Off The Ball Official Thread <Mod Note - Post #1, #533, #6651>

The Irish Times is being sued by its Rome correspondent in an Italian labour court for tens of thousands of euros after his employment with the newspaper was terminated acrimoniously after 31 years.

Paddy Agnew, who is still listed as the newspaper’s Rome correspondent on its website, has not written for the newspaper since last March. Recent stories published by The Irish Times concerning Italy were provided by Reuters or the Associated Press agencies.

Agnew, author of the book Forza Italia: A Journey In Search of Italy and its Football, has written for The Irish Times since 1986. His departure has upset a number of his former colleagues. He recently wrote to other journalists in the newspaper to tell them how his employment was “summarily terminated” in a manner that caused him both “angst and sadness”.

Last February 8 he met then editor Kevin O’Sullivan at his own request for what he thought was a normal meeting for a foreign correspondent back in Dublin. At the meeting, O’Sullivan said Agnew’s €50,000 salary would be cut to €20,000 because of the newspaper’s financial difficulties. Agnew said this was the first time a cut was raised with him.

The following day he wrote to the editor pointing out the effect this would have on him given The Irish Times represented 90% of his income. A month later O’Sullivan phoned him to say the cut would be to €15,000. He said Deirdre Veldon, the Irish Times’s managing editor, then wrote to him to say the paper needed to end its arrangement with him from March 31. “Her letter offered no contract/salary/payment at all,” wrote Agnew. “Zero. Three weeks notice at the end of 31 years.”


After Agnew wrote to Liam Kavanagh, managing director of The Irish Times, and some board members to complain about his treatment he was offered a new contract. This required up to six articles a week for €500, global exclusivity, a renunciation of all his employment rights and an ex gratia payment of €50,000.

Agnew rejected this and a later 18% improved offer because “they did not represent a fair severance settlement in view of a pensionless future”. Both contracts “required roughly double the work for 50% of the salary”.

He said he did not write for the paper after March in the absence of an agreement. This prompted the newspaper to say that because he had “turned down assignments” it was forced to “terminate” the relationship.

Agnew said it was “staggering” to discover after 31 years reporting on earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, Popes, three World Cups, five European Championships, three G7/8s, mafia cases, Berlusconi and his “bunga bunga”, and much else besides, that “one was never ‘employed’ ”.

He said his Italian lawyer advised him that the newspaper had incurred “serious liabilities” to him given that “a verbal contract resulted in a modest salary” with no provision for pension or social welfare contributions.

Last week neither Kavanagh nor Paul O’Neill, the new editor of The Irish Times, responded to requests for comment.