We’ve been hearing for a while how AOL mistreats its bloggers as a matter of course. Maybe we’ve become desensitized after hearing so many stories about shitty goings-on at Engadget and the Huffington Post. But you should read this personal account posted at The Awl, because it’s a smart, sad look at exactly how poorly AOL is treating their workers, concluding with a condescending mass e-mail that went out to freelancers on Wednesday:
Hi there —
Thank you very much for your contributions to AOL. As we have discussed on calls and in emails, going forward our editorial direction is to build a great team of full-time editors, writers, and reporters. To that end, we are reducing the scope of AOL’s freelancer program.Per the terms of your agreement with AOL, this note confirms the end of your engagement for content services effective Wednesday, April 6, 2011. Rest assured, you will be paid for your content and services through this date, disbursed to you per AOL’s regular payment schedule in late May.
We greatly appreciate your contributions and are available to answer any questions you may have. Please email freelancers@teamaol.com with any inquiries.
This letter probably went through several drafts to ensure maximum dickishness.
Really? There are a lot of people who work there asses off for shit pay in fucked up conditions. And this is what you find objectionable enough to post on? WTF. Did you read the article you linked to?
To be fair, a mass firing e-mail is a mass firing e-mail, there’s only so nice it can be. We rarely walk around and say “Wow, what a beautiful pile of dog shit!”
When is AOL coming to collect those 10 boxes of smaple disks they had me clean up off the street ? I have been storing them for 10 years and the guy has not shown up yet.
Pour some smaple smyrup on them.