Binks Is Here

Commentary on the World

CKMS Continues to Gasp

But, it really makes me feel like we made the right call. From this blog: (don’t actually go to that blog… there’s some horrible music that you can’t actually stop…)

Meanwhile I am also learning about Human Resources as the Staff Communications Liaison for CKMS 100.3 FM . As the university has decided to remove student funding from us, we are currently laying off all of our staff with the exception of 2, and there are many legal issues involving severance, vacation pay, permanent/temporary layoff, reference letters, rights and privileges of the employee once they leave (for example, they are allowed to purchase their existing laptop for 1$; but we have to make sure that all the content on the laptop is transferred, and this involves third parties, etc); then we are rebranding our entire radio station, in hopes of giving ourselves a fresh face, to hopefully get the support of the students and the university back. So we’re in the heat of things now, with meeting with the student council, designing, policy-making, committee forming, many many board meetings…

Man! CKMS just can’t seem to stop! So, yes, TECHNICALLY the board of governors were the ones who removed student funding, as it’s the University board that collects and dispurses ALL fees. HOWEVER! A 2-1 vote where the student body said that it did NOT feel it should pay the CKMS fee any longer prompted Feds to recommend to the board that the fee was removed - so, while technically the University did it; a 2-1 vote WAS held; and is the REASON for the removal.

“So many legal issues”… I can’t buy that there’re all that many. People get fired every day. A company without procedures for something as simple as firing someone is a company in trouble.

“Rights and privilages of the employee once they leave” including BUYING THEIR LAPTOP for $1?!?!? Hell; how much to buy the photocopier? $1 is less then the price of a sandwich. Laptops don’t go bad (OK, their batteries may, but still…). They can sit in a closet until they need to go somewhere - or even better run an auction (CKMS obviously could use the money). Bonus: If you put the laptop in a closet; you don’t need to worry about what information is where. It’ll cost them more then $1 to format and reinstall Windows!

“Rebranding” is all well and good; but CKMS has failed to represent itself to the students for a long time. I’d wager someone in a high position got a bit of a god-complex (the bits of info I can pick up here and there seem to confirm that). Bet the little King wasn’t one of the people who was axed.

I’ve said it before and I”ll say it again - declare it dead. Pick up a storage locker for dirt cheap and put all the equipment in it. Try again in 4 years with a completely new bunch of people.

The interesting thing is that they’re in a University building - and they’re now a pretty well completely independent radio corporation. What does that do to their lease? What does that do to their broadcast license?