carry people as "consultants", part-timers or temps--and keep them on, year after year, like that. In direct violation of California worker law. Just to save having to pay them overtime and benefits, and to make them easier to fire. Every so often, a disgruntled employee who was treated in this fashion sues, and raises a stink.

The corporations really hate having to pay their hardworking technical staff overtime--so they classify them all as hourly wage workers. The result has been a pitched battle in the state capitol.

Wanna stir up trouble at the WMF? Get friendly with a few of the temps who are undoubtedly working there---and put a little bug in their ears about striking for better treatment, overtime, and fringe benefits.

This post has been edited by EricBarbour: Wed 22nd October 2008, 7:17am

[Milton Roe]

If you punch a timeclock, or you're any kind of consultant, you're not a salaried employee.

That crap has been pulled by Silicon Valley companies for many years. Mostly, they carry people as "consultants", part-timers or temps--and keep them on, year after year, like that. In direct violation of California worker law. Just to save having to pay them overtime and benefits, and to make them easier to fire. Every so often, a disgruntled employee who was treated in this fashion sues, and raises a stink.

The corporations really hate having to pay their hardworking technical staff overtime--so they classify them all as hourly wage workers. The result has been a pitched battle in the state capitol.

Wanna stir up trouble at the WMF? Get friendly with a few of the temps who are undoubtedly working there---and put a little bug in their ears about striking for better treatment, overtime, and fringe benefits.

Yes, well, what IS the essential difference between the wage-worker and the salaried employee in California-- between white and blue collar? Yes, the first one punches a timeclock and is paid by the hour, and overtime if they go over. And you get a lunch hour, etc. The other gets salary and is expected to work through lunch if necessary, and till the job is done. But that's not all. A company can't just convert one type to the other, willy-nilly, at pleasure. The way the law is written, the salaried employees, the white-collar dudes, have to spend a certain amount of their time SUPERVISING other employees. If you can't show you do that, you can't go on salary. And if you DO do that, I'm not sure they can get out of paying you overtime.

Consultants and temps are a different matter. So far as I can tell, they get some of the worst of both worlds, especially if the consultants work and get their benefits from yet a third "temp" like agency which takes a cut. Many temps punch a clock. Many consultants, their white collar counterparts, bill by the hour (or are billed for by the hour by their firm, ala lawyers who aren't partners). In neither case do they have any job security, collective bargaining ability, or opportunity to get seniority. Also, their retirement plans are invariably worse.

The same thing is happening in academia, BTW. Have of college courses are now taught by temp instructors who are hired by the year or even semester, with no opportunity to advance in the system at all. They're just mules to do the grunt work of teaching, while the people who can get grant money lord it over the system with positions and research time.

[cyofee]

Looks like all the interesting comments on the CNET article disappeared.

[UseOnceAndDestroy]

One step further up the wikipedian ladder of relibility - no new facts added:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...8102003431.html

The 10% non-denial denial is now included as an update, sans the weasel word. That number needs to be verified.

[the fieryangel]

One step further up the wikipedian ladder of relibility - no new facts added:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...8102003431.html

The 10% non-denial denial is now included as an update, sans the weasel word. That number needs to be verified.

It seems that the 10% figure has been confirmed (and even Valleywag has changed that), so can this thread title be changed to the confirmed figure?

In email, Greg K. pointed out the following graph, generated from Wikia search statistics. The graph speaks for itself : Traffic on Wikia Search is going down, down, down and has been for months...

[dogbiscuit]

It seems that the 10% figure has been confirmed (and even Valleywag has changed that), so can this thread title be changed to the confirmed figure?

Mod note:specific figure removed

[Somey]

Traffic numbers for the search engine seem to be heading in the right direction, but by now it should be clear that having a business model that depends solely on Google Ads will prove insufficient for many startups to weather the ongoing financial storm and pending recession.

It should be clear?

Wikia's Alexa ranking seems to be hovering around the low 300's lately, which is pretty good considering the competition, but pretty bad considering that they had to raise $14 million to get there. You'd think that with $14 million they could have hired someone to come up with an idea for an product that people would actually pay for, but maybe that's asking a bit much for a mere $14 million...

Today is supposed to be the Big Day when Uncyclopedia's URL's are all redirected to uncyclopedia.wikia.com. I'm guessing that they're all crossing their fingers in the hopes that this will push their ranking up into the 200's, which might work if they start promoting Uncyclopedia a bit more - there's plenty of quality content there if you know where to look. (A number of Uncyc users tried very hard to convince them to redirect it to "fuck.wikia.com" instead, but with little success.)

I should probably restate my own position that aside from the top-level management, I have nothing against Wikia as a website, or even as a business entity, and of course I wouldn't want to see anything bad happen to Uncyclopedia, such as a fire, earthquake, hurricane, or meteor strike.

Moreover, our very own LessHorrid vanU (at least I assume it's him) has written an article about WR there, which looks like it has a much better chance of survival than the last attempt, which IIRC was deleted within the first 6 hours. This one has already lasted 4 days, though that may only be because Dave Gerard hasn't logged in recently.

Don't all go and vandalize it at once...

[flash]

Today is supposed to be the Big Day when Uncyclopedia's URL's are all redirected to uncyclopedia.wikia.com.

I hadn't realised that uncyclopedia was actually RUN by Jimbo / wikipedia - I assumed it was a sort of independent spoof site. That's a sneaky way to control criticism isn't it? Does that make it a kind of sockencylopedia?

It certainly explains why its so unfunny...

[Emperor]

Classic Jimbo, changing the rules in the middle of the game.

This is why I won't write for him anymore, under any conditions. If the Uncyc "community" had any guts they'd fork it, today, before it's too late.