Agencies cutting employees, salaries after lacklustre year for ad revenue

According to estimates from various sources the money spent on advertising in Poland dropped by 5% to 15% in 2001. Rzeczpospolita reported that there is no significant agency in Poland which had not cut employment and reduced salaries in the last few months. "In some extreme cases certain agencies laid off as many as 30% of their staff," said an ad agency employee who wished to remain anonymous. "And in some cases salary cuts ranged from 10% to 30%, depending on the situation." Officially, managers at advertising agencies admit that the situation is very serious and is forcing them to look for cuts everywhere. "For an advertising agency the capital is the employees," says Jaroslaw Ziembinski of Leo Burnett. "Therefore, any savings are made at the expense of salary levels." Ziembinski added that the agency's revenues increased by 20% last year, making 2001 the best year in the firm's history. "That's why we did not have to take such steps," said Ziembinski. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B3) A.Z.