Australia’s biggest media companies are shutting down offices and making workers redundant in what has been a brutal 48 hours.
We’ve already seen COVID-19 start to impact the TV industry with Seven asking staff to take pay cuts and Channel 10 implementing a staff shutdown after Easter, but now other media companies are taking drastic measures to stay afloat in these troubling times.
TV Blackbox can reveal WIN TV, Sky News, Endemol Shine Australia and Foxtel have all made staff redundant over the past couple of days as the advertising downturn takes hold.
Sky News CEO Paul Whittaker sent an e-mail to staff yesterday warning of impending changes;
Over recent days we have unfortunately seen many companies having to reduce their workforce due to mandated business closures, travel and trade restrictions, and rapidly changing consumer habits. This will unfortunately have an impact on jobs at News Corp Australia and Sky News Australia.
While the public are turning to our trusted news in huge numbers, falling business confidence is impacting our advertising revenue and that of all media businesses.
I want to assure you that my priority is to minimise job losses across our business. However, together we need to move quickly to do everything we can to secure the long-term health of our business and retain jobs. As a result we need to significantly reduce costs across all areas of our business.
All non-essential projects have been halted, while all travel and entertainment expenses have stopped.
Over the coming days we will need to talk to some of you about a range of options for you to help reduce our cost base. Where possible, these discussions will include part-time work, 9-day fortnights for non-operational staff and taking annual or long service leave. We will also be directing some of you to take some leave across the Easter period.
Your Manager may have conversations with you over the coming days about some of these cost saving initiatives.
Those “cost saving initiatives” have included staff redundancies with sources telling TV Blackbox respected anchor Jacinta Tynan will be leaving the company.
Despite news programs dominating TV ratings charts as viewers tune in for the latest news on COVID-19, those ratings are not translating into advertising dollars which is why WIN TV has decided to close its Canberra bureau, according to trusted sources. TV Blackbox understands this will take effect in a week or two, with an announcement to be made soon.
WIN TV has denied any plans to shut down its Canberra bureau
A report in the SMH today says:
The government could announce a relief package for the besieged regional media sector as soon as next week, Deputy Prime Minister and Nationals leader Michael McCormack has said.
Presumably this would negate any planned closures and we certainly hope that is the case but our sources are adamant plans have been in place.
Multiple sources have also told us there have been mass redundancies at Foxtel and Endemol Shine Australia.
Foxtel is really suffering without sport as a driving force for subscribers and production company Endemol Shine Australia is facing the prospect of not being able to shoot any more shows for the foreseeable future.
Unfortunately we can expect more news like this as the industry tries to deal with an uncertain future.
