RTE stars including Sharon Ni Bheolain and Bryan Dobson have allegedly been told to take the bus by management.
New tough cost-saving plans at the State broadcaster have been handed to all staff, with no exceptions from the rules.
Rules apparently include all staff having to take public transport between 7am and 11.30pm, and first class travel has been totally axed.
Staff also must minimise waiting time for their taxis and it “should not exceed 10 minutes” and hire cars can only be a “Ford Focus or equivalent type car”.
On your bike: Bryan may have to use this for work journeys | VIPIreland.com
Journalists are even being told not to use their cars for journeys more than 100km long in a bid to slash expense payments, the Star newspaper reported.
However staff have lashed out at the plans saying it will affect journalists’ ability to do their job, with plans to fight the rules.
“There’s a feeling here that blood is now being drawn from a stone,” a source said. “The staff have had their wages cut again and again as the station chased a sustainable cost-basis.
“But these cuts will tear at every RTE journalist’s ability to do their job… these cuts just won’t work.”
They come at the same time as UTV Ireland is about to enter the news market, with plans for a nightly news show.
