Paramount Global is moving forward with a second wave of layoffs, which is impacting workers at CBS-owned television stations and productions.
The layoffs were announced in a memo penned by Paramount’s three co-CEOs, including CBS CEO George Cheeks, and are part of a $500 million cost reduction effort ahead of Paramount’s merger with Skydance Media.
Employees at CBS-owned TV stations are among those being let go, including workers at TV stations in New York City (WCBS, Channel 2 and WLNY, Channel 55) and Los Angeles (KCBS, Channel 2 and KCAL-TV, Channel 9). Some positions at CBS News bureaus and CBS TV production studios in New York City, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. are also being released, according to a statement from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), a labor union that represents broadcast engineers and other skilled workers in TV.
“We’re disappointed that CBS was unable to find a way to retain these highly skilled professionals in their operation,” said Robert Prunn, the IBEW’s Director of Broadcasting and Telecommunications. “IBEW members have been producing CBS broadcasts since before the invention of television, and these layoffs are a hard pill to swallow.
Prunn said IBEW will work “with our members and CBS to ensure that the terms of the IBEW-CBS contract are followed closely and that our members receive all of the notice and benefits due to them during this period of transition.”
“We understand that there are additional pressures on CBS due to the pending Skydance Media takeover,” said IBEW International President Kenneth Cooper. “As the largest union representing CBS employees, we will continue to monitor the network’s actions and follow the sale’s approval process by the FCC and other government entities involved.”
All told, around 15 percent of Paramount’s U.S.-based workforce will receive pink slips by the time job cuts are complete. Paramount expects to incur a restructuring charge of between $300 million and $400 million associated with the layoffs.
“Like the entire media industry, we are working to accelerate streaming profitability while at the same time adjusting to the evolving landscape in our traditional businesses,” Paramount’s co-CEOs wrote in their memo to workers on Tuesday. “In order to set Paramount up for continued success, we are taking these actions.”
“Days like today are never easy,” they continued. “It is difficult to say goodbye to valued colleagues, and to those departing, we are incredibly grateful for your countless contributions.”
There have been many difficult days at Paramount over the past few years, with the company releasing workers at MTV, Nickelodeon, Noggin, CBS News and Showtime and cutting its employee headcount in New Zealand, Australia and its other overseas business units.
Wokers at several CBS-owned stations were also released earlier this year, impacting roles at outlets in Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, San Francisco, Sacramento and Seattle.
The full memo written by Paramount’s co-CEOs appears below:
Hi Everyone,
We are following up on the note below to inform you that today, we will begin phase two of our workforce reductions in the U.S.
Like the entire media industry, we are working to accelerate streaming profitability while at the same time adjusting to the evolving landscape in our traditional businesses. In order to set Paramount up for continued success, we are taking these actions, and after today, 90 percent of these reductions will be complete.
Days like today are never easy. It is difficult to say goodbye to valued colleagues, and to those departing, we are incredibly grateful for your countless contributions.
We appreciate everyone’s resilience and commitment to delivering some of the biggest hits across TV and Film, and for continuing the hard but necessary work to best position the company for the future.
Thank you,
George, Chris & Brian
